Mario Lopez Developing ‘Menudo’ Competition Series Inspired by Iconic Latin Boy Band

By Will Thorne

LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) – Mario Lopez is looking for the next big Latin boy band.

The “Access Hollywood” host is on board to executive produce “Menudo,” an hour-long competition show in development at Universal Television Alternative Studio. Named after the iconic band, the show will search for and build the next iteration of Menudo.

No network is currently attached to the project and whether or not any of the original band members are involved is as yet unclear.

“I grew up as a huge fan of Menudo and I’m thrilled to be a part of bringing this iconic band back to the world,” said Lopez in a statement.

Formed in 1977 and disbanded in 2009, Menudo made a total of 35 albums which have sold a whopping 60 million copies worldwide. Their success also led to the release of two feature films and a TV series about them, as well as spawning a beauty pageant, dolls, trading cards, watches and even a board game. Several of the biggest names in Latin pop, including Ricky Martin and Draco Rosa, started off their careers with Menudo.

Lopez is producing the project through Via Mar Productions, alongside Audrey Morrissey and Jayson Belt for Live Animals, Mark Schulman for 3 Arts Entertainment, and Patrick Hughes, Paul Vasquez, and Harvey Russell for Foundation Management.

The former “Extra” host made the switch over to NBCUniversal’s “Access Hollywood” back in July 2019, signing a deal to develop a range of TV projects for Universal TV and Universal TV Alternative Studio in the process.

This development news continues a busy year for Lopez, which kicked off with the launch of his Netflix multi-cam comedy “The Expanding Universe of Ashley Garcia” in mid-February. Lopez is also set to reprise the role of A.C. Slater in the forthcoming Peacock revival of “Saved By the Bell,” which will be available upon the streamer’s launch on July 15. Peacock released a teaser trailer featuring Lopez in-character earlier this month.