Just this morning, when we reported that Charlie Heaton from Stranger Things was in talks to play Cannonball in director Josh Boone’s X-Men spin-off New Mutants, we noted that there was a rumor that Henry Zaga from Netflix’s 13 Reasons Why was in the running to play fellow new mutant Sunspot. Now, Variety is reporting that Fox has made that casting official, with Zaga signing on to play the Brazilian hero with various sun-themed superpowers. (Basically, he can absorb solar energy that gives him super strength, he can fire off heat blasts, and he can transform into a powered-up state that makes him look all black and fiery.)
Zaga himself happens to be from Brazil, which Boone noted in an Instagram post about the announcement:
As we’ve previously reported, New Mutants will be a “full-fledged horror movie,” and along with Zaga (and probably Heaton), it will feature Maisie Williams, Anya Taylor Joy, and Rosario Dawson.