Let’s be clear: Jorge R. Gutiérrez’s Maya and the Three is set in a mythical land inspired by Mexican and Mesoamerican culture. The Book of Life director has drawn from Incan, Aztec, and Mayan mythology, as well as a smattering of Caribbean culture, to create an epic fantasy TV series for Netflix, and you can see it all in Maya’s first trailer.
The idea of a princess who not-so-secretly wants to be a warrior is a rather familiar one, but things take a turn when Maya discovers the God of War claimed her life long ago. If she refuses to submit, it will mean bad news for the entire planet, so she decides to fulfil an ancient prophecy that will summon three mythic warriors that can help her fight the gods themselves.
That’s a pretty hardcore premise — and worthy of being called a “Mexican Lord of the Rings” — but rest assured the fantasy series is still kid-friendly, as the first trailer shows:
What’s really clear about the series, though, is how much it’s a “hyper, hyper, hyper love letter to Mexican culture and to the ancient culture of Mesoamerica, the Caribbean, and a little bit of South American culture,” as Gutierrez called it at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival. And just in case you didn’t recognise the show’s voice actors, as Deadline reports, Maya’s cast is wild:
- Zoe Saldaña as Princess Maya
- Gabriel Iglesias as Picchu
- Allen Maldonado as Rico
- Stephanie Beatriz as Chimi
- Diego Luna as Zatz
- Gael García Bernal as the Jaguar Triplets
- Alfred Molina as the God of War
- Kate del Castillo as the Goddess of Death,
- Danny Trejo as the God of Earthquakes
- Cheech Marin as the Gods of Wind and Storm
- Rosie Perez as the Goddess of Gators
- Queen Latifah as Gran Bruja
- Wyclef Jean as Gran Brujo
- Jorge R. Gutiérrez as King Teca
- Sandra Equihua as Queen Teca
- Isabela Merced as the Widow Queen
- Chelsea Random as the Goddess of Tattoos
- Joaquín Cosío as the God of Bats
- Carlos Alazraqui as the God of Dark Magic
- Eric Bauza as the God of Jungle Animals
- Rita Moreno as Ah Puch
Maya and the Three will be a nine-episode series, and will debut on Netflix sometime this spring (there’s no concrete release date at the moment).