‘The Mother’: New Trailer, The Release Date & Everything Else About The J.Lo Movie

Jennifer Lopez certainly knows how to pack a punch on screen. While action movies were her mainstay in the ’90s, the superstar has since gone on to become a rom-com queen and world-renowned singer. But now the Anaconda star is putting her boots on once more with Netflix’s The Mother, which will be released this Mother’s Day weekend.

The official trailer was released on April 11, 2023. After years apart, Jennifer reunites with the daughter she had to give up. She teaches her daughter how to survive as two of J.Lo’s enemies seek to destroy her and everything she loves. The first teaser dropped way back in September 2022.

In addition to starring in the film, which is rated TV-MA, Jennifer also produced the movie. Want to know more about The Mother? Learn everything about the Netflix movie right here.

The Mother Cast

The Cast

J.Lo is the main star, as her deadly assassin character. The daughter she is risking it all to protect is being played by newcomer Lucy Paez, who was last seen in Silencio.

Little is known about the other characters. Omari Hardwick, who starred in Zach Snyder’s Army of the Dead, will be taking the role of an FBI agent, who is an ally of the assassin.

The Handmaid’s Tale star Joseph Fiennes will be playing one of the bad guys, as well as Gael García Bernal, star of such hits as Y Tu Mama Tambien, Bad Education, and Mozart in the Jungle. Rounding out the cast is Paul Raci, who recently starred in Amazon’s Sound of Metal.

Back when she announced her Netflix partnership in 2021, Jennifer told Variety she thought there was “no better home” for her Nuyorican Productions “than a forward-leaning content creation company that seeks to defy conventional wisdom and directly market to the millions across the globe who no longer view art and entertainment with the kind of boundaries and limitations of the past.”

Director & Crew

Lovecraft Country creator Misha Green wrote the original screenplay with revisions by Straight Outta Compton‘s Andrea Berloff, per Deadline. Later Peter Craig was added as a co-writer.

The Mother was directed by Niki Caro, known for Disney’s Mulan remake, The Zookeeper’s Wife, and Whale Rider. Jennifer is also acting as producer alongside Elaine Goldsmith Thomas for Nuyorican Productions.

Release Date & Where To Watch

The Mother will go straight to streaming on May 12, 2023, on Netflix. Fans should be sure to have their logins ready, as the film won’t be screening in theaters.

Plot Details

The Mother shows how far a parent will go for their child. As the synopsis from Netflix reads: “Years ago, a deadly assassin was forced to go on the run, which forced her to give up her only daughter. Years later, the female assassin returns her order to protect her daughter from some extremely dangerous men.”

The action-packed thriller is said to be “in the spirit of the Luc Besson classic The Professional,” according to Deadline. That sounds about right, as The Professional saw a former assassin teaching his hitman craft to a young girl (Natalie Portman in her star-making role).

Production Timeline

Jennifer was first linked to The Mother when it was announced in Jan. 2021 via Deadline. At the time, only the superstar was attached to the cast. The project would become the first project of her multi-year deal with Netflix, which was first reported by Variety in Jun. 2021. Joseph Fiennes, Gael Garcia Bernal, and Omari Hardwick’s casting emerged in Sep. that year.

Shortly after, principal photography began in Vancouver, British Columbia on October 4, 2021. Near the end of their time in Canada, filming was suspended on January 11, 2022, due to a COVID outbreak, as reported by People.

They picked things back up in March 2022, filming on the Spanish island of Gran Canaria. The cast and crew really made themselves at home on Gran Canaria, which they used to depict Cuba in the movie. The Mother wrapped shooting by the end of that month.

The Mother’s First Footage

In February 2021, a super small tease of the film was included in Netflix’s 2022 Movie Preview Trailer, where Jennifer can be seen on a fishing boat in a remote location, as she looks at the camera and says, “Tonight is movie night.”

The first official teaser of The Mother premiered during Netflix’s TUDUM event on September 24, 2022. The opening moments feature Jennifer training for the fight of her life. “She needs protection right now,” Jennifer says. There are glimpses of J.Lo on the run, out in the middle of the snowy wilderness, and more. “If there’s trouble, come find me,” Jennifer says in the trailer’s final moments.

What To Watch While You Wait

As The Mother sounds like a gritty tale, why not revisit some of Jennifer’s other dramatic movies while waiting for the premiere? Check her out in Hustlers, The Boy Next Door, and her star-making turn alongside George Clooney in 1998’s Out of Sight. 

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