Luis Fonsi Moved the Needle in Latin Music — Now He Wants To Do the Same in Film  

Luis Fonsi is on a winning streak. The Puerto Rican star is celebrating 25 years in music with a big tour that’s set to wrap in his beloved home country next year. His LP El Viaje just won a Latin Grammy for best pop vocal album, and the set is nominated for a Grammy in the best Latin pop album category. He’s also set to make his debut on the big screen on Friday (Nov. 22) as the male lead Rafael Reza, in the indie film Say a Little Prayer.

Fonsi has acted before in television and theater, and making the leap from that to movies was in his plans– just not so soon, the “Despacito” hitmaker tells Billboard.

“It was an unexpected opportunity. It was one of these things that you think about and say to yourself, ‘Eventually I would love to dive into that world and see what doors open.’ But I wasn’t there yet,” Fonsi explains. “I was literally in the middle of working on an album and a tour — but a friend of mine, who is also connected to the movie’s production team, sent me the script, saying they were looking for the male lead role. I was already thinking it would be a ‘no’ even before reading the first page. I read it all the way to the end during a flight from Miami to Madrid, and I was like, ‘Wait a minute, this could be interesting.’”

Say a Little Prayer, a rom-com starring Fonsi, Vannessa Vasquez, Jackie Cruz and Vivian Lamoli, centers around three best friends (Adela, Ruby and Cristina) who live in San Antonio, Texas and have had little-to-no luck in their romantic relationships. They resort to reciting a powerful prayer to find their “lost” husbands, which brings about chaos in their friendship — but it also brings Rafael into their lives. His magnetic charm as art curator and former musician seduces two of the friends, but only one has his heart.

“I could see myself — not only through the character, but through these stories. We’ve all gone through similar things, because it’s a film about friendship, family and love. So, I thought it would be the right first step,” says Fonsi, adding that he worked with an acting coach for the film. “I felt extremely comfortable shooting the film. There was never a moment of panic or thinking I didn’t belong there. The fact that I got to write the music also gave me a lot of confidence.”

Fonsi wrote the film’s official song, “Prayer in Your Eyes,” which his character performs during a date with Adela (Vasquez). He wrote and produced the song in two days thinking he didn’t need to turn it in until after he had shot his scenes. “I didn’t know it was going to be part of the story; I thought it was going to be the credits song of the film so I kinda put it off,” he says with a laugh. “Literally three days before I traveled to San Antonio to do my scenes, Patrick, the director, is like, ‘Hey, I really need to hear the song. We’re shooting a scene around it.’ Good thing is I work well under pressure. And I’m proud of the song. It has a little bit of country influence. It’s not country music, it’s a pop song but I automatically transported myself to San Antonio. It’s in English and that was fun too because I don’t do a lot of writing in English.”

The significance of his first big break on the big screen isn’t lost on Fonsi. As someone who has broken records in Latin music and changed the genre’s landscape with his global smash hit “Despacito,” he’s excited about contributing to the diversification of the film industry. Hispanic and Latin actors continue to remain excluded or left behind in Hollywood, according to a 2023 USC Annenberg Study, despite Latinos now making up nearly 20% of the U.S. population.

“I’m out here promoting Latin music every day, wanting it to be global, and there’s a lot of room to grow when we talk about Latin actors and directors in film,” says Fonsi. “For me, it has been so powerful to move the needle in Latin music and be part of what has happened with Latin music worldwide. And if I can move the needle ever so slightly in the film industry and be part of it, it’s going to make me feel so proud.”

Currently on his 25 Años Tour, which will wrap in March in Puerto Rico, Fonsi is reflecting on his latest wins, including a Latin Grammy for an album that captures his journey across these 25 years.

“El Viaje is very special to me,” he explains. “From the beginning, it was always an album; I wasn’t trying to write a radio-friendly song and a bunch of other songs. It started off as a concept album, every song is a place, city, a celebration of my 25-year journey. It meant the world to win because it reaffirmed that they got what I was trying to say. To get a nomination for the Grammys was icing on the cake. These past 25 years, there’s been so much evolution, not being afraid of reinventing myself,.

He continues to reflect: “I love that in every phase of this career, there’s something new they throw at you, and you figure out how to make it work within your world without really abandoning who you are as an artist. That’s what makes it fun.”

Directed by Patrick Perez Vidauri and written by Nancy De Los Santos-Reza, Say a Little Prayer premieres Friday in select AMC theaters across the country.