After breaking out with the cult hit Los Espookys, Julio Torres is making the jump to movies with Problemista, a comedy that shows a different side to the American dream that Torres is pulling triple duty on — starring, writing and directing.
With studio/distributor A24 behind it, Problemista has the makings of a potential indie hit among the slate of 2024 new movies.
Find out everything you need to know about Problemista right here.
Problemista release date
Problemista is now playing exclusively in limited US movie theaters (Los Angeles and New York City). The movie is set to expand to additional US cities and regions in the coming weeks.
At this time, we don't have any info on when Problemista is going to be released outside of the US.
Problemista plot
Julio Torres wrote the original script of Problemista. Here is the official synopsis:
"Alejandro is an aspiring toy designer from El Salvador, struggling to bring his unusual ideas to life in New York City. As time on his work visa runs out, a job assisting an erratic art-world outcast becomes his only hope to stay in the country and realize his dream. From writer/director Julio Torres comes a surreal adventure through the equally treacherous worlds of New York City and the US Immigration system."
Problemista cast
Torres also stars in Problemista as Alejandro. Torres biggest project to date has been Los Espookys, which he created and also starred in. But among his other acting credits are lending his voice for The Great North, a role in the indie Together Together, and appearing in TV shows like Shril, Search Party, Tuca & Bertie and The Other Two, among others.
Starring alongside Torres as his boss Elizabeth is Oscar-winner Tilda Swinton. In addition to winning Best Supporting Actress for 2007’s Michael Clayton, Swinton has also starred in The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe, We Need to Talk About Kevin, Snowpiercer, A Bigger Splash, Hail, Caesar!, Doctor Strange, Three Thousand Years of Longing, Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio and Asteroid City.
Other members of the cast include RZA (Nobody, The Man With the Iron Fists) as Bobby, Larry Owens (Abbott Elementary, Search Party) as Craigslist, Catalina Saavedra (Los Espookys, The Maid) as Dolores, Greta Lee (Past Lives, Russian Doll) as Dalia and Isabella Rossellini (Marcel the Shell with Shoes On, Los Espookys) as the narrator.
Problemista trailer
To celebrate the news of its new release date, A24 shared this Problemista promo:
You can also watch the original trailer for Problemista directly below and see what Julio Torres has up his sleeve with his directorial debut:
Problemista reviews
The reviews for Problemista are strong, as the movie currently has a "Fresh" rating of 90% on Rotten Tomatoes. The Wall Street Journal's Zachary Barnes calls the movie "[An] off-kilter triumph of a film," while AV Club's Matt Schimkowitz says it is filled with "laugh-out-loud jokes."
Who is Julio Torres?
Though we've talked about him quite a bit and referenced some of his previous work, some of you may still be wondering just who Julio Torres is?
Torres is originally from El Salvador, but he attended college in the US and after graduating wondered what was next for him as he hoped to stay in the country. He eventually found his calling in entertainment, including joining the writing staff of Saturday Night Live in 2016. Throughout his time at SNL he earned four Emmy nominations while also creating his signature project to date, Los Espookys. Problemista marks his directorial debut.
Though Los Espookys was cancelled (all episodes are currently streaming on Max), Torres is working on a new TV series called Little Films.
