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“It was one page at a time, like one day at a time.”
Diego Boneta knew he wanted to write a sexy, steamy murder mystery for his first novel. “And I also really wanted it to be a novel that was a great summer read.” That’s exactly what he’s done with The Undoing of Alejandro Velasco. Set in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, the story follows a mysterious young man, Julian Villareal, who arrives at the estate of his friend and tennis rival, Alejandro Velasco, after his sudden death. “You think he’s this super rich kid from Mexico City, who’s studying at UCLA, and then you slowly start realizing that he’s not who he says he is.” The book is also being adapted by Amazon MGM Studios as an original series. “It’s my first time doing this, where it’s acting out a character that I wrote in a novel.” But for Boneta, whose father was a “national [tennis] champion in Mexico [and] played Wimbledon,” he’s more than prepared to play Julian. “Julian is something that I already have in my DNA, because we’ve been working on this for so long now, I just want to make sure that it’s the best version of the show that it can be for audiences to be entertained.”
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Editor’s Note: This conversation has been edited and condensed for publication.
Where did the story come from?
I’ve been obsessed with [The] Talented Mr. Ripley. I love that movie and the book. Let me backtrack a bit, ever since I worked with Tom Cruise in Rock of Ages in 2012, he really instilled the don’t just be an actor—direct, write, produce, and it really stuck with me. And for many years, I was like, “I want to be able to produce and have my own production company.” We spent a lot of time [together] when we shot that movie, and I would see him in calls for a movie that he just shot that’s on post, then shooting Rock of Ages, and then taking meetings for his next project. I was like, “Man, that’s the dream.”
Cut to 2017, I produced my first project that I started, and I executive produced a show called Luis Miguel, based on [the] singer. And no one thought it was going to be as big as it was. We were all super excited about the idea, but we knew it was a big risk, and it really, really worked and it kind of started my producing career as well.
Shortly after, I starred in my first Mexican film directed by Michel Franco [New Order], and Michel was like, “Diego, I saw you produce, Luis Miguel, do you want to produce New Order with me?” I was like, “Dude, it would be a dream for me, as long as it’s not a vanity credit. I really want to get to learn.” We did that together, and it won the Silver Lion at the Venice Film Festival in 2020.
Throughout COVID, I started with my manager and partner, Josh Glick, just packaging ideas, our dream writers, directors, and selling them across the board at the Netflix, Amazon, HBO, Sony, and it really came in a very organic, natural way. I was like, it took five years to be able to materialize that dream to produce. And Amazon comes to us and goes—because we sold two projects to Amazon—and says, “We want to do an overall with your production company, Three Amigos.” And that was when we both realized, okay, this is serious. It’s a three-year deal. We have to do four projects in three years. It’s not just us running around like idiots, like this is actually serious. And Josh goes, “Dude, we should have your sister run the production company with us.” I was like, “Natalia?” She’s in Wall Street, like she’s really a sergeant. She’s been working in the corporate world, trading derivatives for three years now. She’s the perfect person for the job. And I spoke to Natalia, and she was in. She really helped streamline everything. And when she first came on board, I was like, “Natalia, I think I’m ready to write my first screenplay.” And she was like, “Nope, it’s not going to be a script. It’s going to be a book.” And I was like, “What are you talking about?” She’s like, “Yeah, we’re going to write a novel. We’re in Amazon publishing, and simultaneously we’re going to tell Amazon Studios, and we’re going to develop the limited series for the book.” Like, that’s why you’re my boss. That’s why you’re here,
That’s why she worked on Wall Street. She has the brain.
And we started working on the book, and we both knew that it had to come from something extremely personal. This is my first novel. So, I absolutely love tennis. My dad was national champion in Mexico [and] played Wimbledon. So it’s something that’s been a part of my life since I was a kid. I love Talented Mr. Ripley, and love that genre of movies. And the first thing was, normally in these con man movies,Talented Mr. Ripley or Saltburn, it’s always kind of like the weird guy con man. The quiet guy. I was like, “What if in our version, it’s actually the Jude Law part, instead of the quiet dude?” It’s like the outgoing, bon vivant, worldly guy who then you go, “Wait, this guy’s not that.” So that was the first idea. And then Match Point, as far as how they integrated tennis, just having it be truly a part of the story, metaphorically, and having it be woven into the story. And for two years we just went at it, and now it’s like crazy because few things make me more anxious than a blank page. I was like, “What? We’re gonna write a novel? How the hell are we gonna do this?” It was one page at a time, like one day at a time. I was talking to different friends of mine—writers, screenwriters and novelists, and they’re like, “Dude, you have to make sure that the foundation is solid. Really spend a lot of time on the structure, the outline, the characters.” And it’s counterintuitive, because you’ll be like, “Oh, we’ve been doing this for a year, but we haven’t started writing a chapter.” But if you have that solid, the book will write itself. It was an amazing piece of advice, because I would have done the complete opposite. That advice was really game changing. And such an incredible thing to be able to do with my sister, and with Josh. That’s why the company is called Three Amigos. I couldn’t be more excited.
You know, you hear that in Hollywood about Tom Cruise, how instrumental he is to so many in the industry, because of that type of advice.
I can’t even begin to tell you how much I’ve learned from Tom. Rock of Ages was my first movie ever where I got to play the lead. And Tom really mentored me throughout the whole thing and even now, when we got the overall deal I texted, I was like, “Tom, I just have to tell you this, because it’s thanks to you, man.” Because it’s the work ethic, but it’s also the passion, you know, he is so passionate about what he does to such a degree that he’s willing to do whatever it takes to entertain his audience. And seeing that from someone who’s been working in the business for what? Four decades? Seeing that passion, seeing him on set, was like seeing a kid going to Disneyland for the first time in their life.
The book is very cinematic. As you’re writing it, because of your work as an actor, is the visual front and center?
One thousand percent. It’s all based in San Miguel de Allende, which is a magical town. It’s like the Florence of Mexico. It’s just an unbelievable place. And it was so important for me, to me, for San Miguel to be a character in the story, so that as you’re reading it, all those visuals, even for people who’ve never heard of this place, or who’ve been so they can really feel like they’re there when they’re reading it. And have it be a character in the story, because that backdrop is so important to understanding the family dynamics in Mexican society and culture. It’s very informative on a visual level, but also on a cultural level.
Because you’re writing this novel and then later adapting it into a script, is it tough to cut out stuff? Because you can describe so much more in a book.
Yes. Someone who really gave me a great piece of advice for this, he’s my favorite filmmaker, he’s a genius, we’ve become friends, is Alfonso Cuarón. Cuarón just did Disclaimer, and he adapted it from a book. He was like, “Each format is different, and it’s impossible to try to mirror the book into a TV show. Just make sure that it’s the best version of each.” There’s going to be things that, like with Disclaimer, he took creative liberties because he thought that was what was best for the TV show. And that was another amazing piece of advice. Because at first, I was very like, we have to make sure it’s this, and I don’t think that’s the right approach. We have Oliver Goldstick, who’s showrunning this with us, and he has amazing ideas. And it’s a different format, let’s make it its best version for each format. That’s also very liberating, because you can take some creative freedoms.
Having spent so much time with this character, do you approach preparing to act as him differently?
It’s my first time doing this, where it’s acting out a character that I wrote in a novel. So it’s been interesting, because we’ve been developing both simultaneously, and then the writer strike happened, and we had to put the show on pause and continue with the novel. And now that we’re back to the show, it’s fun because I know Julian very, very well, right? But I’m honestly really focused on Sophia, because I think that character is so important, and something that I think my sister was able to really nail is making sure that the Sophia role is a layered character. And it’s such an important character to the story, and we want her to be super smart and cunning and manipulative, and making it truly a three-dimensional character. So it’s funny, because I don’t see it so much as what’s best for Julian, I see it as what’s best for the show, and I think that’s something that has been one of the coolest things about producing now for some years, is that you really get to see things as a collaborative effort. And ultimately, yes, I’ll do all the prep as an actor, and I’ll go to my acting coach in Madrid, who’s a freaking genius, Juan Carlos Corazza, and I’ll do all the work as an actor. But then when I’m on set, and it’s something that we’re producing, you have to be able to separate that and have the acting cap on and be like, “Okay, this is what I’m doing for the scene.” And then when you’re doing a production meeting, once you wrap the day, putting on the producer cap, and seeing it as what is best for this movie, what is best for this show, what is best for right now, I’d say that that’s what I’m really most focused on with Amazon, how do we make this show unique, different, compelling, entertaining, and keep the all those twists and really show that different side of Mexico that’s not really been shown before. Like a bunch of Mexican stories are either drug-related or border-crossing stories. Mexico has so much more to offer, and these are stories that haven’t been told and haven’t been seen. That’s what I’m really focused on. I think that Julian is something that I already have in my DNA, because we’ve been working on this for so long now, I just want to make sure that it’s the best version of the show that it can be for audiences to be entertained.
What is it about Julian that you’re that you’re drawn to?
I am drawn to multi-layered characters who may say something in the dialogue, but there’s really something else underneath. And I really love how it’s unraveled throughout, how he comes to the Velasco household. You think he’s this super-rich kid from Mexico City, who’s studying at UCLA, and then you slowly start realizing that he’s not who he says he is, and his story and his background, he’s truly a chameleon. I love that, because it’s so much fun to be able to play that and to see it unfold, in small dosages, as you start going to flashbacks, and you see Eduardo there and Julian and Alejandro. And also, I love how it’s always show me, don’t tell me. And I love how you get to see who he really is from the get-go, and how he plays tennis, from the first time you see that he may not have the best technique, he maybe didn’t go to these super fancy schools, he’s someone who’s not super polished. So you see that in his tennis game, but in his scenes, he’s saying something totally different. And that to me, as an audience tells me, wait a second, there’s something here. I’m not sure I know exactly what it is, but having the arc of where he starts and where he ends, with Sophia, he’s met his match. And she brings out who he really is. I wish I could say more, but I don’t want to give out more.
What is kind of exciting about reading the book is that you know it’s being adapted, so you can start to have very clear visuals of what it’s going to look like, who the characters are…
I think that’s a very cool and cinematic way of shooting that while something else is going on. There’s the sexiness, there’s the steaminess, right? There’s this murder mystery, sexual thriller. And I also really wanted it to be a novel that was a great summer read.
After reading this, I just know fans are going to want more books. Are you prepared for that?
Listen, I think there’s a lot more story to unfold. Would I be down? Absolutely. I think that right now it’s promoting the book, making the show, and then listen, if it’s time for another book, that’s a happy problem, we’ll freaking make it work. And I do think that there’s more to it and not only more, but the whole Sophia and Julian dynamic could go in a very interesting direction. It’s all about it not being predictable, being full of twists, so that as you’re reading it, you’re just like, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom. And you’re also seeing it at the same time.
And knowing the actors in the project I think only makes future books successful. We’ve seen this with so many franchises.
One thing that I’ll say as an actor, to me, it’s really all about the characters. If you really develop a character that is multi-dimensional, layered and very specific, that is so important to how the story unravels.
