'Mucho Mucho Amor: The Legend of Walter Mercado': Release date, plot, cast, trailer and all you need to know about the Netflix documentary
In its abundant new library of offerings, Netflix is bringing to us the story of Latinx gay icon and astrologer, Walter Mercado. The documentary, title 'Mucho Mucho Amor: The Legend of Walter Mercado', centers on the renowned Puerto Rican psychic, who in his lifetime had managed to enthrall his Latin audiences with his glamor, gender-nonconforming identity and good-natured cosmic readings. Here is everything you need to know about the documentary.
Release date
'Mucho Mucho Amor: The Legend of Walter Mercado' is set to hit Netflix on July 8.
Plot
Being the legendary figure that he was, Walter Mercado was beloved in the Latin community for his extravagance and psychic abilities. The Puerto-Rican astrologer charmed the world with his televised cosmic sessions and won the hearts of over 120 million viewers. He is a celebrated personality in Latin culture, who captivated the world with his flamboyant streak, adorned in sequined capes and opulent jewellery. Through his horoscope readings, the gender-nonconforming LGBTQ+ icon shared positive messages of love and hope, but one day he simply vanished from the public eye. 'Mucho Mucho Amor: The Legend of Walter Mercado' chronicles the final two years of the celebrated figure's life (he died in 2019), as he battled aging and strived for his legacy. It features him in all his glory, preparing for one last star-studded show and also delves into Mercado's mysterious disappearnace in the midst of his career.
Cast
Walter Mercado
Known by his stage name 'Shanti Ananda', Walter Mercado rose to prominence in the Latinx community as one of the world's most famous astrologers whose shows aired for decades in Puerto Rico, Latin America and the US. Mercado had a humble beginning and was raised in the sugarcane fields of Puerto Rico before he came to the limelight as a gender nonconforming psychic in a cape. Mercado believed he possessed spiritual abilities ever since he was a child and even attended university to major in pedagogy, psychology, and pharmacy. He used his degree and skills to impart his knowledge to others and study the human mind while also learning about the healing properties of medicinal plants. In addition to being a well-known psychic, he was also a dancer and actor, having worked in Puerto Rican telenovelas, 'Un Adiós en el Recuerdo' and ' Larga Distancia.'
His regular astrological segment began airing on television in 1970, in which time he improved his knowledge with formal studies into astrology, tarot reading, and other occult disciplines. Soon his face was splashed across Latin and American television, where he eventually became a household name. Mercado's career spanned thirty years before he mysteriously disappeared, in part because of losing a legal battle to prevent the use of his name and likeness in future commercial ventures by his former representative Bart Enterprises International. Mercado died on November 2, 2019, of kidney failure.
The documentary film also features interviews from famous fans of the psychic like Lin-Manuel Miranda, Eugenio Derbex, and Raul de Molina.
Director
Directed by Cristina Costantini and Kareen Tabsch, 'Mucho Mucho Amor: The Legend of Walter Mercado' first premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January 2020.
Trailer
“From the moment that I was born, I knew that I was not like everybody. Everything about me was different," Mercado says in the film about his life. The trailer portrays Mercado in all his magnificence, donning his glittering blazers and sequined capes and at one point even escorted in a grand, gilded throne through a crowd of eager fans.
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