Alfred Molina cast in El Rey Network's MATADOR

Alfred Molina has been cast as Andres Galan in El Rey Network's upcoming scripted series, MATADOR, set to premiere July 2014. Previously announced castmembers include Gabriel Luna, Nicky Whelan and Neil Hopkins.

Created by Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman, and produced in association with K/O Paper Products, MATADOR will feature Molina as Andrew Galan, a man who built his fortune in the telecom industry, but his true passion is soccer. As owner of the ascendant LA Riot franchise, he is celebrated in both the sports and business worlds. But there is another world that he operates in -- as a member of an elite group of powerful global players, ruthless individuals who can effect world events on a scale that one would never imagine. What Galan doesn't know is that there is a mole in his midst. One of his new players, Tony Bravo, is actually an undercover operative, sent in to expose him and his cohorts. As Tony and Galan grow closer, the fate of their relationship may very well determine the fate of the world.

Irreverent and action-packed, MATADOR chronicles the unlikely rise of Antonio "Matador" Bravo, a popular soccer star, who comes to be known as much for his playboy antics off the field as his dynamic moves on it. But what his fans and family don't realize is that it's all a cover--in truth, he is a skilled covert operative executing missions for a little known branch of the CIA. “Matador” has the kind of fame and notoriety that affords him access to powerful circles of corruption and villainy. But, in balancing the dueling roles in which he's been cast, he will be forced to confront the question of his true identity...and it is this mission which will prove to be his most dangerous.

Robert Rodriguez, El Rey Network's chairman and founder, is set to direct the first episode which will be penned by showrunners, co-creators and executive producers Jay Beattie and Dan Dworkin.

An accomplished London-born actor whose diverse and distinguished gallery of performances have led to a lengthy and triumphant career in film, television and the stage, Alfred Molina is best known for his roles in Sam Raimi’s Spider Man 2 and Steven Soderberg’s Frida. Molina made his American film debut in Raiders of the Lost Ark and later appeared in Letter to Brezhnev, but his movie breakthrough came two years later when he portrayed Kenneth Halliwell, the tragic lover of playwright Joe Orton, in Stephen Frears' Prick Up Your Ears. His other feature film credits include The Da Vinci Code, Boogie Nights, Magnolia, Prince of Persia, The Pink Panther 2, Enchanted April, Not Without My Daughter, The Perez Family, Anna Karenina and Chocolat, among others. On television, he most recently starred on NBC’s LAW & ORDER: LA and David E. Kelley’s TNT drama series MONDAY MORNINGS. Molina’s stage work includes two major Royal National Theatre productions, Tennessee Williams' "The Night of the Iguana" and David Mamet's "Speed the Plow," as well as his Broadway debut in Yasmina Reza's "Art," for which he received a Tony Award® nomination. Molina also performed in the highly celebrated UK-based Donmar Warehouse production of "Red" which opened on Broadway in April 2010 and for which Mr. Molina received rave reviews and a Tony Award® nomination. Most recently, Molina completed the feature film Love is Strange opposite John Lithgow for director Ira Sachs. The film premiered at Sundance this year, and will be released later in the year by Sony Classics. He also shot the feature films, Swelter for director/writer Keith Parmer, We’ll Never Have Paris for director/writer Simon Helberg with co-stars Zachary Quinto and Maggie Grace, Return to Zero with co-star Minnie Driver and The Normal Heart for HBO in which he co-stars opposite Mark Ruffalo and Julia Roberts.

MATADOR executive producers are Jay Beattie and Dan Dworkin, also showrunners, alongside executive producers Roberto Orci, Alex Kurtzman and Andrew Orci. Also joining as executive producers are Heather Kadin of K/O Paper Products; Robert Rodriguez and FactoryMade Ventures and El Rey Network co-founders John Fogelman and Cristina Patwa.