Luis Fonsi Talks Film Debut With ‘Say a Little Prayer’

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.”