Lopez, Univision in unison on drama

J. Lo to exec produce 'Palida'

By JOSEF ADALIAN

Lopez

Ichaso

Jennifer Lopez has pacted with Univision to exec produce "La Flor Palida," a five-hour musical drama that reps the Spanish-language net's first foray into the miniseries genre.

Project, which begins lensing in Mexico City within three weeks for a likely late May premiere, will feature music from Lopez's just-released Spanish CD "Como Ama una Mujer."

Leon Ichaso, who wrote and directed the upcoming Lopez-Marc Antony feature "El Cantante," is aboard to direct. Jimena Romero wrote the script.

Sony Music's Epic label and Univision are funding the project, which will be produced via Nuyorican, the production banner Lopez runs with manager Simon Fields. Lopez, Fields and Ichaso will exec produce.

Following the Univision broadcast, it's expected Sony will release "La Flor Palida" this fall as part of a deluxe CD/DVD package featuring the full miniseries and an updated copy of "Como Ama una Mujer."

Fields said the tentatively titled "La Flor" stems from a concept birthed by Lopez last year.

"She had an idea to create a miniseries in the old grand style of things like 'The Thorn Birds,' but using the words in the music to drive the narrative," he said.

Mini revolves around a movie star-singer named Sofia Marquez who's constantly in the public eye.

"She gets caught in a scandal and ends up running from her boyfriend and meeting up with an old friend from her past," Fields said. Marquez discovers that her friend, a fellow singer named Diego, has long carried a torch for her.

"There are some autobiographical elements," Fields said.

Lopez will not act in the project, but she will appear at the end of each episode, singing a song from "Como Ama una Mujer."

"La Flor" began taking shape last winter, when Univision execs flew out to meet Lopez and Fields.

As part of the push for the album Lopez will appear on this week's editions of "American Idol." She'll sing a song from it on Wednesday's edition.

"Idol" viewers who've been rooting for the exit of Sanjaya "The Hair" Malakar will be disappointed to know that, per Fields, Malakar sounded OK when he sang a Spanish-language song for Lopez. "He sang beautifully," Fields insisted.

The WMA-packaged "La Flor" is one of several projects in the works for Nuyorican. Shingle is producing "El Cantante" and Lopez's fall feature "Bordertown." On the TV side, it's working on the potential skein "Ayuda" for Showtime.