Sophia Michaels
If you’ve ever found your fingers dusted with some spicy red powder after a snack session, we’ve got just the movie for you. “Flamin’ Hot,” from Searchlight Pictures and director Eva Longoria, tells the inspired-by-true-life story of Richard Montañez, a former Frito-Lay janitor who claimed to have invented the chips company’s iconic Flamin’ Hot Cheetos.
In the film, Jesse Garcia plays Montañez, a Mexican American who was down on his luck before helping turn “the iconic Flamin’ Hot Cheetos into a snack that disrupted the food industry and became a global pop culture phenomenon,” according to a logline.
The first trailer for the 129-minute film, which will be released on Hulu and Disney+ next month, features Garcia setting the scene for his character’s dramatic come-up: “I started at the very bottom,” he narrates, explaining his ties to gangs, drugs, and stolen cars. Also in a dire state as the movie begins? Frito-Lay, which the trailer says isn’t getting enough orders to even keep their factory open. But, Montañez realizes that the “hispanic market will not be ignored” — and history is made.
Did Richard Montañez Invent Flamin’ Hot Cheetos?
According to Montañez, he was working as a janitor at Frito-Lay’s Rancho Cucamonga, CA, plant when he came up with the idea for the Flamin’ Hot Cheetos. He has subsequently penned a memoir about his “incredible true story” and often recounts his journey to success in public appearances. However, Frito-Lay has denied Montañez’s claims. The company told The Los Angeles Times in 2021, “None of our records show that Richard was involved in any capacity in the Flamin’ Hot test market. We have interviewed multiple personnel who were involved in the test market, and all of them indicate that Richard was not involved in any capacity in the test market.”
If you’ve ever found your fingers dusted with some spicy red powder after a snack session, we’ve got just the movie for you. “Flamin’ Hot,” from Searchlight Pictures and director Eva Longoria, tells the inspired-by-true-life story of Richard Montañez, a former Frito-Lay janitor who claims to have invented the chips company’s iconic Flamin’ Hot Cheetos.
In the film, Jesse Garcia plays Montañez, a Mexican American who was down on his luck before helping turn “the iconic Flamin’ Hot Cheetos into a snack that disrupted the food industry and became a global pop culture phenomenon,” according to a logline.
The first trailer for the 129-minute film, which will be released on Hulu and Disney+ next month, features Garcia setting the scene for his character’s dramatic come-up: “I started at the very bottom,” he narrates, explaining his ties to gangs, drugs, and stolen cars. Also in a dire state as the movie begins? Frito-Lay, which the trailer says isn’t getting enough orders to even keep their factory open. But, Montañez realizes that the “hispanic market will not be ignored” — and history is made.
Did Richard Montañez Invent Flamin’ Hot Cheetos?
According to Montañez, he was working as a janitor at Frito-Lay’s Rancho Cucamonga, CA, plant when he came up with the idea for the Flamin’ Hot Cheeto. He has subsequently penned a memoir about his “incredible true story” and often recounts his journey to success in public appearances. However, Frito-Lay has denied Montañez’s claims. The company told The Los Angeles Times in 2021, “None of our records show that Richard was involved in any capacity in the Flamin’ Hot test market. We have interviewed multiple personnel who were involved in the test market, and all of them indicate that Richard was not involved in any capacity in the test market.”
Keep scrolling for all we know about the movie.
