Spanish actor Antonio Banderas, who will star in the movie Los 33 about the miners who were trapped more than two months down a mine-shaft 622 meters (2,039 feet) deep in Chile, has a lot of emotion and suspense to capture -- and he's going to the depths of the earth in a Colombian salt mine to pull it off.

On Dec. 7, Banderas with met with Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos, where he was accompanied by the production team of the film that will be shot in the Salt Mines of Nemocón, 65 kilometers (40 miles) north of Bogotá, Fox News Latino reports.

The Salt Mines of Nemocón are "an immaculately preserved collection of tunnels and chambers in a former salt mine. The various chambers off the main routes show the history of salt mining all amidst spectacular atmospheric light effects and salt stalagtites and cascadas."

Not to be confused with the Salt Cathedral of Zipaquirá, which I have visted back in 2007, at the Salt Mines of Nemocón, there is a church inside the salt mines, where a weekly mass is held on Sundays.

According to Banderas, despite some conflicts and legal issues, the film will seek "to make us reflect on life," because it will be "like a magnifying glass" placed over this epic story in order to "pry into the hearts and souls of the characters" who by chance became the leading figures in a lesson about life.

"They [the miners] did not see themselves as heroes, they came to see themselves as human beings and probably came out of the mine better human beings than they were before -- that is the important thing," the actor said.

In the production, Banderas will play Mario Sepulveda, the leader of the 33 miners who in August 2010 were trapped 622 meters (2,039 feet) down Chile's San José Mine, where they remained for 69 days until they were rescued with a capsule that NASA helped to design, according to Fox News Latino. 

"The film, directed by Mexican-American Patricia Riggen, will be filmed in English. Jennifer Lopez dropped out of the project this year, citing conflicts with her schedule as a judge on TV show American Idol," The Guardian reports.

"The controversy over the miners' life rights is just the latest in a series of battles the men have faced since their rescue. Many still complain of nightmares, flashbacks and a host of psychological traumas, and few have been able to secure steady employment. Given the exaggerated promises of riches that followed their rescue, the men cling to the movie as their last chance to bring in a bit of money to add to their fame."

Banderas, 53, has been married to actress Melanie Griffith, 56, since 1996. The longtime couple will both appear in the Spanish sci-fi thriller Autómata due out next year, the Daily Mail reports.

The Desperado actor will also direct his wife in the drama Akil, due out Dec. 31, 2014 -- about a young boy who flees Africa to take refuge with an American woman.

Recently, Banderas appeared as Gregorio Cortez in Robert Rodriguez's sequel Machete Kills, which was released Oct. 4.