Even though you probably wouldn’t recgnize her name, you have defintely seen Lupe Ontiveros on some TV show or movie over the last couple of decades. I will always remember her as America Ferrara’s mom in Real Women Have Curves.
Ontiveros has spent her career playing immigrant women and most especially the maid. She has played a maid over 150 times.
Here’s from a recent NPR piece:
Ontiveros says she gets so many immigrant parts because of her indigenous looks. But she has mixed feelings about playing characters that reinforce the Latina stereotype
Director Miguel Arteta handed her a script for the movie Chuck & Buck. It was a part written for a white woman.
“Miguel told me to look at the part of Beverly,” Ontiveros says. “I said, ‘Beverly. You said Beverly. Her name is Beverly.’ And I said I’ll do it, I don’t care what the script is about — I’ll do it because her name is Beverly, it wasn’t Maria Guadalupe Conchita Esperanza — this Latino stereotype.”
Ontiveros does want to work. But she also says, “I long to play a judge. I long to play a lesbian woman. I long to play a councilman, someone with some chutzpah.”
Her non maid roles include El Norte, Chuck and Buck, the TV series The Reaper.
If you have not seen Real Women Have Curves you must. It is spectacular.
Latina Actress Aims To Break Maid Stereotype (NPR)
{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }
Yep, that’s how much Hollywood loathes and hates women with passion, especially women of color.
Yes, I’ve known about her for awhile and, yes, she deserves non-stereotypical roles.
Yes, I’ve known about her for awhile and, yes, she deserves non-stereotypical roles. :)
I really hate the term women/people of color it just seems like a PC term to categorize people.
I don’t consider Ester Canadas a women of color or Benicio del Toro a man of color, but anyway back to the topic at hand.
I think Lupes situation in Hollywood also stems from her figure because if she were slimmer I’m sure she would be getting the Salma Hayeck roles.
She also had a really good role on Desperate Housewives back in its first season. Which, incidentally is a show where the Latino family is the richest on the street (though they unfortunately had two Asian maids).
most selma hayeck roles are also stereotypes.