MEXICO'S GOLDEN AGE GODDESSES
Emerging during the Golden Age of Mexican Cinema, Dolores del Rio is considered to be the first female Latin American crossover star in Hollywood, breaking the glass ceiling for those that followed. In the 1920s, Del Rio had a series of successful films including 'Ramona' (1928), and 'Resurrection' (1927). At the height of her Hollywood career, however, during the McCarthy era, she was blacklisted for alleged left-wing sympathies. She returned to Mexico where she flourished in Mexican masterpieces, including the acclaimed María Candelaria (1943). Her style and elegance were world renowned, but she also was a woman of substance, once commenting: “take care of your inner beauty, your spiritual beauty, and that will reflect in your face. God can give us genes, but whether that beauty remains or changes is determined by our thoughts and deeds."
Seducing viewers with her huge dark eyes, Katy Jurado was catapulted into the world of work when her beauty caught the eye of film director Emilio Fernández who gave her a part in La Isla de la Pasión (1941). She sealed her success in the US, when she won a Golden Globe for her performance as Helen Ramírez in the classic western 'High Noon' (1952), co-starring with Grace Kelly. Two years later, she was nominated for an Oscar in 'Broken Lance', (having replaced the blacklisted Dolores del Río). She went on to star in many TV series and co-starred with Burt Lancaster, Tony Curtis, Kirk Douglas and Marlon Brando to name a few.
María Félix was also one of the most successful figures of Latin American cinema and one of the most beautiful actresses of the 1940s and 50s. She was known as La Doña, after her character in Doña Bárbara (1943) or María Bonita, thanks to the anthem composed for her as a wedding gift by her second husband, Agustín Lara. She made 47 films in Mexico, Spain, France, Italy and Argentina.
Another Mexican actress who helped forge the path for Latina talent in Hollywood is Lupe Vélez who starred in films such as 'The Gaucho', 'Stand and Deliver', and 'Half-Naked Truth', as well as Broadway's 'You Never Know.'
And this brings us to our most recent pioneer, Salma Hayek, who hasn't always chosen the best roles, but nobody can deny her influence. Having starred in acclaimed Mexican films such as Mi Vida Loca (1993), 'Roadracers' (1994) by Robert Rodriguez, and El Callejón de los Milagros, Salma made the transition to Hollywood with films such as Desperado and 'From Dusk Till Dawn', before getting her best, biggest and most iconic role as Mexico's most famous woman in 'Frida'.
Lastly, we have to mention here Yalitza Martínez who made her film debut as Cleo in Alfonso Cuarón's 2018 drama 'Roma', and was the first Indigenous Mexican woman to be nominated for an Oscar for Best Actress. In 2019, Time magazine named her one of the 100 most influential people in the world.
ARGENTINE ABUNDANCE
Norma Aleandro, the undisputed Grande Dame of Argentina, achieved international fame with the 1985 film La Historia Oficial that earned her the Best Actress Award at Cannes, while the film itself won the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film. Forced into exile in Uruguay and Spain during the Military Dictatorship, she returned to Argentina in 1983, when democracy was restored. After 'The Official Version's international success, Aleandro went on to co-star in some Hollywood films 'One Man’s War' (1991) with Anthony Hopkins and 'Gaby: A True Story' (1987) for which she was awarded a Golden Globe nomination and an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress. In 1996 she won the the María Guerrero Award for 'Masterclass' (playing María Callas) and went on to star in many Argentine plays and films including El Hijo de la Novia (with Ricardo Darín).
We couldn't tell Argentina's movie story without mentioning Isabel Sarli whose seductive genius set alight Armando Bo's popular erotic films of the 1950s and 1960s. But the truth is that Argentina is overflowing with quality when it comes to acting, so much that they spill over into Spain's fim industry, awash with Argentina talent. Just a few of the hugely talented Argentine actresses are Soledad Villamil, who was nothing less than mesmerising in Oscar-winning 'The Secret in her Eyes' (particularly in the ceonfession scene shown below) Cecilia Roth who became one of Almodovar's muses ('All about my Mother' 1999), Leiticia Brédice ( Nine Queens 2000) and Rita Cortese (Wild Tales 2014).
BRAZILIAN BOMBSHELLS
Born in Portugal, and moving to Brazil when she was still a baby, Carmen Miranda was by 1928 already a radio star before she made her first feature Alô,Alô (1935). In 1940 She signed up with Twentieth Century Fox Productions and released her first Hollywood movie 'Down Argentina Way' with Betty Grable and Don Ameche. There followed a string of musical films, where she insisted her own backing band be included on all the deals. Her own famous fruit headdress became iconic but, somewhat of a mixed blessing, as she could never shake off her image as the fruit dancer. Her British producer husband David Sebastian was abusive and made her life hell, forcing her to maintain a gruelling schedule of shows. Being a Catholic she refused to contemplate divorce, and survived on uppers and downers that in the end ruined her health. She died aged only 46 of a heart attack, hours after her final appearance on Jimmy Durante Show.
Fernanda Montenegro is considered by many to be the greatest Brazilian actor of all time. Her unbelievable performance in 'Central Station' (1998), made her the first and to date the only Brazilian nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress. She was also the first Brazilian to win an Emmy for Best Actress for her performance in 'Sweet Mother' (2013).
Sônia Braga gained international recognition for her Golden Globe Award–nominated performances in 'Kiss of the 'Spider Woman' (1985) and 'Moon over Parador' (1988). She also received a BAFTA nomination for 'Doña Flor and Her Two Husbands' (1976) and was nominated for an Emmy Award and a third Golden Globe Award for 'The Burning Season' (1994) and starred in 'Angel Eyes' (2001), the romantic drama starring Jennifer Lopez. Braga was the first Brazilian to present a category at the Oscars. For her role in 'Aquarius' (2016), where she plays a widow and retired music writer who refuses to leave her apartment complex when developers offer her a buy-out, she was tipped by IndieWire's critics' poll as most deserved Actress to win the Oscar. In 2020, The New York Times ranked her #24 in its list of the 25 Greatest Actors of the 21st Century.
COLOMBIAN FIRECRACKERS
Like Venezuela, many of Colombia's female actors arose from the country's booming telenovela industry. The first big name was Angie Cepeda, who rose through the telenovela Pobre Diabla, before starring in films Captain Pantoja and 'The Special Services' and 'Love in the Time of Cholera'.And then came Sofia Vergara, firecracker par excellence, who took the world by storm as Gloria in the AMC sitcom 'Modern Family' (2009–2020), which made her hugely popular but also critically acclaimed (five Emmy and four Golden Globe nominations). She also became one of the highest-paid actresses in the United States and, in 2024 Vergara, the first Latin American born actress nominated for an Emmy Award for playing Griselda Blanco in the miniseries 'Griselda'.
From the height of glamour to reality of the street, we come to Lady Tabares, the young actor who starred in the heart-breaking film 'The Rose Seller' by Víctor Gaviria (1998) about Monica, a 13 year-old who sells roses to make a living. Tabares was a real life rose seller, which led filmmaker Victor Gaviria to select her. Her amazing performance drew massive critical acclaim and the film's international success allowed Lady Tabares to think of a potential career as an actress. She was awarded best actress at the Viña del Mar and Bratislava Festivals, was recognized with a "special mention" at the Havana Film Festival and attended the Cannes Film Festival with the then president of Colombia, Ernesto Samper. But in less than a year Tabares was back on the streets of Medellín. After witnessing the murder of her partner and father of her child, on April 10 2008, Tabares was sentenced to 26 years for her alleged participation in the murder of a cab driver. After 12 years in prison, in 2022 she returned to the big screen in La balada de las crayolas (The ballad of the Crayons), which received an award in Argentina.
LATIN CARIBBEAN BEAUTIES
There was a life for Puerto Rican women on screen before JLo and her name was Rita Moreno. Born in Humacao in 1931, she secured roles in films that were to become classics like 'Singin’ in the Rain' (1952) and 'The King and I' (1956). It was in her role as Anita, the Puerto Rican gang leader’s girlfriend, in the original 'West Side Story' (1961) that she won over the world and an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. She remains the last surviving main cast member of ‘Singin' in the Rain.’ Meanwhile the Dominican actress María Montez became known as "Queen Of The Technicolor" in the 1940s, when she appeared in 'Arabian Nights', 'Cobra Woman', 'Wicked City', and 'Siren of the Atlantis.'
While Hollywood was the obvious marker for 'making it' for many Dominican, Puerto Ricans even Cuban Actors, it's worth mentioning that Cuba has a prestigious film history of its own, and pioneering actors such as Diana Rosa Suárez and Paula Ali have had massive careers in theatre and film, without needing to leave the island.
In the 1990s, the first Latinas who burst onto big screen in the US were Rosie Perez, whose performance in Spike Lee's masterpiece 'Do the Right Thing' will never be forgotten. Then came Rosario Dawson, who also was given her debut role by Spike Lee in 'He Got Game' (then later in 25th Hour). She went on to feature in Hollywood blockbusters 'Sin City', 'Rent', 'Seven Pounds', and more recently in Disney's 2023 remake of 'The Haunted Mansion'. Of that generation there is also Gina Torres, best known as Jessica Pearson in the legal drama series 'Suits' (2011–2018) and its spin-off series 'Pearson' (2019), then 'Serenity' (2005), and currently stars on the series '9-1-1: Lone Star.'
A special mention goes to Eva Mendes who, along with Jennifer Lopez, was the first to become a massive Hollywood celebrity. Mendes' performance in 'Training Day' (2001) marked a turning point in her career, leading to 'Fast 2 Furious' (2003) and romantic comedy 'Hitch' (2005). She also starred in 'Ghost Rider' (2007) and 'The Spirit' (2008), 'The Women' (2008), 'Last Night' (2010) and 'The Place Beyond the Pines (2012).
And then of the big J landed. Whatever you think of her skills as an actor, many Latina actors of today cite Jennifer Lopez as inspiration, on account of her sheer ambition and huge success in terms of fame, wealth, and putting Latinas on the entertainment map as a creative force. she is the biggest Latina female entertainer in history, so big we needn't mention her credentials, because most of us will have seen her films. As told in her documentary 'Half Time', JLo still craves recognition as an actor, despite appearing in 40 movies and TV shows. However, her successful transition from early typecast roles in 'Maid in Manhattan' to savvy action heroine in 'Atlas' and 'The Mother', with some serious acting on the way in 'The Hustler', shows her weight in the industry.
ANDEAN ARTISTIC HEIGHTS - BOLIVIA, CHILE, PERU
Benedicta Huanca's charismatic presence in the films of renowned Bolivian Director Jorge Sanjinés, 'Ukamau' (1966), 'Yawar Mallku' (1969) and 'Blood of the Condor' (1969), brought this Indigenous actor from a small Bolivian town great acclaim. Eclipsed by the male actors and even the director himself (even in Wikipedia only the men are mentioned in the credits) a search on her current activity is difficult. Nevertheless, as the lead in three of the most important works in Bolivian Cinema, Benedicta played a vital role in her country's cinematic history.
Cote de Pablo was born in Santiago de Chile in 1979. At the tender age of 10, her family moved to Miami where she later pursued her acting career, initially in theatre. After auditioning for NCIS, Cote was immediately offered the role of ex- Mossad officer turned NCIS agent Ziva David. She made the role her own, winning Best Supporting Actress at the Imagen Foundation Awards and an ALMA for Favourite Television Actress. Not happy with the standard of some scripts, Cote decided to leave the series to star in 'The 33' (2014) about the 2010 Copiapó mining accident in Chile. This year it was announced that Cote would reprise her role as Ziva in a new NCIS spin off, called ‘NCIS: Tony and Ziva’ for Paramount.
We should also mention Daniela Vega who won a Platino Award for Best Actress and Fénix Film Award for Best Actress for her critically acclaimed performance in the Academy Award-winning film 'A Fantastic Woman' (2017). Vega became the first transgender person in history to be a presenter at the Academy Awards ceremony. In 2018, Time magazine named her one of the 100 most influential people in the world.
In Peru Delfina Paredes' long career has earned her the epithet of "first actress." Apart from her roles as the blind grandmother in Meche in Caídos del Cielo , her performances in theatre have earned her multiple national and international awards. Her repertoire includes plays by Peruvian authors such as Augusto Tamayo Vargas , Manuel Ascencio Segura and Manuel González Prada, and also German playwrights such as Bertolt Brecht or Greeks such as Sophocles. And we can mention Stephanie Cayo, model and teen soap star-turned actor, known for her charming performance in the 2022 rom-com 'Until We Meet Again.'
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