No matter how much people like to complain about the casting of underrepresented actors in Hollywood projects, it’s still a struggle for actors of color to get the same opportunities as white actors. Case in point, Salma Hayek took the time to reflect on her role in Robert Rodriguez‘s “Desperado,” the film that gave Hayek her breakthrough Hollywood role. She also reflected on the difficulties getting the part, and how studio executives wanted Cameron Diaz for her role because of her last name.
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In an interview with Elle for the 25th anniversary of “Desperado,” Hayek opened up about how Robert Rodriguez offered her the role of Mexican bookstore owner Carolina, and how hard it was for her to get the role either way. Even with the director’s blessing, Hayek says that she and many of the other Latina actresses trying out for the role, had to audition multiple times for the role, and perform several screen tests.
“I remember Cameron Diaz was huge at the time and her last name was Diaz, so they said she can be Mexican,” Hayek told Elle. “She was part of the list, and I had to audition again.”
Of course, the lead character in the film is also supposed to be Mexican, yet Antonio Banderas is a white Spanish actor, which isn’t that much better than trying to cast Cameron Diaz just based on her last name.
Still, that Salma Hayek couldn’t even count on the director’s blessing to get the role, says a lot about the lack of access for actors with minority backgrounds in Hollywood. Even worse than what she went through with “Desperado,” was Hayek’s experience auditioning for the 1993 film adaptation of “The House of the Spirits,” which the actress also tried to audition for.
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“I begged for an audition. They wouldn’t even give me an audition,” Hayek said. “I was like, “Just hear me read.” And this is for a Latino role. They were not hiring Latinos for Latino roles. They were not hiring Latinos period—unless it was the maid or the prostitute. And that part was not a maid or a prostitute.”