Breaking boundaries: Selena Gomez enters new territory in ‘Emilia Pérez’
Photo by Matt Harbicht
Selena Gomez, widely recognized as the witty protagonist of Disney Channel’s “Wizards of Waverly Place,” just expanded her style. Beginning her acting career on "Barney and Friends" and playing various roles on Disney, Gomez surprised a Chapman audience with her latest performance.
An early screening of “Emilia Pérez” before a Master Class with Gomez allowed Chapman students to see the film before it hit Netflix. The Spanish-language musical thriller about a lawyer who’s offered an unusual job to help a cartel boss transition into living as a woman left students eagerly chatting after the event. Gomez plays a leading role in the film as Jessi Del Monte, the wife of the cartel boss.
Del Monte is Gomez’s first Spanish-speaking role, but such has been a goal of hers for a long time. She was fluent in the language as a child, but lost some of it when she grew older, making this performance very important to her.
“When I realized I had gotten this part, I worked definitely hard. I wish there had been more time (to practice), but I equally was able to use that and collaborate and kind of set a tone of where (Jessi Del Monte) is,” Gomez said.
Gomez’s Hispanic heritage is a part of her identity she takes great pride in. Her grandparents immigrated to America in 1972, and Gomez said that she owes them everything.
“I owed my grandparents my life, I have all of this because they chose to come here and give themselves and my father a better life,” Gomez said. “And I don't think that's something to be dismissed lightly, and I think that's why I try to make sure to be as involved as possible.”
This part of Gomez’s identity resonated deeply with Johan Espinosa, a freshman screen acting major. As a first-generation Mexican-American and a longtime fan of Gomez, Espinosa felt moved by the way she spoke about her identity.
“I was very motivated by her, and I feel like, just to be honest, not many people know that she comes from a Mexican descent,” Espinosa told The Panther. “She paid homage to her grandpa, and her grandma for coming to the states, and I just think that's so inspiring. (It’s) something that strikes very strikes a chord in me emotionally.”
To Espinosa, the themes of the film, paired with the way Gomez spoke about empowerment and her identity, made for a very inspiring Master Class. He told The Panther that this new film shows that Gomez’s capabilities range far wider than she is given credit for.
“I've never seen her do something like that. And I'm honestly very proud of her, and very proud that she represents Mexican culture and Mexico as a whole,” Espinosa said. “And in this film, by talking about something that needs to be talked about.”
Joshua Chan, a sophomore animation and visual effects major, said the film was unlike anything he had seen Gomez do before. The musical aspect, on top of the thriller genre, surprised him.
“There was a lot going on. I thought it really tackled a bunch of different genres throughout the entire movie,” Chan told The Panther. “It was really hectic, but it was kind of fun.”
“Emilia Pérez” won multiple awards at the Cannes Film Festival, with Gomez and co-stars Karla Sofía Gascón and Zoe Saldaña sharing the Best Actress award. To Chan, this recognition will allow Gomez to explore new opportunities.
“I think now that she won Best Actress and this is a film that has more serious meanings,” Chan said. “I think that she's definitely going to be breaking out (of) the box.”
While making a constant effort to explore new realms of the industry, Gomez still pays due to her formative years on Disney Channel. After her success on “Wizards of Waverly Place,” she returned to work with the series that she said raised her.
“It was truly a time in my life that was before anything,” Gomez said. “Those people that still work on the new version of our show now really raised me, and they watched me grow up.”
Since graduating from her Disney years, Gomez has always craved to do something out of the box. Her first film after child acting was “Spring Breakers.” Although controversial due to its subject matter, the experience was important to Gomez nonetheless.
“I think I was just craving something different. I was so eager as an actor, as an artist. I was just wanting to feel something,” Gomez said. “I wanted to have these experiences with great filmmakers and great writers. I just wanted to see how far I could go.”
As she tries to continue growing as an artist, Gomez feels that she is often met with the challenge of people's negative preconceptions.
“I think that my life has this weird veil across me of what people may think of me, so that actually prevents me from getting opportunities that I would love,” Gomez said. “When I find great filmmakers or want to work with them, I'm hoping that they just don't know much about me.”
Luckily, that’s exactly what happened. Gomez said that Jacques Audiard, the director of “Emilia Pérez,” based his judgments on her capabilities and talent over preconceived notions about her. This ultimately landed Gomez a leading role in the film.
Gomez now feels like she is in a position where she has the freedom to be picky about her projects and opportunities, allowing her to work on things that align with her values. Her top priority, as simple as it sounds, is just being happy.
“I think I just want to do things that make me happy. And I am luckily in a position right now where I don't really want to take things, to take them. I just really want to choose things wisely and be sure of something that I believe in,” Gomez said. “My art is never really going to be for everyone, but it's for me, and I'm proud of it and I couldn't love it anymore if I tried.”