Eva Longoria has delivered a stark warning about the state of diversity in Hollywood, declaring that representation for the Latinx community is not just stagnating but actively getting worse.
A Disturbing Backwards Trend
The Mexican-American actor, producer, and director, renowned for her role in Desperate Housewives, shared disheartening statistics in a recent interview with The Sunday Times. She revealed that Latinx representation in television and film has significantly declined over the past five years.
"We're severely underrepresented in TV and film and it's getting worse," Longoria stated. "Five years ago we [made up], like, 7 percent of TV and film and now we're 4 percent. It's actually going in the wrong direction."
Creating Opportunities from Behind the Camera
This alarming regression has been a primary motivator for Longoria to increase her work behind the camera. Having made her directorial debut in 2023 with the biopic Flamin' Hot, she explained that her driving force is to "create opportunities for women and for people from my community."
At 50 years old, the multihyphenate star is more determined than ever. "There is definitely a lot of work to be done. I'm trying to do my part," she affirmed. Her next project is directing the Netflix comedy The Fifth Wheel, which stars Kim Kardashian.
Family as the Ultimate Priority
Despite her busy career, Longoria emphasised that her family life with husband José Bastón and their six-year-old son, Santiago Enrique, takes precedence. She praised Bastón for being "totally supportive of my dreams and my goals."
Reflecting on becoming a mother at 43, Longoria believes the timing was perfect. "You have so much more wisdom and patience when you become a mother in your forties," she told the publication. "It was all about me for so long. Forty years of me was enough time."
She feels blessed to have had her child later in life, after achieving her career goals, and now ensures that any professional commitment she makes is worthwhile. "If I'm saying yes to something and it's taking time away from them, it's got to be something I'm really going to enjoy and people I really want to work with," she concluded.
