"SORRY HONEY, FOR THIS PART WE NEED AN AMERICAN": LATINA ACTRESSES IN HOLLYWOOD

Abstract

This study examines the evolution of the kinds of roles that Latina actresses have had access to in Hollywood cinema, from the 1920s to the 2010s, in relation to the marketing of their star personas and their ethnic features. There have been two marketing paths open to Latina actresses in mainstream films: embodying the "Latin look" and fitting into stereotypes about Latinas, or attempting to appear more Anglo-American and play any type of roles. This study uses feminist film theory and critical race theory to understand Latinas' positions as women and as ethnic "Others." The paper is divided into three periods, classic Hollywood (1920s-1950s), postwar Hollywood (1950s-1970s), and contemporary cinema (1980s-2010s), and each section focuses on the Latina actresses who exemplified the era: Dolores del Rio, Lupe Velez, Rita Hayworth, Rita Moreno, Raquel Welch, Rosie Perez, Salma Hayek, and Jennifer Lopez.