Christian Serratos on Playing Selena, Motherhood and Crying at Work for ELLE Magazine

In a special digital cover for ELLE’s May 2021 issue, the Mexican American actress and Dior Beauty Ambassador opens up about being a mom, playing Selena, and why crying at work is actually a good thing.

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On why her goal is to ‘make the director cry’: “I’m very sinister, but that’s kind of how I gauge at work if what I did was compelling. I know it’s really good if Hiromi [Kamata, who directed several episodes of both Parts 1 and 2] is crying. That’s always the goal: Make the director cry.”

How Christian grew up with Selena as an influence and how she wanted to portray Selena in the series: “I grew up admiring her, dreaming about whether I [would] ever have the opportunity to meet her, or play her, just wanting to feel connected to her in some way. Even though [her story] is a tragedy, it was a joy playing her. I think the most poignant thing about the second season is that we focused on the light that she was. Not how her life ended.”

On motherhood and raising her daughter Wolfie: “Usually we move in packs—my husband (David Boyd, the front man for the band New Politics) and Wolfie (her four-year-old daughter) and I go everywhere together. [Wolfie] is my best buddy,” Serratos tell me, her voice lighting up at the mention of her daughter… Serratos says she always knew she wanted to be a mother. “I worry about sounding like an a**hole, but I kind of knew exactly what it was going to be like to be a parent,” she tells me matter-of-factly. “Even the tantrums don’t really bother me, because I’m like, “This is what it is, you knew what this was [going to be like].” That same laissez-faire attitude is her guiding principle when it comes to raising her daughter. “My goal is to keep her safe and make sure she’s not a d**k.”

On becoming a Dior ambassador: She found herself in the coveted position of choosing beauty companies she might like to work with. Asked to write down a list of brands she loved, she says, “I only wrote ‘Dior.’ I was like, This could go bad, but I was really that confident. I just felt it in my gut.” Her gut was right, and in March of this year, Dior announced that Serratos would be one of its beauty ambassadors in the United States. “Getting to be a part of a company that I grew up admiring, and being the first Mexican woman to be involved with them, it’s just a dream come true.”

What Christian is hoping for in her future: “I just really want to work. I want to work with awesome people that I want to have a glass of wine with after work. That’s it. That’s my hope. My dreams are very simple.”

[Photo Credit: AB + DM for ELLE Magazine]

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