![]() Have you ever been interested in acting or commercials?”Ī few weeks later, Hernandez’s mother suggested he give Tyner a call, thinking maybe he could earn some money to buy a car. He kept staring at the young man until finally he said that classic Hollywood line: “You have a great look. As Hernandez and his parents boarded the elevator, Tyner stuck his hand in the door and stepped in. And it appeared as though Hernandez was bound to lead a working-class life-until one day, four years ago, when he was spotted by Tyner while riding on an elevator in a Hollywood office building. The result is a more authentic glimpse into the world of working-class Mexican Americans, where the children speak in English and the parents in Spanish.Ī fourth-generation Mexican American himself, Hernandez fit this description well. Stockwell also insisted on having Carlos’ mother speak Spanish in the film-without translation. “I found there was a lot of cultural disconnect between the groups.” “It’s a culture-clash story but not about race-it’s about upbringing and class and worldview,” said Stockwell, who was a struggling actor before jumping into directing and screenwriting. Stockwell got rid of the mariachis, lowriders, the girls’ Westside paranoia and the BMW. Based on his research, he made several changes in the script.įor instance, the original script included scenes with mariachis and lowriders with Dunst and her friend driving through the Eastside in their BMW, scared that they would get mugged or their car would be stolen. Stockwell said he did intensive research in Los Angeles’ predominantly Latino working-class neighborhoods to try to capture the true essence of life there. The fact that the film avoids most stereotypes seen in movies depicting Latino life is no accident. All the Latin roles are so negative, and finally here was one that wasn’t.” “Finally, here was a character who was positive and had goals. “I got sick of reading roles that said ‘gang member No. While Carlos works hard to avoid the temptations of his neighborhood-like joining gangs and doing drugs-Nicole seems to relish finding trouble, getting drunk and hanging out with losers.įor once, said Hernandez, he could play the role of a Latino who had something to teach. In high school, he meets Kirsten Dunst’s character, Nicole, the child of a dysfunctional family whose father is a wealthy local politician unable to cope with his daughter’s wild side. The story revolves around Carlos (Hernandez) who is bused to a school in the affluent Pacific Palisades. Finally, the part in “crazy/beautiful” came up in which Hernandez’s character was a straight-arrow kid from a working-class Latino neighborhood near downtown Los Angeles. He scoured scripts for roles that would not show Hernandez as the gangbanger. Tyner had been instrumental in shielding Hernandez from the pitfalls of stereotypical casting. He just has to be very smart about what roles he picks and who he chooses to work with.” “I think after this film the floodgates will open for Jay. ![]() has single-handedly given Jay a Hollywood Survival Guide 101,” said “crazy/beautiful” director John Stockwell. was after his movie debut, suddenly on call to do one teen romance after another. Pressure is mounting for him to become the next teen sensation and the next great Latino heartthrob. With his performance in “crazy/beautiful,” Hernandez finds himself at a turning point. Hernandez now feels a bit rudderless at a particularly crucial moment in his career. He has been more than my manager-he is like part of my family.” “There are so many things going through my mind,” said Hernandez, trying to relax on the Disney lot on the day Tyner fell ill. Now he’s making million-dollar deals to star in movies.īut just as he was celebrating his movie premiere, his manager and mentor Howard Tyner, the man who discovered him at a chance meeting and had navigated his career for the past three years, had a heart attack and died last week after lying in a coma for two weeks. After all, it was only a few years ago that Hernandez was attending a community college in Walnut, broke and without a car. He should have been celebrating the launch of his first film, Touchstone’s “crazy/beautiful,” which opens Friday nationwide. June has been a bittersweet month for 21-year-old Jay Hernandez. ![]()
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ERIC
7/14/2023 01:31:28 pm
THE SOCA BOYS WILL BE IN FAST AND FURIOUS 11 TO JOIN DOMINIC TORETTO TEAM IN FAST AND FURIOUS 11
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