By Samantha Ferm, NCLR
(Cross-posted from the ALMA 411 blog)
The new Spanish-language telenovela-spoof movie that just opened recently, Casa de mi Padre, starring Mexican superstars Diego Luna and Gael García Bernal and American funnyman Will Ferrell, brings up some good questions about multilingual appeal and pushing the boundaries of mainstream film and television actors. While it’s refreshing to see actors venture beyond their native language (in this case Ferrell, who dove headfirst into Spanish), Will Ferrell is hardly the first actor to do so. Some of the biggest Latino stars in the U.S.—Salma Hayek, Sofia Vergara, Demián Bichir, and Antonio Banderas, to name just a few—have been working in multilingual shows and film for ages, but rarely has their ability to act in a second language been given the same notice.
Does it seem strange that we make a big deal about an actor like Will Ferrell spoofing a comedy in Spanish, but don’t stop to consider how many successful foreign-born actors there are who have broken language barriers and risen to the top? And why does it seem to surprise so many people that an English speaker is acting in another language?
Do you think that Casa de mi Padre will be a success for both Latino and mainstream audiences, or do you think this first leap into Spanish-language acting for Ferrell will be a bust?