Salma Hayek on bond with Penelope Cruz: 'We were strength for each other'

Actress Salma Hayek says she and Penelope Cruz both offered huge support to one another as they tried to make it in Hollywood as actresses from Mexico and Spain respectively She said that female solidarity has been her strength inspiration and her safe spaceThe 58yearold actress first found major success in her native Mexico starring in the telenovela Teresa which aired for two years across 125 episodes before stepping into Los Angeles in 1991Hayek remembers how difficult it was to land roles as a Latino actress during the decade but she was lucky to have Cruz who moved from Spain to America to make it in Hollywood to lean on and vice versaIn an interview with Italian publication IO Donna Salma said In the 1990s there were no roles for Latinos I had to fight for every opportunity Its true luckily I was able to count on a community of extraordinary women at my side Peneacutelope Cruz We were a refuge and strength for each otherFemale solidarity has been my strength my inspiration my safe space Without this network I dont know if I would have had the same resilience I think that friends are food for the soul you learn from each others courageHayeks first big screen roles were opposite Antonio Banderas in Robert Rodriguezs 1995 action film Desperado and playing a vampire in Rodriguezs cult horror film From Dusk till Dawn which also starred George Clooney Quentin Tarantino Juliette Lewis and Harvey KeitelIt was the role of surrealist painter Frida Kahlo in Julie Taymors biographical film Frida released in 2002 that earned her critical acclaim and recognition and her performance made her the first Mexican actress to receive a Best Actress Oscar nominationHayek creates her own stories for Latin audiences via her own independent production company Ventanarosa which provided viewers with hit series Ugly BettyThe Hollywood Walk of Fame honouree says she created Ventanarosa in 1999 so she could create roles for other actresses like herDiscussing opportunities for Latino performers she said There has been progress but there is still a lot to do This is why I continue to produce stories for Latin audiences Argentina Mexico In 26 years of production I have never thought only of myself I wanted to create spaces for other artists to bring work to Latin American countriesOur latest project is a television adaptation of the popular 1989 novel Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel it took us six years to complete and when we consider that there are 600 million Spanish speakers in the world it is easy to see the potentialThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoeveratOptionskeyd0ddb8ef8f1a62a8cdd22fac27fc5ea7formatiframeheight90width728params