But in the complicated debate of which actors should be allowed to play which roles, he feels that directors should use their own discretion in the casting process because “they know the story that they want to tell.” NetflixĪs someone who is consistently in the process of “re-educating myself” - a value he and his wife, Diana Vázquez, would like to pass on to their young children - Herrera understands the potential controversy surrounding his decision to play a gay character. If you change the art, if you change the clothes from the people, it’s exactly the same - how our society behaves, the norms that our societies have.’ And that’s why I say it’s important to go to the past to understand who we are.” Netflix's new film "El Baile de los 41" follows Ignacio de la Torre y Mier as he leads a double life and develops feelings for Evaristo Rivas. We looked at each other and we said, ‘You know, our society hasn’t changed that much. “We stood and we watched the people there. “I remember David and I were shooting a scene in the MUNAL to portray el Castillo de Chapultepec where Porfirio Díaz lived, and there were 200 extras,” the veteran actor recalled. More than a century later, Herrera feels that “some steps have been made” in different areas of the country, but, in his words, “many things are still the same, and that is not a secret for anyone.” "This story talks about people wanting to be free, wanting to not feel attached or feel that they need to behave in a certain way in order to be accepted." "I think that this film talks about what happens if you really want to be yourself and perceptions of society," he said. Society is the real villain here,” Herrera said, citing the example of Díaz appointing de la Torre to Congress in exchange for making his daughter happy. “I think the main villain is not a specific character, but it’s the lines and the regulations that society puts. Herrera said it was important to portray de la Torre as the important businessman he was but at the same time show this "need that he had, which is represented by Evaristo." "That was a very important answer for me to understand the character and to battle the scenes." There’s a phrase in Mexico, 'Más vale ser cabeza de ratón que cola de león,' it's better to be the head of a mouse than the tail of a lion," Herrera said about de la Torre. "He loved power he loved the position where he was. Ignacio de la Torre y Mier sits by his wife, Amada, played by Mabel Cadena, at the dining room table. He arrived late to the house, all of the family was at the table waiting for him, and Porfirio Díaz said, ‘Ignacio, cars run with gasoline, not with cognac,’” Herrera said, adding he still has that scene “very present in my mind.” 'He loved power'Īs Herrera worked to better understand the mysterious man he would later embody, he found himself wondering the same thing on more than one occasion: Why didn’t Ignacio de la Torre use his economic power to leave Mexico and build a new life for himself? The answer, it seems, was quite simple. “Ignacio was an alcoholic and he was one of the first guys in Latin America who owned a motor car at that time. "What would have happened if Ignacio was not discovered as a gay man? He would have been one of the important Mexican figures from our history, but he was taken away from that because he was gay."
“You need to go to the past in order to understand who you are as a person or who you are as a society," Herrera told NBC News in an exclusive video interview last week.
OLD GAY MOVIES ON NETFLIX MOVIE
Herrera, 37, who is best known internationally for his work in “The Exorcist” and “Sense8,” said he immediately jumped at the chance to work with Pablos, who directed the award-winning 2015 movie "Las Elegidas." Growing up in Mexico City, lead actor Alfonso Herrera said it was customary for the people around him to avoid the number 41, but it wasn’t until he was much older that he came to understand the negative “connotation and meaning that this number had for the Mexican society.” But a scandal ensued when initial reports placed a 42nd man in attendance, and the story spread that it was de la Torre, the president’s son-in-law, marking the first time homosexuality was openly discussed in the Mexican media. The official report was that they found 41 prominent men dancing together - half of whom were dressed as women. 17, 1901, when police raided a private home in Mexico City. The film’s title - its original in Spanish is "El Baile de los 41" - refers to the night of Nov.