10 damas que desafían el sexismo en Hollywood

A fines de los ’80 nos enamoró como el joven médico genio “Doogie Houser, M.D.” pero en la última mitad de los ’90 se dio por desaparecido, haciendo trabajos de voz en películas animadas. Luego en 2005 le llegó otra oportunidad que le cambió la vida a través de “How I Met Your Mother,” serie que permaneció en el aire hasta el 2014. Lo acabamos de ver junto a Ben Affleck en “Gone Girl” y actualmente está grabando “American Horror Story.” Por si eso fuera poco, será el anfitrión de los Oscars por primera vez el 22 de febrero (ya tiene mucha experiencia como host de los Tony Awards y los Emmys).

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En los Golden Globes el 11 de enero, Moore, de 54 años, ganó el premio a la Mejor Actriz por su actuación en “Still Alice.” En su discurso comentó: “Dijeron que nadie quería ver una película sobre una mujer mayor.” Pero se equivocaron. A través de esta conmovedora historia, basada en el libro de Lisa Genova, Moore nos muestra una mujer extraordinaria que batalla contra el Alzheimer’s y descubre su verdadero valor. Sigue siendo la favorita para los Oscars.

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En una entrevista reciente con People, Meryl, de 65 años, habló sobre la obsesión que Hollywood tiene con la juventud y lo difícil que es para una actriz en su cuarta década encontrar personajes interesantes. Pero cuando Russell Crowe hizo sus comentarios controversiales sobre el “mito” del sexismo en Hollywood, en vez de atacarlo, Meryl dijo que es bueno “vivir en el espacio en donde uno está”, es decir, es bueno vivir cada etapa de la vida en su momento. Lo cierto es que hasta en su papel de bruja en “Into The Woods,” Meryl se luce por ser una de las mejores actrices de cualquier generación. Hasta ahora ha ganado tres Oscars, y es la más nominada de todos los tiempos con un total de 18 nominaciones a los premios de la Academia. Una dama en todo el sentido de la palabra.

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Esta dama inglesa ganó un Oscar en 2006 por su interpretación de la Reina Isabel II del Reino Unido en “The Queen,” y es realeza en Hollywood. A sus 69 años, luce mejor que muchas chicas menores. La veremos en abril de este año en “Woman in Gold,” inspirada por la historia real de una mujer judía que tuvo que huír de Viena durante la Segunda Guerra Mundial, dejando atrás todo, y que regresa décadas después para recuperar sus más preciados recuerdos.

Al ganar su premio Golden Globe como la Mejor Actriz de Reparto por su trabajo en “Boyhood” el 11 de enero, Arquette, de 46 años, dijo “Pusieron en mis manos el personaje de Olivia, una madre soltera que no es apreciada. Gracias por poner luz en esta mujer y las otras millones de mujeres como ella.” En manos de otra persona este rol pudiese haber resultado triste o patético, pero gracias a ella vimos un bello retrato de un ser humano fuerte pero a la vez vulnerable, capaz de amar a sus hijos tanto que hace todo por darles las oportunidades que se merecen en esta vida.

VER TAMBIÉN: el feminismo se hizo sentir en los Golden Globes

Esta dama inglesa de 80 años le da vida a nuestro personaje favorito de “Downton Abbey”: Violet, la matriarca de la familia aristocrática Crawley. Nos encanta ver cómo hace sufrir a su pobre nuera americana Cora. Pero antes de eso nos venía encantando en las películas de Harry Potter.

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A los 54 años, Swinton es una de las actrices más talentosas de la industria. Su habilidad de desaparecerse por completo dentro de sus personajes es inigualable. Este año nos tiene a todos hablando sobre su transformación en “Snowpiercer,” donde hace de un personaje político parecido al de Margaret Thatcher. El rol fue originalmente escrito para un hombre.

Ha sido nominada dos veces al Oscar (por “The Help” y “Doubt”) y ahora se luce como la brillante abogada y profesora de leyes Annalise Keating en “How to Get Away With Murder,” de la creadora Shonda Rhimes. Davis ha dicho que su personaje y ella tienen en común el hecho de que nacieron pobres pero lucharon por sus sueños. No nos sorprendió cuando la actriz de 49 años ganó el premio a la Actriz Favorita en una Nueva Serie de TV en los People’s Choice Awards este año. Verla en acción es como apreciar una clase de actuación en Juilliard (donde estudió).

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Fue una de nuestras princesas favoritas en “The Princess Bride” durante los ’80 y ahora, a sus 48 años, hace de un personaje totalmente opuesto pero igual de memorable. Se trata de Claire Underwood, esposa del político siniestro Frank Underwood (Kevin Spacey) en “House of Cards.” Puede que sea una fiel aliada de Frank, pero Claire tiene sus propias ambiciones y no se detiene ante nada. El año pasado ganó un Golden Globe por su papel en la aclamada serie de Netflix, que pronto regresa para su tercera temporada.

No hay otra mujer más picarona o encantadora que ella. A sus 93 años, la actriz y comediante, quien desde un principio se ganó un lugar en nuestros corazones con “The Golden Girls,” acaba de recibir el premio Ícono de la TV en los People’s Choice Awards. Y aunque la sexta temporada  de su serie “Hot in Cleveland” sea la última, Betty nos sigue haciendo reír a carcajadas. ¡En esta foto vemos que hasta Chris Evans la ama!

La amada “M” de las películas recientes de James Bond es toda una maestra de la interpretación. Trae una intensidad y credibilidad única a cada personaje y a sus 80 años sigue impresionándonos con su talento. Ganó un Oscar en 1998 por su rol de reparto en “Shakespeare in Love” y el año pasado nos deslumbró en la historia de la vida real “Philomena,” por la cual obtuvo su séptima nominación a un premio de la Academia. Este año la veremos en una comedia más light, la secuela de “The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel.”

Part of the new class of Latina actresses breaking ground in Hollywood, 30-year-old Rodriguez is the CW’s first Latina lead, and thanks to her inspiring portrayal of the titular character on “Jane The Virgin,” she’s also the winner of this year’s Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Comedy Series, making the network known for teen vampires a legitimate awards contender. Not surprisingly, the CW has renewed “Jane” for another season. No doubt this is only the beginning for our VL Rising Star of the Year and we’ll be talking about her for years to come.

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At 48, the Mexican powerhouse has amassed several milestones. But perhaps one of the more significant ones is the formation of her own production company in 1999, Ventanarosa, to open doors for other Latinos in Hollywood (see also: America Ferrera). In 2002, Hayek produced and starred in “Frida,” a passion project that took her almost 10 years to make. Her brave performance of the beloved surrealist painter earned her an Academy Award nod in 2003. Her next passion project is an animated film adaptation of Khalil Gibran’s “The Prophet.” But she’s still kicking butt in front of the camera as deftly as stars half her age — catch her in “Everly” this month as she fights off an army of trained assassins, Liam Neeson-style.

Where do we begin? Being the first Latina to get paid $1 million for a movie (“Selena”)? Or perhaps being the first person in history to have a No. 1 movie (“The Wedding Planner”) and No. 1 album (“J.Lo”) at the same time in 2001? Or how about the first celebrity to have a mega-successful fragrance empire ($2 billion in sales since 2002)? Oh and she’s also the first woman to receive the Billboard Icon Award. And those are just the highlights. At 45, Lopez shows no signs of slowing down. Now she’s part owner and chief creative office of NuvoTV, a network aimed at multicultural millennials. On January 23, the “American Idol” judge returns to film in the thriller “The Boy Next Door,”  where she proves she’s still got it.

Revlon’s first-ever Latina spokesperson and MTV’s first Latina VJ in the ’90s (remember the expression “Chao-cito, baby?!”), Fuentes has been quietly working behind the scenes building a lifestyle empire that many stars have since emulated. In 2004, she partenered with Kohl’s for their first-ever celebrity fashion brand. At one point, it was estimated to have sold  $400-million. Fuentes’ brand now encompasses clothing, eyewear, home decor, intimates, jewelry, haircare, perfumes, and shoes! And the host of “La Voz Kids” is still as sultry as ever. Check her out in Richard Marx’s new video, “Beautiful Goodbye.”

Possessing equal parts class, talent and beauty, Cruz became the first Spanish actress to be nominated for an Oscar in 2007 for Pedro Almodovar’s “Volver.” But it was her turn as the deliciously mad Maria Elena in Woody Allen’s “Vicki Christina Barcelona” for which she won, as Best Supporting Actress, in 2009. And now that she’s married to fellow Oscar winner Javier Bardem, it’s hard to imagine their children won’t follow in their artistic footsteps.

One of only a handful of people ever to claim the prestigious title of EGOT – short for Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony winner. But it was far from easy. Moreno has had to battle sexism, ageism, and racism along the way. “I always had to have an accent, even though I spoke better English than many of the people (who hired me),” she told Variety last year, reflecting on her almost 70-year career before receiving a Lifetime Achievement honor at the SAG Awards. “The roles were so embarrassing. But I had to make a living and I had to be an actress. I was determined that with perseverance and faith at some point someone would say ‘This girl has talent’ and would cast me in something meaningful.” Sure enough, in 1961, it happened, with “West Side Story,” for which she won an Oscar.

Before there was Shakira, there was Gloria. The Cuban icon’s 1985 hit “Conga” forever changed the pop music landscape, turning her into the world’s first Latin crossover superstar. In 1991, after a long and painful rehabilitation following a near-fatal car accident, she got back on her feet, even though doctors said she’d never walk again. In 1993, her tribute to her homeland of Cuba, “Mi Tierra,” became the first Latin album to sell more than 1 million copies. A year later, she was the first person to perform a Spanish-language song on the Grammys. In 2008, she became the first woman to receive the Latin Recording Academy Person of the Year honor. Gloria is so groundbreaking that she gets her own musical: “On Your Feet” is coming to Broadway this year and will tell the inspiring story of her journey to America and how she and husband Emilio built an estimated $500 million empire while staying true to their roots and opening doors for Latinos all over the world.

She taught women everywhere to love their bodies in 2002’s “Real Women Have Curves.” And who can forget “Ugly Betty” (2006 – 2010)? Ferrera’s Emmy, SAG, and Golden Globe Award-winning character broke down stereotypes and gave Latinas everywhere a real role model they could look up to, much like Gina Rodriguez’s Jane does currently on The CW.

Is it any wonder she’s sought out and admired by the biggest directors in the business, from James Cameron to J.J. Abrams? Saldana exudes strength, confidence and toughness, and refuses to conform to Hollywood standards. Our favorite character? A certain blue princess in what is still the highest-grossing film of all time (“Avatar”). Get ready for more Neytiri in “Avatar 2,” coming in 2016, the same year in which she’ll return as Lt. Uhura in “Star Trek 3.” But before then we’ll get to see her as jazz legend Nina Simone.

<p>The voice of a generation. Not many pop stars can command the attention of world leaders on the subject of education or get the World Bank to pledge $300 million to improve the lives of families throughout Latin America. Barack Obama is so impressed by Shakira that he named her a member of his Advisory Commission on Educational Excellence for Hispanics. Shak has sold over 60 million albums worldwide and is also the first-ever person to hit 100 million likes on Facebook. Is it any wonder why?</p>

Spike Lee’s “Do The Right Thing” simply would not be the same without Perez’s opening dance number in the 1989 cult favorite film. And let’s not forget she was the one choreographing the Fly Girls — including a then up-and-coming dancer named Jennifer Lopez, on “In Living Color.” The best part is that instead of trying to blend in, Perez made her heavy Bronx accent her trademark. Now she adds her own flavor to “The View” as a host. And if you doubt her acting chops just watch “Fearless,” for which she was nominated in the Best Supporting Actress category at the 1994 Oscars.

In 2004, Dawson co-founded the non-partisan political org Voto Latino. United by the belief that Latino issues are American issues and American issues are Latino issues, Voto Latino is dedicated to bringing new and diverse voices into the political process by engaging youth, media, technology and celebrities to shake up the political process. Thanks in part to Voto Latino’s efforts, millions of Latinos — including many first-time voters — have turned out in record numbers in the last elections.

La Diva de la Banda used to say that she was a woman “of many ovaries.” It would take someone like that to break through the male-dominated regional Mexican music scene, as she did. Among her many feats, she sold more than 15 million copies of her albums and was the first female Mexican artist to sell out the Staples Center in Los Angeles in 2011. And after making her acting debut in the hip-hop drama “Filly Brown,” alongside Gina Rodriguez, and finding success as producer and star of her own reality series “I Love Jenni,” Rivera started developing a sitcom for ABC inspired by her extraordinary life. Surely she would have continued to break ground had her life not been cut tragically short in a plane crash on December 9, 2012.

On “Modern Family,” Sofia Vergara plays what could have been a one-dimensional stereotype with a distinct wink to the audience. Her approach to comedy is simple yet genius: “Somebody can be hot and also be funny and make fun of herself and enjoy her work and make money” — $37 million a year, to be exact, according to Forbes, making her the highest paid actress on TV for the third year in a row. She earns $325,000 per episode, but has lucrative endorsement deals with CoverGirl, Head & Shoulders, and Diet Pepsi, to name a few. She’s also the co-founder of Latin World Entertainment, a lucrative talent management and marketing firm. And like Daisy Fuentes before her, Vergara has a loyal partner in a major retailer: Kmart.

She went from being our favorite lingerie-clad character on “Desperate Housewives” to one of the most influential Latinos in America, thanks to her political and social activism. She helped President Obama secure 73% of the Latino vote during the 2012 election; continues to speak ardently and articulately about immigration reform; and initiated the Latino Victory Project to raise funds for candidates. On the entrepreneurial side, she’s been successful as a restaurateur, author and executive producer (Lifetime’s “Devious Maids” series and the documentaries “Harvest” and “Food Chains”). She may be spending less time in front of the camera these days, but she’s busier and more beloved than ever. So what was that defining moment in her life as an activist? “Long before I was famous, I met Dolores Huerta, and she said to me, ‘Hermana, one day you’re going to have a voice. Be sure you have something to say.’ I just never forgot that,” Longoria shared with us recently.