Pop Culture Planet Podcast: Jessica Marie Garcia Is Standing Up For What She Believes In
"Bitch, that's my cue!"
In a brand new episode of the Pop Culture Planet podcast, Kristen Maldonado is joined by the fabulous, hilarious, and talented Jessica Marie Garcia — a Mexican and Cuban American actress, writer and producer — best known for On My Block, Diary of a Future President, and the recent DC Comics audio series Batman Unburied. She talks about the need for Latinos to support each other, standing up for what you believe in, and the families she built working on Liv and Maddie and On My Block.
Episode Quotes
Jessica Marie Garcia on performances that resonated with her growing up: “These two performances kind of summed me up: Barbra Streisand in Funny Girl and then watching John Leguizamo in Freak. […] That performance meant everything to me because she wasn’t this commercially gorgeous woman, even though she is to me, but like to the world. And then to see John Leguizamo, a Latino, be center stage with that spotlight on him and him be hysterical and have hi speak a language that I understood. He was talking about chancletas and I was like, ‘Oh my god, he knows what that’s like, I know what that’s like.’”
Garcia on her passion for writing: “When I didn’t see myself represented, I would start getting scripts offline of my favorite movies and I would write myself a part in them. That sparked a love of writing for me. I’ve always wanted to do both.”
Garcia on being stereotyped: “I needed specific outfits in my trunk, which were a bully, a maid. Those were probably the two biggest ones. I was always praying for all ethnicity breakdowns […] because my Spanish is not great. I know that somebody else would be playing those roles a hell of a lot better than me. […] I wasn’t this white, beautiful girl that was getting cast so it was really important for me to find these breakdowns that weren’t specific, but wanted somebody else that wasn’t white. So I could be like, ‘Hi, I could be that. I could be your other in your script.’”
Garcia on making sure Jasmine didn’t become a stereotype in On My Block: “I was getting stereotyped all the time. I think even Jasmine could have easily been a stereotype. But the creators and the producers were really great with me and really sat down with me, especially for season two. I was telling them all along, the reason I can play Jasmine is because I know the pain it takes to be Jasmine. I know the pain it takes to be that funny girl. Comedy stems from drama [so] anybody that’s the class clown is probably dealing with a lot at home.”
Garcia on acting tips: “People don’t realize that it’s so easy to turn something like that on, but that doesn’t mean that was correct for the character. It’s so easy to cry, but it’s not easy to try and hold that back. when you’re breaking down and you’re trying to be strong. That’s the real struggle and that’s really much more interesting to see.”
Garcia on someone who made her feel seen in media: “That was America Ferrera for me. Seeing her in Real Women Have Curves. I was like, ‘She’s a Latina and she’s curvy? Oh, maybe I can do this.’ It’s amazing the power that representation has for so many that haven’t seen that.”
Garcia on inspiring others, including Gordita Chronicles actress Olivia Goncalves: “I’m gonna try not to cry about this, but I’ve been so blessed to have this opportunity to live out my dreams. The fact that it resonates with other people just blows me away because I know what it’s like to be that little girl that wants it so bad, but doesn’t think it’s possible. So when anybody comes up to me and tells me that I’ve had that impact on them, I do not take it for granted. It literally blows me away. When [Olivia Goncalves] was talking to me, she was telling me how much she watched On My Block and Liv and Maddie and how it helped her believe that she could do this. What stuck out the most to me was she said that there wasn’t something wrong with her. That kills me because we know what it’s like to feel like there’s something wrong with you. There’s absolutely nothing wrong. She is just everything, she is a ball of light. To think I had anything to do with that, I’m just incredibly thankful. I’m very humbled by it. It’s a lot because I know what it’s like to feel like that. I mean, there’s still days where I feel like that. I just hope that there’s even more representation for all of us because the last thing I was ever is for my daughter to grow up and feel like there’s something wrong with her.”
Garcia on why she speaks out: “It's just about damn time. I think one of the hardest things I've found in the Latino community is how much we don't support each other. We do have so many different stories and we're not all the same, but I think that we need to support each other in any way that we can, whether that's our street vendors, whether that's our local businesses. We need to stand up for each other before we can expect anyone else to do that for us. I really look up to the Black community for doing that. It’s bad enough that there’s such a lack of support for our AfroLatinos in our community. That’s why I’m so vocal. The only way we’re going to advance as a community is if we support each other. That’s why I speak up — because I’m tired of seeing the struggle.”
Garcia on why Latino-led shows are being cancelled: “Because if we don't see our story told exactly the way that we've lived it, we're done. We're over it. We don't allow for any breathing room or any mistakes. It has to be perfect or it's done and that's what's so upsetting because we've grown up watching all of these white shows and been fine with it. Why can’t we have the same forgiveness for our shows?”
Garcia on Latinx: “We can't even settle on what we're going to be called. There could be an article about how Latinx is changing the game and we've raised a billion dollars for our community and all the comments will just be like, ‘What is a Latinx?’ and ‘What is La-tinks?’ That’s not the conversation. I support whatever anybody wants to be called […] but this is about more than just an individual. We’re trying to encompass everybody and try and find a home for all of us. […] It just breaks my heart that a word that’s supposed to make people feel included is what’s dividing.”
Garcia on playing Jasmine in On My Block: “I will thank the show till the day I die because Jasmine was my favorite character I’ve ever played, but I also got an entire family from them. The six of us were inseparable and we still talk. […] They were all the brothers and sisters I wish I had growing up.”
Garcia on finding out she was pregnant: “I found out that I was pregnant with Selena the last day of filming [On My Block]. Brett [Gray] told me as soon as […] we got married, ‘You got to be pregnant next Thursday. You better be pregnant next Thursday.’ And every Thursday, he’d be like, ‘Are you pregnant? You better be pregnant next Thursday.’ He was the only person I told the day I found out. I was like, ‘Okay, so I’m only telling you, but I’m pregnant.’ And he was like, ‘And it’s a Thursday!’ and he was crying. It was a whole thing."
Garcia on Diary of a Future President being cancelled: “I'm so mad about that honestly because I feel like this show was something that I wish I would have had growing up. I know that so many people, especially in the LGBT community, would have loved to have seen growing up you know, especially as a Latino struggling. You know our culture isn’t necessarily the most welcoming with those that are coming out of the closet. So the fact that we had a character whose family was embracing him and encouraging him to be himself is just so beautiful. We need more shows like that especially to watch with our families so it was really heartbreaking that it that it's not continuing.”
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Hosted by TV and film critic Kristen Maldonado, Pop Culture Planet is a video podcast featuring analytical pop culture discussions and interviews with diverse voices in the entertainment space. Watch episodes on youtube.com/kaymaldo or listen on your favorite podcast platforms, from Spotify to Apple Podcasts and beyond.
