В детстве Xochitl Gomez сыграла в молодежной театральной постановке Seussical, музыкального спектакля по мотивам Dr. Seuss. Этот опыт отлично подготовил ее к съемкам в 20 лет вместе с Bill Hader и America Ferrera в The Cat in the Hat — новой анимационной версии классической истории.

За годы между ролями в «вселенной Seuss» Gomez успела получить прорывную роль Dawn Schafer в сериале Netflix The Baby-Sitters Club, сняться в фильме Marvel и выиграть Dancing with the Stars в 17 лет, даже выступая с растяжением связок на щиколотке.

Актерскую карьеру Gomez начала в 5 лет, вдохновившись работой матери, которая была художником-постановщиком. Мать работала над фильмом 2013 года Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters, когда Gomez однажды пришла к ней на площадку.

“I saw them doing reshoots for this one scene, and the stunt doubles were falling backward. And I was just like, ‘What is this? This is theater, but intense. Like on camera and wild,’” she remembers. “I was like, ‘This is cool. I want to be a part of this. How do I do that?’”

От Seuss к Marvel

По-настоящему жизнь Gomez перевернулась после роли America Chavez в Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, на которую она впервые пробовалась еще в 11 лет. Она снималась рядом с Benedict Cumberbatch, Rachel McAdams и Elizabeth Olsen — звездами, за которыми наблюдала почти всю жизнь, — а сам фильм познакомил ее с куда более широкой аудиторией, чем все ее предыдущие работы.

Как говорит Gomez, она выросла не только с Benedict Cumberbatch, но и с Doctor Strange. Она знала лор, историю персонажей и их сюжетные линии.

“I grew up with not just Benedict Cumberbatch, but Doctor Strange,” she says. “I knew the lore and the story of all these characters and their arcs.”

Работа над такой огромной постановкой в подростковом возрасте бросила ее в самую гущу Hollywood и показала harassment, а также ограниченные возможности для кастинга артистов of color. Одновременно это дало ей голос, которым она не боится пользоваться.

Когда стало известно, что в экранизации книги Deep Cuts роль, предназначенную для Latina, получила белая актриса, а на пробы не пригласили ни одной Latina, Gomez придумала открытое письмо и собрала более 150 подписей, призывая к большему латиноамериканскому представительству в Hollywood.

“It’s about the executives, the producers, and the whole system at the top. They thought it was okay to not even audition Latinas for the role in the first place. Latinas were pitched, including me, but we were told that there was an actress with an exclusive offer. This role never showed up on the casting grid, because it was already gone,” she told the Los Angeles Times.

Что помогает ей не соглашаться на лишнее

У Gomez есть неколебимое понимание того, чем она хочет заниматься. Недавно она частично переехала в Spain и призналась, что слышала слишком много ужасающих историй о людях, застревавших в проекте надолго, уставших от процесса и потерявших творческий поток.

По словам актрисы, на каждом шаге она спрашивает себя: приносит ли это радость, зажигает ли творческое начало и будет ли ей приятно проходить через этот процесс.

“I make sure, with every step I take, that I think, ‘Is this something that is going to bring joy? Is this something that’s going to spark creativity? Am I going to enjoy this process?’”

ELLE: What was it like to work on something as big and star-studded as The Cat in the Hat?

Xochitl Gomez: I have always wanted to do voice-over projects. As a kid, I was always auditioning for them, but this was the first one that I got, and I was just so excited. I’m a huge fan of Dr. Seuss and was very familiar with the characters, so I was like, “This is so fitting for me.”

I even got to do some sessions with Bill [Hader], the king of voice-over. He’s done almost every childhood animated movie I’ve ever watched and I’m a huge fan of his comedy, so I was just like, “This is insane. I have to come prepared. I have to come with choices.” Seeing him do his thing, I was enamored.

О работе, границах и переезде

ELLE: How did you make the transition to a franchise like Doctor Strange?

Xochitl Gomez: It is one that I was not prepared for. I hadn’t done too many projects, mainly because at the time it was really hard finding a role. I didn’t look like many people, and at the time there weren’t many young people of color getting cast. There still aren’t, but we’re working toward it. But it was really hard back then. I did a lot of short films. That’s honestly what led me into getting The Baby-Sitters Club. Then from there, I went straight into the Marvel universe. [Filming] was during COVID, and it was eight months in England. I was the only kid. After that, it almost felt like I was an untouchable force, where people were like, “What do we do with her? There isn’t much out there for her, and she’s so big now. It must be so hard to book her.” It was a hard thing to navigate, and still is. But it blessed me in many ways.

ELLE: How did it feel to be a young person on set?

Xochitl Gomez: I had to go into it not saying, “I’m a fan,” but “I’m here for work.” I had to grow up quite a bit and just be like, “Throw it out the door. Elizabeth Olsen is going to be screaming at me and berating me in this scene, and taking my powers away from me. That’s fine, because I’m a professional today. And the second I wrap this scene, I’m going to tell her how much I love her.”

ELLE: Did you experience the racial or misogynistic harassment from fans that so many actors in major adaptations face, like Lupita Nyong’o with The Odyssey and Kelly Marie Tran in the Star Wars sequels?

Xochitl Gomez: I experienced it very heavily. I was getting death threats. I was getting people sending me videos of them throwing tomatoes at my face. It was a hard thing to navigate, but I was just like, “Okay, well, what can I do? What’s the power that I have in this situation? Comments are restricted. You don’t get to comment.” None of my content was rude or defensive. I was just like, “And we’re back, guys. You thought you could get rid of me? I’m back.” I was 14, and I was like, “Whatever.” I think about it now and I’m like, “Wow, that was actually pretty good.”

Когда Gomez вошла в Dancing with the Stars, главным условием было наличие партнера, который уже работал с ребенком. Логистика танцев с взрослым и с ребенком очень разная. После перехода от The Baby-Sitters Club к Marvel она была совершенно не готова к тому, сколько людей начнут объективировать ее. Ей пришлось стать гораздо внимательнее.

На Dancing with the Stars она сразу сказала, насколько важен ее выбор одежды.

“This has to be this long. I can’t be wearing a little leotard. I need to be wearing shorts.”

Это были правила, которые она устанавливала, чтобы чувствовать себя спокойно. По ее словам, мир, к сожалению, дошел до такой точки, и ей приходится делать все, чтобы защитить себя.

ELLE: Why did you decide to relocate to Spain?

Xochitl Gomez: I was born and raised in LA, so it is crazy to say that I no longer want to live there, but I just wasn’t necessarily feeling the best. I feel like the vibes have definitely changed since I was younger, and honestly, I was just not feeling safe. I thought to myself, “This is like my study abroad.” I’ve just been out there. Nobody has these [American] problems out in Spain. There are no guns, no recalls of lettuce. They’ve proposed a huge block on social media, so anyone who’s 16 or younger doesn’t have Instagram.

ELLE: What are you interested in besides acting?

Xochitl Gomez: I designed with Hot Topic for about two years. I was on Dancing with the Stars, and I would be on big calls, pitching to the whole Hot Topic team. I was really pushing the boundaries of Hot Topic. I was like, “I need this pleat, and I need this.” I created my own plaids and my own fabrics that they’d never worked with before. I had to work with teams all over the place, which was a huge thing to do when I was 15.

ELLE: Is there anything in entertainment you’re dying to try?

Xochitl Gomez: I really want to bring back rom-coms. I love a little romance and a little comedy. I feel like comedy right now is either actually really funny or old funny. I’m like, “Why are we bringing back the old funny? Let’s make the new funny, guys. Let’s reclaim the new funny.”

Lead Image: Jacket, dress, Miu Miu. Cap, Nerida Fraiman. Shoes, Prada.

Hair by Stelios Chondros at Julian Watson Agency; makeup by Bea Sweet for Huda Beauty; manicure by Sabrina Gayle at The Arch Agency; set design by Paula Salinas; produced by Giorgio Tsintoukidis at The Curated.

A version of this story will appear in the November 2026 issue of ELLE.