Eva Longoria told The Hollywood Reporter that she has something to “prove” with her feature film directorial debut Flamin’ Hot in its SXSW Studio at South by Southwest on Saturday.
The biographical drama tells the story of Richard Montañez (Jesse Garcia), who claimed he invented Flamin’ Hot Cheetos while working as a janitor for Frito-Lay.
Joined by stars Garcia and Annie Gonzalez and producer DeVon Franklin, Longoria told THR that the entire team had “a lot to prove” with the film during the Austin festival.
“We don’t get these roles every day. These roles that have so much meat on the bone. To play different period pieces. To play somebody, but your interpretation,” she said. “That doesn’t come along every day.”
Longoria added, “We get one bite of the apple and we all kind of knew that.”
Despite Flamin’ Hot being the first film she’s directed, the cast had nothing but kind things to say about Longoria’s work behind the camera.
Gonzalez called the director “brilliant” and “phenomenal,” adding that there was a “specificity” in the “stories she wanted to tell.”
Meanwhile, Garcia said that it was easy to trust Longoria and she inspired him to direct one day. “It was like a master class for me,” he said of working with her.
Franklin added that Longoria “very clearly” had a “vision” for the film before she was even hired to direct.
Longoria also spoke to THR about her plans to direct more films in the future. After explaining that she was recently sent a script that “didn’t speak” to her, she admitted that Flamin’ Hot set a high standard for her next project.
“If I don’t feel the way I feel about this particular movie when I read a new script, I don’t think I’m ever directing again,” she said with a laugh. “I care so deeply about this movie that I was like, ‘Does that have to be every time?’”
Watch the full THR conversation in the player above.
