It’s Wednesday morning and Camila Mendes is getting ready to debut her latest role on the silver screen — Ana Santos in the movie Upgraded. Prime Video rom-com plays for one night only at the cinemas on February 7 and is sold out across the country ahead of its global release on the streaming platform on February 9. With it, the award-winning star ushers in a new era in Hollywood where a Brazilian-American is the leading lady of Rome-coms.
In the film, Ana is an ambitious unpaid intern at an art auction house who dreams of opening her own art gallery in New York while trying to impress her intimidating boss, Claire (played by Marissa Tomei). Fortunately, Mendes didn’t have toxic bosses, but she did relate to the character’s relentless ambition and pursuit of her career. “For as long as I can remember, I always knew I wanted to be an actor. Anna is very similar. He loves art and just wants to be in the industry he loves. I share that feeling with her when it comes to acting,” NYU Tisch School of the Arts graduate Somos tells Refinery29.
She attributes her work ethic to being the daughter of immigrants and her Brazilian-American heritage. “My immigrant parents moved to the US with no connections, no family, no relationships, nothing. My father moved to the US and worked his way up,” says Mendes. “You can succeed, but that doesn’t mean you stop working. You have to try hard — qualities my parents have. I don’t feel like I’m entitled to my career or anything in this industry.”
“I don’t feel like I’m entitled to my career or anything in this industry.”
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After saving the day at an art sale, Mendes’ character Ana gets her big break and is invited to join Claire on a work trip to London. At the airport, she endures a nasty interaction with her less-than-kind co-workers, which earns her the sympathy of the airline attendant who gives Ana a first-class seat on the international flight. In the living room, she has a cringe-worthy meet-cute with a British Congolese, William (played by Archie Renaux), who, as luck would have it, sits next to her in the first row. It’s not as uncommon as you think – one in 50 people have it found love on a plane.
In the film, William assumes that Ana is the manager of the New York office – not the intern. Ana replies that she is the “youngest manager in the history of the company” and runs with the lie. The inflammation leads to a chaotic chain of events that puts Anna’s career on the line as she risks losing everything for love.
Unlike Ana, Mendes doesn’t believe in white lies — but feels there’s power in faking it ’til you make it, which she ultimately sees as the film’s lesson. “It’s the power of the event. If you operate around the world like you’re a super successful boss, it might actually be because you’re drawn to these opportunities and the right people are drawn to you. You get what you put in,” says Mendes.
“If you’re operating around the world like you’re a wildly successful boss, it can actually happen because you’re attracted to those opportunities and the right people are attracted to you. You get the energy you put out.”
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Whether she plays Veronica Lodge on the CW’s Riverdale or Drea in take revenge Mendes is no stranger to playing well-built Latina characters, but Ana is different from her other roles. Often cast as confident and sassy supporting Latina characters, Mendes says “it was nice to play a protagonist who wasn’t necessarily outwardly confident. He’s just figuring it out. He’s struggling and not doing so well. It’s a little messier, sillier, softer, and I liked that I could show a different side of myself.”
Such Latino-centric rom-com leads are few and far between, with the exceptions of course being Jennifer Lopez and Christina Milian, though both don’t always play Latina characters when they play the love interest. However, Mendes is actually inspired by J Lo, who she calls “the great queen of rom-coms” and notes the Puerto Rican actor’s classic works Maid in Manhattan and The Wedding Planner as one of her favorites.
“We don’t get to see Latinas star in rom-coms very often. I appreciate this to Upgraded, I’m playing to play this character in a movie where I haven’t been bullied,” says Mendes.
“It was nice to play a lead that wasn’t necessarily sure on the outside. He’s just figuring it out. He’s struggling and not doing so well. It’s a little messier, sillier, softer, and I liked that I could show a different side of myself.”
CAMILLA MENTES
Being Latina in Hollywood has been “really great” for the 29-year-old actor — mostly because of the Latino community. She recently went to an event at Jessica Alba’s house for Latinas in Hollywood and confesses that she and her peers have a group chat on Instagram where they share news, nominations and keep congratulating each other.
From her first role Riverdale, Mendes refused to conform to Latino stereotypes. “I want to make sure we create space to have great opportunities to play interesting, exciting roles. I just don’t see those opportunities arising,” he says. “Every awards season, it’s very rare to see Latino representation. A huge part of that is that there aren’t enough roles that show how talented we are.”
Ana’s Latino heritage is never confirmed Upgraded. There’s a scene where a colleague assumes Ana is Guatemalan and she responds by saying she’s from Florida. It’s a scene many Latinas in the United States know all too well — deciphering whether someone is genuinely curious about your heritage or trying to “other” you. Mendes explains that the moment was meant to emphasize that the other character is clueless and misattributing Ana’s nationality.
“We don’t get to see Latinas star in rom-coms very often.”
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Although Ana’s heritage is not mentioned, Mendes cast her as Brazilian American — and effected some changes in the film to make Ana’s identity concrete. For example, he always makes sure that the characters he plays have a Latin name, ideally one set in Brazil. “It’s subtle, but a character’s name is really important. If I can’t pronounce it in Portuguese, then I don’t want that to be her name,” says Mendes. “I want my mom to be able to say the characters’ names.” In UpgradedMendes changed her character’s last name to Santos because Portuguese surnames end with an “s” rather than a “z”.
It didn’t just influence her character’s name—it also inspired the name for her on-screen sister Vivian, naming her after her real-life sister. The names were important to Mendes, who served as an executive producer on the film, to create the tone of a Latino family.
“If I can’t pronounce it in Portuguese, then I don’t want that to be her name. I want my mom to be able to say the names of the characters.”
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The relationship between Ana and Viv is what Mendes relates to the most in the film. “It was really sweet. I literally asked them to name the character after my sister because I feel so supported by my sister. She’s my No. 1 fan and is always super supportive,” says Mendes. “We have such a good relationship. Like Ana and Viv, there is nothing I wouldn’t share with my sister, I can talk to her about anything. It was important to me that Viv looked out for Ana and was always rooting for her.”
A self-proclaimed romantic in real life, Mendes is definitely in the rom-com era. It won’t be long before we see Mendes as a rom-com leading lady again. Her next project, Prime Video Music, is a Brazilian-American coming-of-age romance. Mendes stars alongside her IRL boyfriend and fellow Brazilian Rudy Mancuso who wrote and directed the film. “In MusicI can do a reenactment version that’s more celebratory — it’s a Brazilian-American story,” he says.
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