Lopez Vs Lopezcombines family sitcom antics with a touch of theatrical drama. George Lopez stars as a former alcoholic and deadbeat dad who reconnects with his estranged daughter (played by Lopez’s real-life child, Mayan Lopez) when he hits rock bottom and tries to turn his life around. Now in its third season,Lopez Vs Lopez’scurrent batch of episodes focuses on the impending wedding between Mayan and her fiance and baby-daddy, Quinten (Matt Shively).
The November 15th episode, “Lopez Vs Friends,” featured a special appearance from Annie Gonzalez (Flamin' Hot, Gentefied), who played one of Mayan’s childhood friends, who is considered for Maid of Honor duty, much to the chagrin of Mayan’s mother, played by Selenis Leyva. Ultimately, it will take a line dance to sort things out… It makes sense in the greater context of the episode, we promise.
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ScreenRantinterviewed Annie Gonzalez about her work on the episode, as well as her larger career. She spoke about her previous experience with George and Mayan Lopez, and how she felt like she was ready to finally make hersitcom debut withLopez Vs Lopez. She also gave props to director Danielle Fishel, showrunner Debby Wolfe, and the rest of the show’s majority Latino crew. Finally, she shared her excitement for her upcoming film,Jenni, based on the life of the groundbreaking, rule-breaking singer/songwriter, Jenni Rivera.
Annie Gonzalez Celebrates The Wide Spectrum Of Latino Existence
“Latino diaspora, as we all know, is so large and so vast.”
Screen Rant: Hello, Annie. It’s so nice to talk to you. One minute you’re hanging out with Eva Longoria, and the next you’re hanging out with George Lopez! I might not look it, but I am Latino. I come from a big Honduran family.
Annie Gonzalez: I love it. The Latino diaspora, as we all know, is so large and so vast. Never apologize for the way that you look and just show up in your full Latinidad authenticity!
I appreciate that very much, especially because of all the s*** I get for not speaking Spanish.
Annie Gonzalez: Hey, me too. Listen, I did not grow up speaking Spanish either. I’m sixth generation from East L.A., which you would think. I look like I have an opal on my forehead, and I still didn’t speak Spanish, I’m a little pochita. But now I do! I just started to learn, and I think it’s because I let go of the shame. So who cares? Who cares? If you want to learn, guess what? you may learn. If you don’t, guess what? That’s okay too.
Had you done multicam, this kind of sitcom before?
Annie Gonzalez: No, I have not. I have not. This is my first go at it. However, it mimics theater, and I’ve done a lot of theater. I read it, and growing up, I watched the George Lopez show. I’m a big fan of Lopez Vs Lopez, I kind of understood. I know how to get a laugh!
Annie Gonzalez Reveals What Makes Lopez Vs Lopez A Special Sitcom
“It’s a masterclass, not just in multicam, but in storytelling.”
I’ve done a bunch of interviews for the show, and we talked about the relationship betweenmulti-cam “classic” sitcom styleand live theater, and how the best sitcoms could be staged as a play, whether comedy or drama. I think this show does that so well.
Annie Gonzalez: There’s so much levity that this show offers, and [it shows] conversations that we’ve had privately in our homes with our family. Even the conversation that you and I just had! The language barrier, right? Mayan Lopez is very open about how she didn’t grow up speaking Spanish, and that’s something that she felt made her less Latina, like we just spoke about.
What I love about this show is the levity that it offers, and the relief that it gives to a lot of us who have felt these things, and to give insight into people that might not know the Latinidad diaspora. And they do it so well. I mean, all the writers and Debby Wolfe, the showrunner and co-creator of the show, along with Mayan, they were so smart. And George is a genius. And everybody else on that show… It’s a masterclass, not just in multicam, but in storytelling, in my opinion.
The cast obviously is, but is the crew majority Latino or is it like a mix of all different races?
Annie Gonzalez: No, the crew is majority Latino. But what I think they did is, they got the best people for the job. A lot of them just happen to be Latino!
Danielle Fisheldirected your episode, and she’s wonderful.
Annie Gonzalez: I mean, she’s a living legend. Like, she understands this world so fully that it just made my whole week on the show so seamless. I mean, I’ve been friends with Mayan for a while, and I did a pilot with George a couple of years ago. I’ve known Al and Matt. And I did a movie [Flamin' Hot] with my little Brice… Coming into their already concise family, they’ve already done many episodes together. My being able to fit in it, It felt like I was a cousin who hadn’t been home for a couple Thanksgivings and now I get to reconnect with everyone and create some really cool artwork.
Can you just give us a little bit of a rundown of your episode?
Annie Gonzalez: I play Annie, go figure. [Laughs] They hadn’t introduced Mayan’s friends yet, but Mayim and Quinten are getting married, so here we are. They have to figure out who their bridesmaids are going to be. She introduces her friend Annie from high school, and you get to see a little beef and feud that ensued that might’ve impacted their friendship. And then you see them rekindle over a fun little line dance. It is really cute, adorable, and so relatable. And we had a freaking blast making it!
How’s George? He’s a legend. Is he always “on” and doing bits?
Annie Gonzalez: Oddly enough, George is a very grounded human being. And really intelligent. He’s hilarious and he’s quick-witted, but I think that with comedy, the laugh only happens when you’re grounded in truth. And that’s what I found from him. He’s a very profound human being who’s been doing this for a very long time. He’s much more grounded than I think most people would expect.
Annie Gonzalez Teases Her Upcoming Jenni Rivera Biopic
“I’m really excited for life these days!”
Did you make time to pick his brain during lunch breaks or in between setups?
Annie Gonzalez: I’m very fortunate that all of these people are actually my friends. So whenever I need them, I can call upon them. In between shots, usually we’re all kind of taking a breather, just trying to digest what the episode is so we can show up on show day and make sure we knock it out of the park for the audience.
You mentioned being friends with Mayan. How did you meet her?
Annie Gonzalez: I did a pilot with George, and around that week, he was doing a set at the Laugh Factory. So he invited all of us from the cast to go check him out. We went, and after that we went to go have dinner, a private dinner at Mr. Chow’s. Closed the restaurant down. The coolest thing I’ve ever experienced. We’re there and I’m sitting across from Mayan. I knew who she was because, obviously, that’s his daughter.
Literally the second we met, we clicked. I’m assuming that’s probably why George and I became homies. When I met him, he was, like, “I feel like I’ve met you before.” And then I met his daughter and I’m like, we’re kindreds. You meet people sometimes, and you’re like, oh yeah, this is supposed to happen. Thank you, universe.
You’re a rising star. Is there any upcoming project in particular you want to shout out?
Annie Gonzalez: I’m excited to share something that’s coming out December 6th. I’m playing Jenni Rivera in the upcoming biopic. That’s going to be in theaters and on VIX platform on December 6th. So if you want, check that out. And if not, just follow my IG. I have so many other things coming out, and I’m really excited for life these days! But first, watch Lopez Vs. Lopez, because it’s really fun and hilarious!
More About Lopez Vs Lopez Season 3
The laughs and family spats continue in Lopez vs Lopez season 3 as Mayan and Quinten try to take control of their wedding plans. George continues to deal with his sobriety and the realities of getting older, neither of which he does gracefully. Rosie isn’t shy about voicing her opinions about the wedding and silently deals with the aftermath of her near marriage to Josué. Chance begins to rebel against his parents now that he’s a strong, independent 9-year-old. The whole Lopez familia is back and ready to live life to its fullest – loving, crying and everything in between.
Check out our otherLopez Vs Lopezinterviews here:
New episodes ofLopez Vs Lopezair Fridays at 8:30pm ET/7:30pm CT on NBC.
Lopez vs Lopez
Cast
Lopez vs Lopez is a sitcom series created for NBC that stars George Lopez and his real-life daughter, Mayan Lopez. The two play fictional versions of themselves trying to bridge their strained relationship, with George moving in with his daughter, focusing on the generational differences between the two of them.
