{"id":114936,"date":"2025-11-04T13:51:11","date_gmt":"2025-11-04T13:51:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/114936\/"},"modified":"2025-11-04T13:51:11","modified_gmt":"2025-11-04T13:51:11","slug":"diego-luna-on-going-from-andor-to-argentina-in-kiss-of-the-spider-woman","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/114936\/","title":{"rendered":"Diego Luna: On Going From “Andor” to Argentina in “Kiss of the Spider Woman”"},"content":{"rendered":"

At one point during our discussion about his new film, Diego Luna likens the character he plays to a Matryoshka doll, the Russian wooden figures that nest within each other. <\/p>\n

The reference is apropos for the film itself. Kiss of the Spider Woman<\/a> began life as a 1976 novel by Manuel Puig, and as Luna points out, the haunting story of two vastly different men who form an unlikely bond when imprisoned together has spawned various iterations. \u201cIt is fascinating that this novel has inspired a play, there\u2019s a film, a stage musical, and now there\u2019s a film about the musical,\u201d says the actor via Zoom while traveling to the set of Eleven Days, his latest film. <\/p>\n

Directed by Bill Condon<\/a>, the film adaptation of the Broadway musical also stars Tonatiuh and Jennifer Lopez<\/a> as the enigmatic title character. Luna plays Valent\u00edn, a political revolutionary imprisoned in an Argentine jail, accused of trying to overthrow the current regime. As the film opens, he is joined by Tonatiuh\u2019s Molina, a gay window dresser, convicted of lewd acts in public. To escape the trauma of confinement, Molina weaves tales\u00a0about his favorite actress, Ingrid Luna, and what he believes was her masterpiece, the 1950s Technicolor musical\u00a0\u201cKiss of the Spider Woman.\u201d\u00a0Initially, Valent\u00edn ignores these excursions into fantasy. But eventually, he can\u2019t resist the magical tale with its colorful musical numbers that Molina details in all their CinemaScope glory. As he does, the relationship evolves into a love that changes both in ways neither thought possible.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Luna, who rose to fame in\u00a0films such as\u00a0Y Tu Mam\u00e1 Tambi\u00e9n\u00a0and\u00a0Frida,\u00a0and has been thrilling\u00a0Star Wars\u00a0aficionados as Cassian Andor in the Disney+ series\u00a0Andor<\/a>, admits he knew little about the musical version. His only inkling was a plaque in his hometown.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is this beautiful theater in Mexico City, Teatro de los Insurgentes,\u201d Luna explains. \u201cI have worked in it three times. We have a tradition where every time a show reaches 100 performances, it receives a large plaque on the wall in the theater lobby. And I remember seeing Kiss of the Spider Woman. It starred Christian Bach.\u201d<\/p>\n

Once Luna read the script, he was immediately intrigued by the possibilities of a musical adaptation. \u201cIt was fascinating to find out what it represents,\u201d continues Luna. \u201cThere was a feeling of, \u2018Yeah, there\u2019s room for a new approach, for something unique, different, and authentic to come out of this collaboration.\u2019\u201d It didn\u2019t hurt that Condon was leading the collaboration. Luna knew he would be in good hands with the director who had ushered both Chicago and Dreamgirls to film.<\/p>\n

\"\"Jennifer Lopez on set of \u201cKiss of the Spider Woman.\u201d Courtesy Lionsgate.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s all about who\u2019s directing, whose perspective and point of view is gonna be celebrated,\u201d continues Luna. \u201cThe opportunity to work with someone that had such an intense connection to the play, and to the book, and to the story in general, meant a lot.\u201d<\/p>\n

For Luna, it was a tale of two films. There were the colorfully splashy musical numbers. And there were the stark prison scenes. Up first was getting the choreography down, a challenge Luna admits was not exactly in his wheelhouse.<\/p>\n

\"\"Tonatiuh and Diego Luna in \u201cKiss of the Spider Woman.\u201d Courtesy Lionsgate.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou are not mistaken,\u201d Luna laughs when asked about his lack of choreography experience. \u201cI love dancing, but with a few tequilas, and with a good reason. But I\u2019ve done films and a theater play with a little bit of dancing where I had to move my body.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rehearsals began on a cavernous New Jersey stage occupied by only a piano. Luna credits choreographer Sergio Trujillo<\/a> with helping him find the right moves. <\/p>\n

\u201cI started working by myself, with just one dancer,\u201d Luna says. \u201cI don\u2019t have a proper technique, the background, but I was comfortable once we were shooting. It took me a while to get there, to gain confidence. And Sergio was crucial for me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"A set from the soundstage in New Jersey for \u201cKiss of the Spider Woman.\u201d Courtesy Scott Chambliss\/Lionsgate.<\/p>\n

Luna says Lopez was also instrumental. He remembers Trujillo telling him what Lopez, a veteran dancer, would add. <\/p>\n

\u201cSergio said something that I didn\u2019t understand until she arrived, \u2018Whatever you\u2019re not bringing, she will bring. She\u2019s gonna make you look great, because she\u2019ll be so controlled that you\u2019re controlled,\u201d Luna says. \u201cAnd it\u2019s true. She was not only very generous but also really good at what she does. She was always helping me, giving me confidence, and making me feel great. And it is beautiful to see someone work that hard. It was a great example for everyone. No matter the challenge, she was always up to it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"Tonatiuh and Jennifer Lopez on set of \u201cKiss of the Spider Woman.\u201d<\/p>\n

As important, Luna understood he wasn\u2019t just going through the motions. The dance was telling a story. This is when Luna likened Armando, his musical character, to a Matryoshka doll.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m this Mexican actor playing Valent\u00edn, right? And then Valent\u00edn happens to be the inspiration for the fictional actor appearing in a movie,\u201d details Luna. \u201cThe guy dancing is a Mexican-American actor from the 1950s who is somehow related to Valent\u00edn because it all happens in Molina\u2019s head. It\u2019s a character, inside a character, inside another character.\u201d<\/p>\n

Diego credits the dance team, particularly Skizzo Arnedillo, with helping him create his persona for the musical numbers. \u201cThey helped me find a style that would differentiate my movie character,\u201d Luna continues. \u201cArmando had to bring his own thing. It was fun once I could do the steps this guy would have. Gladly, I have just three numbers in the film. I had little to prepare and more time to do it.\u201d<\/p>\n

The jail scenes were the antithesis of the big musical numbers. The set was deliberately confining. Locked in for weeks, the sun was a rare luxury. The only light Luna and Tonatiuh saw was the backlight shining through a tiny cell window.<\/p>\n

\"\"Tonatiuh and Diego Luna in Kiss Of The Spider Woman Courtesy of Roadside Attractions<\/p>\n

\u201cIt allowed me to feel the struggle of these men and what confinement brings,\u201d Luna says. \u201cIt\u2019s what motivates these characters to go into the fantasy. It was interesting to try to find new ways to approach the same space, finding different scenarios inside the jail. We were saying, \u2018How do we shoot this next scene? I mean, there are just two beds. What are we doing now?\u201d<\/p>\n

Luna believes the tight space helped build intimacy. So did shooting the scenes in order.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe got to know each other as performers, as actors, as people. We spent a lot of time together. Both of us were far away from home, driving to the set every day together,\u201d Luna remembers. \u201cThere was a very organic approach to the development of this love story.\u201d<\/p>\n

When asked to compare his Kiss of the Spider Woman character to his portrayal of Andor, Luna answers that he approached one more realistically than the other. But not the one we might suspect.<\/p>\n

\u201cValent\u00edn lives in a fantasy movie. Living in the fantasy that Molina invites Valent\u00edn into gave us a lot of freedom as actors. We could play with the tone,\u201d Luna explains. \u201cAndor is supposed to be a fantasy, but our goal is to make it as realistic as possible, as grounded as possible. You have to forget you are in this galaxy far, far away.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"Cassian Andor (Diego Luna) in Lucasfilm\u2019s ANDOR Season 2, exclusively on Disney+. Photo courtesy of Lucasfilm. \u00a92025 Lucasfilm Ltd. & TM. All Rights Reserved.<\/p>\n

But Luna also sees a connection. \u201cWhen the time comes to react, to join, to believe they can be part of change, they both make the right choice,\u201d he says. <\/p>\n

Luna is proud of the story\u00a0Kiss of the Spider Woman\u00a0tells and hopes it will inspire audiences not to be afraid to feel, to open up to others, and, in the end, open up to themselves. \u201cIt\u2019s a beautiful film about not letting fear drive you, which I think is something crucial to say today,\u201d he adds. <\/p>\n

Perhaps just as important, the film is a testament to why Luna became an actor in the first place. \u201cI love it because it\u2019s a homage to film and to theater. I come from a theatre family. It\u2019s what I dedicate my life to, and what I love the most,\u201d he says. \u201cI\u2019m always pleased to be part of a story that celebrates my craft and the possibilities of learning from telling stories to others.\u201d<\/p>\n

Featured image: DIego Luna and Jennifer Lopez in \u201cKiss of the Spider Woman.\u201d Courtesy Roadside Attractions<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"At one point during our discussion about his new film, Diego Luna likens the character he plays to…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":114937,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[16539,146,85,6453,46,35281,30800],"class_list":["post-114936","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-entertainment","tag-actor","tag-entertainment","tag-il","tag-interviews","tag-israel","tag-kiss-of-the-spider-woman","tag-roadside-attractions"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/114936","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=114936"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/114936\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/114937"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=114936"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=114936"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=114936"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}