Y&R Alum Eva Longoria Directs Disney/Hulu Film Flamin’ Hot

Eva Longoria steamed up the screen as seductress Isabella Braña Williams on The Young and the Restless. Since exiting Genoa City, she’s gone on to further success as an actress on Desperate Housewives, executive producer (Grand Hotel; Telenovela), and now, she’s directed her first major feature — Flamin’ Hot.

Eva Longoria Directs Flamin’ Hot

Flamin’ Hot is based on the memoir, A Boy, a Burrito and a Cookie: From Janitor to Executive by Richard Montañez, and on the life stories of Montañez and his wife Judy, the former who claimed to have invented Flamin’ Hot Cheetos. The comedy-drama movie stars Jesse Garcia (The Avengers), Annie Gonzalez (Gentefied), Dennis Haysbert (24), and Tony Shalhoub (Monk, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel).

Behind the Lens

Longoria first stepped behind the camera in 2010 to direct Latinos Living the American Dream, which shined a light on ordinary people doing ordinary things…folks trying to make the world a better place for everyone. She began directing scripted fare with Devious Maids, a show she also executive produced. Longoria has also directed episodes of Grand Hotel (which she executive produced), Jane the Virgin, LA to Vegas, and Black-ish.

Flamin’ Hot, Longoria told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, is “a love letter to the Mexican-American community. The way it’s been received, the reviews, like the intention behind making this film, is landing with everybody. Portraying Mexicans and Mexican-Americans in the light we’ve always seen our community, which is with love and heart and humor, and I think people are enjoying the ride.”

Eva Longoria: Flamin’ Hot

This is Eva Longoria’s debut as a feature film director. She feels that it was her role to build a team both in front and behind the camera. “Our crew was almost entirely Latino, I wanted the lens to be authentic,” she says. “We don’t get a lot of bites at the apple. We don’t get our stories told and when they are told, they’re not told by us.

“So I knew I had an opportunity to lift up this hero of Richard in our community and show the world who we are as the Latino communities, the Mexican communities, and as a female filmmaker,” Longoria continues. “We’re complex. We’re intelligent. We’re driven. We’re hard-working. We’re family-oriented. We don’t really see those positive portrayals on screen.” Flamin’ Hot can be seen now on Hulu and Disney+. Check out the trailer for the film below in the Instagram post.