'Welcome to the Family's' Ricardo Chavira Talks New Show and Diversity on TV
- Details
- Category: Interviews
- Created: Wednesday, 02 October 2013 14:14
- Published: Wednesday, 02 October 2013 14:14
- Written by Lupe Haas
Dozens of sitcoms featuring Anglo families premiere this fall, but only one features Latinos in the lead, and CineMovie is talking to Ricardo Chavira, one of the stars of NBC’s Welcome to the Family. The former Desperate Housewife star says Hollywood is “dragging their feet” on diversifying behind and in front of the cameras.
Ricardo Chavira is best known for playing Eva Longoria’s husband on Desperate Housewives for eight seasons. The Texas native returns to television in a new sitcom this fall playing a father to a college-bound son with a baby on the way in NBC’s Welcome to the Family. In the new fall series, he stars with Justina Machado (“Six Feet Under), Mary McCormack (“In Plain Sight”), Mike O’Malley (“Glee,” “Yes, Dear”) where comedy ensues when two very different families come together over their children’s unplanned pregnancy.
CineMovie spoke to Chavira by phone who said he was very impressed with the script on the first read and considered it the best writing he’s seen for a Latino family since starting in Hollywood. Part of that can be attributed to the diverse writing staff behind the NBC sitcom.
“We have four Latino writers or on our writing staff that have some sort of Latino heritage, you know, background. And then we have five writers of color total on our staff. That's the most - that's the most I've ever seen. Because I'll tell you when I was on Housewives for eight years and I don't think there was one.”On Desperate Housewives, the Welcome to the Family star recalls a few storylines that he wasn’t thrilled with regarding Eva and his character, which he voiced concerns over. In over eight years on the ABC show, he says “sometimes” he was listened to, but the majority of the times his suggestions were overlooked. The same can’t be said about his work on Welcome to the Family.
“I don't feel that way on this show. I feel like I can voice my opinion when I like a storyline, if I don't like a storyline.”It’s not uncommon not to see diversity in the writer’s room. George Lopez’s show for example, had only one female Latina on the writing staff. Chavira recommends keeping an eye out for one particular writer Isaac Gonzalez, an up and coming writer from San Diego/Tijuana area. “I got a feeling in the next 10, 15 years we're going to be seeing great things from him,” he boasts about the young talent.
“We still have a long road to go,” says Chavira of representing Latinos on television that reflects the reality of the growing population. This discussion is nothing new and Hollywood is slowly coming around or as Chavira puts it “dragging their feet” but he’d rather see them “drag their feet and still be moving forward than doing nothing.”
“We've got a really interesting perspective on this whole idea of families coming together and teenage pregnancy and, a little bit of clashing of cultures and this kind of socioeconomic dynamic that's going on. In terms of how these people get along with each other, and how they look at each other, and how they judge each other, and how they find a way to communicate and become family.”Welcome to the Family premieres Thursday, October 3rd on NBC at 8:30 pm and look out for cameos by Rita Moreno and Chavira’s former on-screen wife Eva Longoria.