Latino actors have made great strides on television, but at the movies in 2012, Spanish surnames were lacking at the Oscars and other award shows this year. So who better to nominate for favorite movie performances than their peers like John Leguizamo, Mario Lopez, Lana Carillo and other Latino talent at the 16th Annual Impact Awards Gala.
The National Hispanic Media Coalition (NHMC) held their annual award show honoring Latino talent for their positive portrayals on film and television. Michael Peña, Mario Lopez, Homeland’s Morena Baccarin, Suit’s Gina Torres, Once Upon A Time’s Lana Carillo and Emmy Award winner John Leguizamo were on hand to accept honors at the Wilshire Beverly Hotel in Beverly Hills. Tony Plana and Dexter’s Aimee Garcia co-hosted the star-studded event during Oscar weekend.
CineMovie was on the red carpet and asked the award show guests to name their favorite performance from one of their Latino counterparts. Mario Lopez’s vote went to Michael Peña for his role in End of Watch and Gael Garcia Bernal in the Chilean import and Oscar nominee No. Other talent such as Aimee Garcia, Tony Plana, and Patricia Rae (The Big Wedding) also nominated Michael Peña’s performance in End of Watch as a standout role in 2012. Aimee told CineMovie that the last actor to win at the Oscars was in the 1950’s so we are long overdue, and Peña may be the one to take that prize one day with his talents for straddling both drama and comedy.
John Leguizamo’s vote for best performance went to Emmanuelle Riva in the Oscar winning film Amour (Best Foreign Film). He also praised the film as one of his favorites, calling Amour director Michael Haneke "one of the best directors of our time."
Tony Plana also thought Javier Bardem’s turn as the Bond villain in Skyfall was overlooked for the Oscars. As a member of the Academy, Plana says Bardem was his pick.
And the award goes to - Michael Peña. Everyone unanimously agree his performance in End of Watch was certainly overlooked as a best actor from 2012.
