A Woman You Should Meet: Ana de la Reguera

The newest show to take Netflix by storm is Narcos, a chronicle of the rise and eventual fall of Medellin cartel kingpin Pablo Escobar. If the subject matter isn’t enough of a reason to tune in, the beautiful Ana de la Reguera should be. As Elisa, a dedicated member of a Colombian Guerilla group, de la Reguera gets to exercise her sexy side as well as the side that wants to kick some ass.

(1/5)

Photo courtesy of Ben Miller

Did you do a lot of research on Pablo Escobar before you started filming?

I didn’t do that much. I knew about him and I saw some documentaries. I did more research about the Guerrilla group and about what was happening in Colombia during that time. That’s why I like the show, because while it’s about Escobar, it’s also about all the people around him whose lives were changed because of him. When I read the script I was like ‘I’ve never read anything like this.’

With so many perspectives being shown, which one did you connect with the most?

I’d say the politician’s viewpoint because it’s very complex and while they want to stop this war, they get corrupted at the same time. Or else they’re killed. The politicians were fighting to finish the drug war and it took many deaths to be able to stop this. The thing is, it’s not really the one I agree with most, but it’s the most one, because they are in the middle. Americans are completely on one side. The drug dealers are on the other side, and the guerrillas are on yet another side. The drug dealers, the Americans, the Guerrillas, we’re extremists.

What’s the deal with your character Elisa?

She is a girl from a Guerrilla group called M19, which formed after an election on March 19, 1970. These students and these groups of people thought the right party was corrupted. The group is what she believes in. The Guerrillas get involved with the ‘narcos’ later on, and she doesn’t agree with that…you’ll see what happens!

What was it about her, that attracted you to that role?

I thought that it was a powerful role. It’s the late ’70s and it’s really cool to portray a woman during that time. She’s very modern. She really wants to do something for her country and not be a housewife. And she wanted to do this in a country like Colombia, which was not as developed as other countries in that moment, so I really respect that she follows her thoughts and what she believes in, and daring to do it in that time. She really puts herself in a lot of danger.

You’ve been filming in Colombia, right?

Yeah, we did the entire show there.

Would you say the locals were really excited for this new portrayal of Pablo Escobar?

I don’t think so. We had to go into it with a lot of respect and we had to push ourselves to do the best work ever to be able to go out and be proud. We wanted to make Colombia say ‘Oh yeah, this is an amazing show.’ Filming was hard, because I’m not Colombian; I’m Mexican. We all knew we were going to a country where these stories have been done, and they are very delicate about it. You have to be very careful. And I think the writers did more research than anything. So, I think we do have a show that portrays the story from all viewpoints. And that makes it more complex.

Did you binge watch the show like the rest of us?

I tried. I’ve only watched until episode five because I’ve been working and haven’t been able to sit down. I wanted to watch it in two days like many people did, but I’ve managed to watcj one episode a day. But it is amazing. Really, really, cool.

I know this show offers a very different look at Pablo Escobar, but is there another story about Pablo Escobar —a story or a movie or a TV show—that you enjoyed?

I saw The Two Escobars, a documentary about when Pablo bought a football team. It’s about Colombia and football. You kind of see it in the show, but not that deeply. In our show, we just mention it, and there are only a couple scenes on the topic. The documentary is amazing. A lot of the football teams were bought by drug dealers and they even bought the cup. I recommend it. After watching Narcosfirst, of course.