Photo: Sam Drasin / Courtesy
Isabela Merced continues to take firm steps in Hollywood . He has not yet turned 20 years (he will do it next 10 July) and his resume already includes jobs as a protagonist in “Dora and the Lost City of Gold” and as an outstanding secondary in comedies such as “Instant Family”, dramas such as “Sicario: Day of the Soldado” or action films such as “Transformers: The Last Knight”.
Now this American actress of Peruvian origin voices Lucky Prescott, the main character of “ Spirit Untamed ”, the new installment of the DreamWorks animation saga that began in 2002 with “Spirit: Stallion of Cimarron” and before with the television series about the wild horse of the same name.
Lucky grew up without his mother, Milagro Navarro (voiced by Eiza González), a stunt rider from a town on the Mexican border who is killed in an accident with her horse. After growing up with her “gringo” grandfather and aunt, a teenage Lucky returns one summer reluctantly to Miradero. Everything changes when she meets Spirit, a wild horse that makes her reconnect with her origins.
Merced –whose legal name is Isabela Moner– told us about her work in “ Spirit Untamed ”in almost perfect Spanish, but introducing here and there some English words in the conversation.
Question: What does it mean for you to play this role of Lucky, who is a Hispanic girl between two cultures?
Isabela Merced : I have a lot in common with Lucky because she comes from a Latino mom and an American dad. I was born in Cleveland, Ohio, where I learned Spanish before English. But later in school I felt a bit of an identity crisis because I only spoke Spanish. I had to learn English. All children of immigrants have to assimilate whether to lose those aspects of their personality and culture, or not. Lucky also has that experience, because he used to live in Miradero, but after his mother died he went to live with his grandfather. Upon returning to town, she feels like a foreigner, but after finding her mother’s friends and that room with all her mother’s personal belongings, she reconnects with her roots and feels more herself, comfortable with her culture.
P. : You speak Spanish very well, which is not always the case with those born and raised in the United States. Congratulations to your family!
IM : Thank you! I owe everything to my mother, because she took me to Peru every year to visit my family. That is why I feel a real connection with my country. I also have my ID, passport , everything. Now half of my family lives in the United States, they are immigrants. Fortunately I have them here with me.
P. : Eiza González voices your mother in the film. You didn’t work at the same time, but you’re friends and you have a song together…
IM : Yes! It’s called “Brave.” I loved it because Eiza is a friend in real life. She’s so beautiful! I love her voice, so soft. I told her she sounds like a Disney princess. That song means a lot to me because after being part of this project for two years, with so much time recording in the studio and during the pandemic from my home, I feel a very strong connection with this film. When I was invited to sing the title song, I felt it was a pleasure for me. And being able to sing loud, because it’s not a simple pop song, you have to sing! I started in musical theater, so I love it.
P .: And maybe later you can work with Eiza, together in a set.
IM : Yes! If only. Now in the summer I’m going to shoot a movie with a lot of Latinos. It’s called “Father of the Bride.” With Andy García, Adria Arjona, Gloria Estefan … a spectacular cast. It’s going to be a lot of fun because it’s all Latino and I love the comedy-drama genre.
P .: And it is directed by a Mexican, Gaz Alazraki.
IM : Yes. There are Mexicans, Puerto Ricans, Peruvians … It’s a mix . It will be different from the previous versions, because you already know that with Latinos it is different, with our type of humor and our jokes.
Q .: And what other projects do you have now?
IM : I am working on my music and I also have a movie called “Sweet Girl.” It’s going to be on Netflix and Jason Momoa is my dad. We shot three or four months in Pittsburgh. He is very dear. He was also a producer on the film and takes great care of his team. It was a really fun set. It is an action thriller drama. Action is my favorite genre. I love doing my own stunts.
