“Growing up the way that I did – I grew up with a lot of cousins – you just have this imagination, and I love going and telling different stories. I’m a clown.”
“Honestly, it’s the most amazing feeling in the world to be able to work on something that you’re really proud of.”
“I always say a lot of fake friends are the ones I can’t get into a fight with, because if I get into a fight with them, it’s over.”
“I’m always optimistic and grateful for every opportunity I get.”
“Cinderella is a little edgy and a little rough around the edges.”
“It was great, because as far as playing such an iconic character that Cinderella is from the Disney world, walking into such a raw and authentic environment – even though it’s the real world, and it’s Jacinda, it’s still Cinderella that’s being cursed, and now she’s in the real world as Jacinda.”
“I feel I have a responsibility to carry out the immigrant story, since it’s one that I hold very dear to my heart, since my story is similar in a lot of ways.”
“I got into the entertainment world and started modelling when I was 15. When I told my parents that was what I was going to do for a living, it was very shocking for them.”
“I was very smart in school. I had straight As and was going to graduate high school at 16 and start college. My dad wanted me to be a lawyer because I was very opinionated.”
“You want to give your children better than what you had and make them feel like they have everything. But I think there is also a lot of value in making them work for things and allowing them to see other places.”
“I ended up getting kicked out of my house when I was 16, and I went off to college. When they actually saw that I was getting some kind of stability as far as having a career in this business is when they started coming around.”
“I will always be the first Latina Cinderella, so I always have that to take with me, and I’m very proud of that. I believe that it was a life-changing experience for me.”
“I think very few shows have come into our industry and changed the tempo and the narrative of stories, and ‘Once Upon a Time’ did that.”
“When I was filming ‘Premium Rush’ in N.Y.C., I flew to L.A. to have a few general meetings. I sat down with Peter Cramer at Universal Studios and spoke about my life and career, and being that I’m such a goof, we spoke about how I really wanted to do a comedy next.”
“I think it is always important to showcase your talent in different ways.”
“I think if you have a good attitude and go in with no pressure or expectations, just for a chance to play with all these talented people and do your thing, then it’s always a blast!”
“For me, when my agents and reps send me a script, I read it through, just for the story purpose of it, and then I read it again to think of my character and see if it’s something that I’m interested in bringing to life.”
“When I was young, people would say I was ugly, but I never saw that. I would look in the mirror and say, ‘They’re idiots. You are so cute!’”
“My mom came to America when I was six years old, and I didn’t live with them until I was ten. They worked really hard in factories, and my dad as a taxi driver, to be able to afford visas for my sister and I.”
“Here I am: I’m a girl from the Dominican Republic. I wanted to be a star, but I really didn’t know what that was or how I was going to be able to accomplish it.”
“When I was growing up, I was running around; I was a little tomboy. So I was just running around trying to be an athlete and trying to reenact things from TV, but I wasn’t really into reading comic books or anything like that.”
“I got to work with Sarah Michelle Gellar, and that’s the thing that you dream of.”
“I personally like sitcom TV to be able to portray characters that I can relate to.”
“My parents moved to the states when I was 6, so I was raised by my grandma in the Dominican Republic and didn’t see them again until I was 10.”
“I think, a lot of times, when you’re a first-time mom, you just want to be so careful, and you overanalyze things sometimes. But I think your first instinct as a mother is always right.”
“I love playing Rosie on ‘Devious Maids,’ and I think that if Rosie would have an NFL team to root for, she would also be a Cleveland Browns fan.”
“The love of my life found me! That’s how he would say it, anyway, since he claims he was attracted to my energy before I even turned around.”
“My character on ‘The Sopranos’ was specific to being a single mother and being from Jersey. And being part of that season finale… wow. That show is always going to be world-renowned and iconic.”
“’The Sopranos’ was a very East Coast show; ‘Heroes’ is more organically global.”
“Being an immigrant gives you so much courage.”
“America was built by immigrants. Immigrants come here for work – to contribute and get to a better place. That’s my story. It’s a story of hope.”
“I’m an entertainer, not a politician.”
“I grew up with very little. I remember vividly using buckets of water to shower.”
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