As an actor, affection for a character and/or projects is key, but the impact you and your character leave behind is just as important. There are many instances where certain demographics are underused in popular movie genres. Actress Ana de Armas reflected on her place in the James Bond film No Time to Die, as well as using her experience to advocate for more Latin actors in action films.
In a YouTube interview with Entertainment Weekly, Ana de Armas looks back on her time as Paloma in No Time to Die, as well as touch briefly on filming with co-star Daniel Craig in both that project and Knives Out. When describing her time on the set of No Time to Die, the star had this to say:
Being in a Bond movie was a dream come true for so many reasons. I think I didn’t even know the meaning of it until I was actually in it. It was magical, I had a wonderful experience, it was so much fun. Paloma is one of my favorite characters from everything I’ve ever done. She turned out to be really special.
Since her time on the James Bond set, de Armas has starred in a few action movies. In 2023 she was asked about taking over from Gal Gadot to play Wonder Woman after Patty Jenkins’ third movie was scrapped. And while she didn’t take the role of Diana Prince, de Armas fought like a total badass in the 2025 film Ballerina. She was breaking plates over people’s faces and did some insane stunt work for that movie. On the topic of Latin actors in action movies, de Armas put it simply.
I do advocate for Latinas to be in action films. Trust me, you don’t want to mess with that.
She does go on to say that she wants Latina actresses to star in their own movies, rather than be a co-star or side-character in someone else’s film. This line of thinking is similar to her original trepidation of going through with her role in Knives Out, which she did go on to star in.
Outside of her place in action movies, she did star in Blonde as the candle in the wind Marilyn Monroe herself. Though this casting did face a bit of backlash. However, the author for Blonde had praises for de Armas taking up the role of depicting Monroe.
De Armas’ range is quite vast, and she clearly cares about her impact not just in the film, but as a Latina actress. Not to mention she is quite the inspiration for fellow Latina actresses, speaking out that their place is not just on the sidelines of an action movie, but can be right in the spotlight.