Season 2 of Vida is just around the corner, and I had the chance to speak with Chelsea Rendon about Mari’s upcoming arc. We discussed her character’s challenges to maintain a balance between her family, jobs, and activism while trying to figure out her future.
Read the interview with Chelsea below (as well as my conversation with creator/showrunner Tanya Saracho) as you get ready for tomorrow’s premiere of Vida on the Starz app in the US, and on Crave in Canada.
Mari begins the season at a crossroads and is questioning her future. How does that affect her journey this season?
That, in general, is her arc. It’s that time in her life where she’s questioning everything. She’s overanalyzing it like everyone else [her age] does. If you think about being 21 or 22 years old, you’re out of college or out of the house for the first time, [and find yourself asking questions like], “What is my future going to be like? Am I on the path to have the future that I want? What do I have to change in order to do that?” Right now, she’s contemplating that. She wants more, but sometimes we don’t know exactly what the “more” is that we want.
Is there an underlying fear that in order to find herself, she might have to leave her home and her community?
I don’t know if she necessarily would have to leave her community. But that may always be in the back of her mind. It’s something that she may not admit to herself. It’s that [idea] if you want to do better, sometimes you have to go away from the nest and then come back to fix it. She wants to do everything for her community and do better for them. First, she needs to figure out within herself what’s best for her in order to help her community.
She has a lot on her plate between caring for her family, work and activism, and it starts to take a toll on her.
She is trying to juggle so much. There’s an issue between Mari and Johnny because she feels like she’s carrying the weight and he’s not doing his part when it comes to taking care of their dad and the house. She’s also young and doesn’t manage her time well, so she’s oversleeping or running late. But her community is her life. These are the people she’s grown up with and she wants to help them, but sometimes she makes little mistakes. It’s about finding the balance [in her life].
Do you think Mari will ever see Emma and Lyn’s efforts with the bar as a positive for the neighborhood?
Mari is very narrow-minded in her views. At some point she might understand, but she’s never going to agree. She has her beliefs. Even if you’re trying to better yourself, gentefication is negative for the cause. Mari may understand why [they are doing it], but it doesn’t make it OK.
Any final thoughts on Season 2 of Vida?
If people liked Season 1, they’re going to love Season 2. You get to see more of these people, and dive [further] into their characters and their relationships with each other.
Photo Courtesy of Starz
