Tag: interview magazine

Martin will appear on television in January in the hotly anticipated “The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story“ as Antonio D’Amico, the partner of Gianni Versace. 

“It’s going to be amazing, it’s going to be very special. We won’t disappoint,” Martin said. “And it’s very serious, and incredibly well written. [Ryan Murphy] directed the first two episodes and you’ll see, it’s very magic. And then I have a residency in Vegas — I’ll be back in March. We’re busy — there’s a lot going on. We’re very happy.”

Art Basel Miami Beach: Ricky Martin, Man About Town | 7 December 2017

Penelope Cruz

PALTROW: The other project of yours that I’m dying over is The Assassination of Gianni Versace. I saw pictures. You look incredible as Donatella.

CRUZ: From the moment I got the call from Ryan Murphy, I thought, “Why did you think of me for that character? That’s very … interesting.” I know her a little bit, and I really like her. I had a few questions about how he was going to handle her portrayal, but he’s so classy, and he’s very respectful to people. This is a delicate story, because I’m playing someone who is alive, someone who lost her brother in a horrible way, and someone who still misses him very much 20 years later. I was not used to the rhythm of doing television.

PALTROW: It’s fast.

CRUZ: Getting four monologues two days before the shoot? And I was doing English with an Italian accent! I was like, “This is impossible.” But then you just do it.

PALTROW: When I did Glee, I was like, “What do you mean we’re shooting a whole musical number in half a day?” I couldn’t believe it. And then after TV, you go back to doing a movie and you’re like, “This is so slow!”

CRUZ: I know! Now I’m shooting a movie with Asghar Farhadi, the director of The Salesman and A Separation, in Spain. I look at my dialogue and I’m like, “Uhh, okay. I got this.” [laughs]

PALTROW: How did you go about preparing to play Donatella Versace? Did you watch interviews?

CRUZ: I worked a lot with a dialogue coach to find the way that Donatella speaks, which is a little different from the way she spoke in the ’90s. The accent that she has, it’s Italian with a very international flavor—very rock ’n’ roll. I didn’t want to do an imitation of Donatella, or a caricature. I wanted to try to capture the essence of who she is.

PALTROW: Did you speak to her about it?

CRUZ: A little bit. I needed that conversation. I really hope that when she sees the show, she’s going to be happy. I’m sure there are going to be scenes that are hard for her to watch, because it’s a lot about the loss of her brother, which, of course, I have so much respect for. I did it with all my love. From that place of devastation, she had to keep this company going in his honor. I don’t know if she ever said this, but it was a way of keeping him alive.

PALTROW: Do you think you’ll do more TV?

CRUZ: Why not? I would love to work with Ryan and his team again.

Penelope Cruz