Eva Longoria Reflects on Being the ‘Ugly Duckling’ in Her Family
Eva Longoria never aspired to have a career in Hollywood as a child.
“I was quite the performer in my family because I was the ‘ugly duckling.’ There’s documentation if you need it,” Longoria, 50, humorously shared in an interview with Today, which was published on Sunday, March 23. “My three sisters all look alike; they are blonde. I recognized I wasn’t the pretty one, so I thought, ‘Alright, I’m not the pretty one, so I’ll be the funny one. I’ll be the smart one.’”
The youngest of four daughters, Longoria grew up on a ranch in Texas, surrounded by chickens. “In the mornings, we had to collect the eggs. We also had to milk the cow to get milk for our coffee and cereal,” she reminisced.
Longoria pursued a degree in kinesiology at Texas A&M, partly funded by a scholarship from a beauty pageant she won. While competing, she ended up in Los Angeles, which eventually led her to Hollywood.
“When I arrived in Hollywood, something just clicked. I thought, ‘I think I want to be an actor,’” Longoria recounted.
Longoria’s career took off when she landed the lead role in Desperate Housewives, which ran for eight seasons from 2004 to 2012.
“When Desperate Housewives premiered, I was so excited that I told my mom to watch it. I said, ‘Mom, you have to see it, it’s called Desperate Housewives.’ After watching, she called me and said, ‘Honey, you were in it a lot.’ I replied, ‘Yes, Mom, I’m one of the stars.’ Then she asked, ‘Are you going to be in it next week?’ I said, ‘Mom, I’m going to be in it every week.’ It was a significant adjustment for everyone around me, but not for me,” she shared.
Since then, Longoria has starred in numerous TV shows and films and has expanded her career to producing and directing. Her latest project is the movie Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Road Trip, which is set to premiere on Friday, March 28.
“I was drawn to the idea of making a film that my son could watch, one that I could enjoy with him,” Longoria expressed. “It’s a fun road trip movie centered around a family, which just happens to be a Latino family. Often, when Latinos are represented in TV and film, it’s through our struggles or traumas. Being part of a film that celebrates joy, family, and a different narrative is what I’ve always wanted. So I said, ‘Count me in.’”
Longoria shares her son Santiago, 6, with her husband José Bastón. She is also the stepmother to Bastón’s three children, José, Talia, and Mariana, from his previous marriage to Natalia Esperón.
