I can’t find the exact quote now, but Jessica Chastain once let it slip in an interview that Oscar Isaac is quite the Romeo. Like, he might do the puppy-dog eyes and the “you’re the only one who really gets me” line, but he’s quite the undercover ladies’ man. Just keep that in mind when you’re looking through the amazing cover editorial for the January issue of GQ (on stands nationally December 22). Oscar is promoting Star Wars: The Force Awakens, which makes me wonder… how big is his part in the film? I don’t know. But I love the puppy-dog eyes. God help me, he could use the silliest, dumbest line on me and it would totally work. A few things: he uses his first and middle name as his stage name and his real last name is Hernandez. He grew up in Miami. He’s half Cuban and half Guatemalan. He speaks fluent Spanish. Sigh…you can read Oscar’s GQ profile here and here are some highlights:
Moving to the US from Guatemala when he was a baby: “For my father, individualism was very important, and he instilled that in me. It was way more important to recognize myself as an individual than as a part of a group. I wasn’t part of the ‘Latino community.’ I was just a kid in high school with friends, who was into playing music… I never thought of myself as an ethnic actor. I don’t feel comfortable saying I speak for Guatemalans. Or for Latino men. Or for Latin men that are five nine….”
He was a straight-arrow as a kid: “It became a badge of individuality. I was the guy that didn’t drink, and it just felt good to be that… I’m not a huge drinker. I didn’t drink until I was 25 years old.”
His family converted to Evangelical Christianity when he was a boy: “My dad was a man of extremes. And the way my mom was raised, she followed her husband. So if God spoke to my father one day and said we were not supposed to have a TV in the house, it was suddenly gone …. I was never frightened by it. I was more curious why I wasn’t feeling the real thing myself.” After Isaacs broke away from the Church, in what he calls a “slow amputation,” he began to find spiritual experiences in his acting methodology.
Whether he worries about the Star Wars geeks & filming more movies: “No! Because what’s so fun about it is…it’s all made-up! It’s all f–king made-up, but in a great way. We get to create it as we go.”
Like some other people we’ve been talking about recently, Oscar sometimes comes across as tightly wound. The GQ writer notes that Oscar made some kind of mention of a “girlfriend” but called the next day to take it back. He’s very focused on forging his own path and not wanting to be seen as “the Latino actor” or “the Latin heartthrob.” Which I understand, because he doesn’t want to be typecast and if his ethnicity is a blank space, he’ll be up for a wider range of roles.
But… I do think it’s strange that he has a classic immigrant’s tale of arriving in America as a baby and assimilating completely as an American (GQ says he didn’t become a citizen until 2006), but he still doesn’t identify at all with “the Latino community.” He grew up in Miami, an American city with one of the highest populations of Spanish-speakers and Latin-Americans. He grew up bilingual in a household where Spanish was mostly spoken. It’s weird, right? Why can’t he say that he’s part of the Latino community? Would that change his success story?
Photos courtesy of Nathaniel Goldberg/GQ.
God, he’s so sexy. I’m seeing Star Wars just for him and Adam Driver!
Totally agree!
Not every people coming from south america “has” to identify as Latino. It’s his choice to identify himself or not with a community.
Anyway, Oscar is lovely.
Well, he’s not from South America, but your second sentence is true.
Identification is a tricky and personal subject for every person, I feel. And watching people like the Rachel Dolezals in the world, listening to the Raven Simones, seeing the Caitlyn Jenners, etc etc – I’d sooner leave it alone and let people create their own identities, including letting them embrace who they consider their community. Perhaps what he experienced and saw as the Latino community were things that he just didn’t relate to. There is no crime in that, it is his personal journey, and I, personally, wouldn’t force the identity on him if he doesn’t claim it. However, I’m sure the world will box him in something soon enough.
+1 to this. If he does not feel like he is a part of the Latino community or had a part in it, that’s how he feels. Who are we to say that his feelings and what he claims is his identity versus what he says is not his identity is wrong. He’s a beautiful man.
He is not from South America. And this sounds like he is trying to distance himself from his community. So um no.
I grew up and still live in Miami and just a few years older than him and I can just imagine how hard it must be to not associate himself with the Latino community, especially Cubans since they are a huge part of this place. I am Latina from a central american country and don’t like to become a typical stereotype to someone who is not, but unless you live in the Midwest it is hard to separate here.
What I am saying is that as much as you want to, it is very hard to not be associated when you grow up here. Living in Miami is almost like living in any Latin American country, and I have yet to meet anyone from a Cuban background to make that statement. They are very proud of their country especially here where the population dominates
I’m not saying it’s wrong or untrue of his statement, I’m actually shocked.
He’s so yummy and if he’s the flirt they say he is, then that’s definitely the Cuban in him lol
I spent two weeks in Miami doing clinical education at a facility staffed 99% by Latinos and they made this gringa from the Midwest feel very welcome and integrated. Oscar is beautiful and his story is surprising, but everyone has a unique history and feels the way he feels for some reason.
I loved the people of Miami so much. If the public transportation and pay rate didn’t suck so much, I’d move there in a second.
It’s interesting how different experiences in treatment can be.
I am black and wouldn’t want to live in Miami for all the gold in the world, I’d sooner live in the midwest than anywhere near Miami or any place with a majority latino community.
I have never experienced so much racism as I have from latinos, mexicans, cubans…you name it.
They are very anti-black and I have lived in KKK territory and felt much safer there.
Again, it’s interesting how different you get treated just based on your skin color. Sick world we live in.
He never said he didn’t identify as Latino.
THIS. Read before you beach people. He’s talking about his childhood.
Nah. I respect his right to define who he is. I feel strongly that everyone has that right. You don’t have to be who people say you are, and you don’t need a reason. He wants to be seen for his personal and individual qualities and not one ethnicity or another. I think that’s fine–as fine as someone who wants to retain those characteristics and present them as part of a larger social fabric. He shouldn’t always have to talk about himself in terms of some sort of “other” identity if he doesn’t want to.
Absolutely agree.
Man is he hot though.
Right
Well said. He has the right to identify as he wants. Besides he is not denying his heritage or being negative towards the Latino community.
Oh yeah and he is HOT, I so would!
@greenieweenie
I respect his right to define who he is but I can question his intention(s), reason(s), and motivation(s) behind that.
Behind what exactly? Not hanging out exclusively with Latino kids while in school? Because that’s all he said really. The rest is people stretching the story to have something to be offended about.
he’s been in a long term relationship for a while now, it’s all over the internet. but he’s doing well in keeping it private, honestly i’m sick of hearing of celebs tmis about their relationships, speculating is half the fun when it comes to gossip.
he’s brilliant btw! so happy he’s doing so well.
Yup the internets tell me that he actually is engaged to Maria Miranda.
He is amazing! An excellent actor who disappears into his roles. I recently saw Ex Machina… Amazing. And he can dance! Lol.
The thing about immigrant stories is its not always the same story.
I know for myself there was some push for assimilation with certain aspects but also a sense of “You’re not like them” (in this case Americans) pushed on me. Other families however, well they named their kids Jim and Nancy and Jennifer (often to the mockery of other immigrants parents in our community because it seemed like they were desperate to belong) and told them, “You’re Americans now!” and tried to push away their cultural identity of the past.
The truth is when you go to a strange new world where you don’t know anyone you’re going to make the choices that make it easier for you to survive. It all depends on how you feel about leaving your home country (are you willingly leaving or escaping?) and your new country (are you happy here or do you resent being here?).
I’ve met plenty of minority individuals who are amazingly detached from their heritage and culture because of how their parents raised them. I’m happy for my own upbringing but I think Oscar’s worked for him and it’s never too late to understand and appreciate your roots.
Very well said, each person’s story is indeed different with its own complexities. My parents are immigrants and I fought tooth and nail to assimilate and was borderline embarrassed when our ethnicity came up, as I was the only first generation kid in my neighborhood and school. My mom was much quicker to assimilate than my dad, as she was much more happy to leave her home country than he was. I’m happy they insisted that we keep up certain traditions, though, and it’s been fun to pass them along to my kids. Still, I have a lingering sense of guilt that I could have and should have embraced my ethnicity much more than I did.
One of my teachers assimilated from another country and he said the first wave always tries to fit it, names their kids Nancy and Jim, etc. They, then, in turn, reclaim their roots and give their kids names from the old country – goes in waves!
He actually embraces his roots. I seen him doing some interviews for guatemala and has that chivas ad in spanish.
Im mexican and i grew up in us and mexico. I never identified with beign latino, but that doesnt mean im not proud of my culture.
maybe that’s the difference? I think it’s ok to say you don’t speak for a set of people or a country, but to deny the influence of a people and a place and a language on you seems strange to me. I grew up in the Bible Belt and with a large Black-American community. I wasn’t part of either of those cultures but it definitely played a huge role in how I understand the US and my peers and the way I see the world and I don’t deny their influences.
There’s something I can’t quite put my finger on in his response that seems off.
We all have different stories, my dad had the dual citizenship (US/Mexico) but chose to live in Mexico till the drug war was too bad that we had to move. The adjustment was quite hard my little sister cried for 2 months because she didn’t understand aside from the basic English words. My brother didn’t want to go out & play & I was confused by the whole high school experience. Any chance we got we would go visit Mexico, sometimes it was every weekend. We missed it but we understood the decision that we couldn’t live there anymore.
I’ve been living in the States for half of my life & even going back to Mexico to visit, I can see the difference now. The slang & the way of speaking I don’t understand it anymore & in between jokes my friends say well that’s because you’re “gringa”.I think that after awhile you’re neither there or here, just in between.
Thanks for sharing your perspective, ESE.
Wow – he looks great in these shots. He does have that look of a suave leading man. Good luck to him.
I don’t like the bit about half mentioning a gf and calling the day after to take my it back. No, not much of a gemtleman, latino or non latino, that was a douche move.
Word. Too much angst there. Ugh.
Yea, I get what he is saying. I am a US born Cuban and have spent most of my life in Miami. He might be referring to personally identifying with the very distinct Latino community that is Miami as a whole (which for a long time was the Cuban community), or with the large majority of Hispanics here who dress, act, speak, etc. with a more Latino vibe and are more into the music, the lifestyle, etc.
A foil to Miami’s Oscar Issac might be Miami’s Pit Bull – who more outwardly exemplifies many traits of a large portion of the Miami Latino community and is an artist that makes his Latino/Miami roots a big part of his professional identity.
I can totally imagine Issac and Pit Bull attending the same high school in Miami, but not being part of the same “Latino crowd.” I don’t think he meant that he doesn’t identify with his nationalities or culture.
THIS A MILLION TIMES!, as a black latina living close enough to Miami to have dabbled in the community I can tell you this is 100% facts, more in my case where Cubans in MIA love to act like I couldnt possibly be Latina and thus get treated like a “gringa” until I call em out in Spanish then is all smiles/good service and apologies and such
I understand this, but it sounds to me like, in a way, he believes the stereotype of what the Latino community is, hence he doesn’t identify with it. That sounds good on the surface but looking deeper you can say that he has internalized that stereotype and bias and feels that it is a fact. Latinos are not a monolith. Miami Latinos are not THE Latinos.
Damn. He might be my new crush. Sexy, sexy, sexy. And that fact that he’s Latino, makes him sexy times 10.
Oscar my love! Early word on him in Star Wars is great and I am ecstatic!
And for anyone side-eyeing the last name change, give it a rest. Hollywood is proven sexist, racist, and generally stereotypical. He’s smart. Period. He can play anything and now has the chance to prove it so maybe it will be easier for the next Latino leading man.
I think it is different for people who come to the US as very young kids vs. people who come to the US as teenagers or adults.
Their formative years happen in the US, they are Americans, they have little connection with the culture of their parents unless they visit the parents country often and have a lot of family around.
But I think it is still good for them to learn about the culture of their parents and their language, another language never hurt anyone.
I once worked with a girl whose dad was Polish and he was such an American patriot he never spoke Polish at home or taught his kids. He said – I am an American now, and you will only be speaking English. I think that is too extreme.
To each his own, but I don’t care for it. The fact is that he is Latino and that Latinos are underrepresented in film and TV and misrepresented in media and socially. Distancing yourself from your ethnicity has always been troublesome to me.
I think we have a responsibility to say ‘see we come in all manifestations? Put down your stereotypes’
I agree with this.
I’m not judging and he absolutely has the right to identify as he pleases, however, I will internally side eye him for needing to declare he’s not part of the community–we’re not a monolithic entity.
Granted, he’s probably saying most of this to pacify white ass Hollywood, but my annoyance is mainly at the system—only minorities get typecasted to such a severe degree, meanwhile, Sigourney Weaver got to play an Egyptian 😒
Smh.
Same. Everyone has the right to self-identify, and I think, in Hollywood assimilating/white passing is often a matter of survival for actors of color. But he’s making a very deliberate choice to distance himself from his ethnicity and it just makes me smh.
Is that what he’s doing though? He’s not saying he’s not Latino. He’s saying he’s himself, and while Latino, doesn’t speak for the ‘community.’
exactly!
That’s what I read too. Also 5’9”? Are you sure my scrumptious wee hunk? hehe
Agreed, WTF.
I’m from Uruguay (a little country between Argentine and Brazil). I went to USA a lot of times and I don’t feel like I belong to the latino community. I think a lot of people has this stereotype of the latino woman or men that don’t reflect the reality of us. We are a wide variety, and it’s kind of frustrating when someone tells you that you can’t be latino because you’re from another country or don’t look like what they expect you to look like. There a lot of prejudice and plain ignorance. English is not my mother tongue, so I’m sorry in advance for any neologism.
Hola vecin@! The same happened to me when I lived in the US. I got tired of people not believing I’m South American because of my skin or colour. Also, I’m tired of Americans confusing ethnicity with a geographical region. As you’ve said we’re all different due to our diverse ancestry.
Hola!!! Love, love, love your country!! I couldn’t agree more!
I’m used to go with a map so everyone can see that my country does exist. It’s kind of funny now, because I just say that we legalized marihuana and the state is selling it and they get it very quickly.
Hi Lenan,
My parents are from Uruguay and I was born in Australia. I grew up in a bilingual house with many different traditions and I do not at all feel like I am part of the Latino community either. I agree with Isaac.
The same thing has happened to me, but isn’t what you’re saying falling in line with the stereotype? Just because you don’t fit the stereotype doesn’t mean you aren’t part of the Latino community.
Ok, I’m from Argentina so that makes me as Latin American as it can get. But that doesn’t mean I’m the same as Oscar Isaac or Jessica Alba or Jennifer Lopez or Alexis Bledel. I bet we have different beliefs, cultural norms and customs. The Latino stereotype should be dropped because it’s useless.
He was in In Secret with Elizabeth Olsen. He was very good in it. Good movie. I recommend it.
Isn’t he also in the new Xmen movie out next year?
Yes. He plays the big bad in that one.
He’s had a serious girlfriend for many years but he’s super private about it. I don’t think he was doing anything shady when he “took back” the part about having a girlfriend, I think he probably just realized that he doesn’t want to risk opening up that part of his life. You give an inch and they take a mile…
It comes with the territory of covering one of the most star’s coveted magazines. It’s a given when they do GQ that they’re into playing the game. The lines become blurred, yes. They can try and keep their private lives private. Or just avoid doing major magazines covers. It’s kind of hypocrite, IMO. “Ok I want a piece of the cake, but I want to cut my own piece and screw the ones who are actually paying for the party (us, the public)”
I’m still not completely convinced that he’s not Bernard from the Santa Clause.
I’m an immigrant, but I don’t identify with the country I’m from, really. I came to America over 20 years ago and this is my home. I consider myself American, and when I’m labeled as an Israeli it kind of puts me back. Yes, I support my birth country and its people etc. but I’m not just an “Israeli”. I grew up here, my roots are here, my childhood and memories are here. We’re allowed to identify anyway we want and shouldn’t be ashamed over it. America is more my home than Israel. It is probably the same for him. He doesn’t want to be lumped in to one category and that’s fine, he’s entitled to it. When we get here we’re always told we’re ‘different’ and we’ll never ‘fit in’ and that hurts so we try and try to be accepted until we make it. It’s unfortunately the norm.
I have no problem with him not wanting to be “the voice” of Latinos in Hollywood or Miami or wherever. I just find it suspect that he was living in a major city with heavy Latino influence and had not connection whatsoever with the community there. That’s just weird and with the elimination of the one name (Hernandez) that would have made his ethnic background very obvious, he just comes off suspect and imho has the lingering odor of self hatred coming off of him.
I agree with everything else you said. More like he has fallen for the belief that Latinos are a monolith. Since he doesn’t fit that monolith he can’t identify as Latino.
THIS
it is a a lot of indifference sprinkled with self denial/hate….. like he doesnt want the negativity that is associated with being latino around his image or to have to answer questions about that….. which is like come on… dude your not white…. and that ok and maybe better for some parts…. but i bet if people ask him heyyyy are you jewish, greek, italian, sicilian, SPANISH…… he probably says yea or wow i get that all the time with a big juicy ass smile
its like he was immersed in it… as it’s his culture and then he kinda grows up and turns around and is just like hmmmm left that building…. but its not a community you can feel not apart of … its literally in you blood your lineage… and for godsakes you last name….
i mean don’t caricatur-ize it like say sofia v but dont don’t kinda compartmentalize box it up as childhood and live as if you are clear… as a person of color who’s culture is oppressed you just can’t afford to do that.
he must sip from the same pitcher that Anthony Mackie drinks from
thank you, Blue Geisha!
Wow, that is one hot looking man. He was very good in Show me a hero on tv, very good actor, I just wish he was a little taller, but I wouldnt turn him down, I love his dark sultry looks.
His father was a fan of individuality except when it came to his own wife? Nice one.
Oscar has such a beautiful face but I’m not in love with his body. Little squishy body.
I know him from Show me a Hero and I think he’s one to watch, acting-wise.
I didn’t think he was distancing himself from his culture, so much as saying that a sense of individuality was more important in his family than attaching oneself to a group (probably any kind of group, since he references not drinking till he was 25).
My husband also grew up in Miami, his father having come from Cuba (His mom was Mexican/French – from the very French city of San Luis Potosi in Mexico – but she died when he was 3 and her influence was not felt very strongly). While he has a very ethnic look to him, my husband just never really identified with the Latin community. He didn’t necessarily shy away from it, but he just felt so awkward. During his teen years, his father took him and moved around Europe for a while, living in Germany and Switzerland. I’m sure this played a role. But his family/household (father, aunts & grandmother) took it so harshly that he didn’t connect with being Latino. In fact, when he married a pale, freckled red-head like me, they took it as a personal affront to his roots. Our children feel the same way.
He just awakened my force.Damn. As for how he chooses to “identify” that’s his business. He’s clearly not rejecting his Latino background. And he could just DRAW a line and I’d be all over him like a cheap slut. I mean cheap suit. (Thanks Golden Girls)
It’s not weird. I came to America when I was a few months old from my native country and couldn’t assimilate to the groups here in America from my culture because,, like Oscar,, my interests didn’t align with theirs and I was usually too this or not enough that for them.
I identify as the nationality I was born with but I don’t have personal ties beyond that because what would they form from? The experiences and links I never had??
I’min Europe and just saw star wars. spoiler: oscar Isaac is hot as hell in it.
I saw him in X-machina. He is so yummy ! And that film is one of the best films I’ve ever seen.
I am also an immigrant (by myself without family) and I totally agree with him. I don’t see myself as a part of a community and I don’t want to speak in their name. Assimilating into a community makes everyone alike. That’s not true as our identity is multiple and diverse and everyone has the right to practice/believe as he wants to without feeling the pressure of a community that pushes you to be like everyone else.
I’m happy for him. I believe the romeo part too. It’s in the eyes.
Hot.tee
Oh, and that Adam Driver is a tall drink of water. I kept tripping over my own feet in a Barry’s Bootcamp class because he was right in front of me. Very distracting.
Look, I am Latina who is Muslim and while I don’t fit the stereotype of what a typical Latina should be (even before becoming Muslim I did not fit that mold) I still identify with the Latino community. I am highly individualistic but I know that the world is not going to see me as an individual. I am going to be seen as a Latina woman whether I like it or not. The world isn’t going to care about your self-identification when it chooses to discriminate you. I’m happy that he’s individualistic but the fact that he doesn’t use his given last names and the fact that he’s played several non-Latino characters says to me that he sees Latinos a certain type of way (I amended my original reply to Jinni as I thought about it and saw that self-hatred too) and he doesn’t want to be one of “those”. Like Oscar, I may not fit into the stereotype or the “norm” of the Latino community but we share a common struggle and I will not distance myself from them on account of my individuality or characteristics that don’t fall in line with the norm. You don’t have to speak for other Latinos nor be a role model but to distance yourself from the community is to do a disservice. We’re already underrepresented and misrepresented in the media. Don’t add to it.
He is very attractive.
Went to have a look at his very impressive CV after the X-Men trailer and couldn’t help thinking that he’s on track to be this generation’s Al Pacino. Different ethnicity, of course, but same vibe. Also short.
I’m okay with all of this.
What he’s saying is very similar to what Zoe Kravitz said about her blackness and identity….
here’s where it works for people like Oscar Issac, Zoe Saldana, Frieda Pinto, Olivia Munn they either have the physical body wise or feature-wises that can be projected onto… Issac just looks like a white Mediterranean man (old school Al Pacino really and that kinda what he’s aiming for and he admires pacino), Zoe and Fried Pinto have a ballerina body and shiny straight hair light olive skin (much like former in-demand actress Thandie Newton) and Olivia just looks like a brunette white woman with maybe some native america down the line (she’s Chinese and white for the most part) …. and its these nuances that work for them….. I would say it works for Eva Mendes (but for the most part she kinda rode the wave of the sexy latina exotic creature [not as extreme as Sofia V] spanish cindy crawford looking and thus her roles mostly show that perception)
but it doesn’t work for people such as Zoe Kravitz, Jessica Alba, Mindy Kahling and other because their ethnicity and or body type is kinda blatant enough to not be able to project on …. jessica alba pretty much said what Issac was saying and was slaughtered for it as people said BUT YOU LOOK LATINA…. (all the while cameron diaz skated by into blond lily world) and zoe kravitz didn’t get casted in the last christian bale batman movie because she said they told her “we’re not going urban with this” just off the strength of her looking obviously black to them…. and mindy kahling has a very curvy body and dark skin and features that cant be projected on so they still experience that question of why dont you identify as such and such or why dont you consider yourself a this or that or why dont you do more for this group, ‘your’ group.
which can be tiresome all together I imagine….
Latino is not a race , though. He doesn’t need to pretend being white, he is white, maybe with some American Indian blood.
Want. Yum.
He is so sexy. The dance move in Ex Machina kills me every time I watched it hehe