They were a lot of binge-worthy TV shows in the 2000s, but nothing like the fashion series, Ugly Betty. The telenovela-turned-ABC hit series was America Ferrera's big break.
But despite the show's success, the actress faced some relatable struggles to her character back then. "It's funny when people are like, 'Oh, what was it like to play an ugly character?'" she told audiences at the 2017 ATX festival in Austin, Texas, seven years after the show ended.
"I mean, we never ask men that. You know? We just say, 'What a great performance. Good for you for taking on that character,'" she continued. "I think it's kind of sad when, as a woman, the bravest thing you can do is be ugly, you know?"
Could it be the same reason Ferrera didn't enjoy her Emmy win for her performance as Betty Suarez? Here's a closer look at her journey into the role, as well as her exit from her last sitcom, Superstore.
How Was America Ferrera Cast In Ugly Betty?
During the cast's reunion at the 2017 ATX Festival, Ferrera revealed that she landed the role after running into executive producer, Salma Hayek. "I hadn't heard anything about the show, and she just ran up to me and said, 'You are my ugly Betty!'" she said of that time.
"And I was like, 'I don’t know what that means, but I'll be whatever you want me to be,'" Ferrera shared. "And then she pitched me the show. She said it's this Colombian show, and it's about this girl who looks like a train wreck. I was like, 'Got it. Good.'"
She added that what convinced her to take the role was Hayek's pitch that Betty "comes into this world of fashion, and she turns everyone else beautiful from the inside out." She then "knew right away that that show had to exist."
The Gentefied star continued: "I knew that little America growing up with so few realistic portrayals of women — beautiful … and real — I just knew immediately that that show was going to exist and that it was going to resound with people. And so from there on and out, I was a million percent in."
Why Didn't America Ferrera Enjoy Winning An Emmy For Ugly Betty?
In 2007, Ferrera won the Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series. She was the first Latina woman to win the category. But instead of feeling proud about it, the X/Y actress later admitted that she didn't feel like she deserved the recognition.
"When I won the Emmy, I can't bring myself to go back and watch that because the only thing I remember about being on that stage, accepting that Emmy, was the feeling that no one in the room thought I deserved it," she recalled on Dax Shepard's Armchair Expert podcast in 2020. "And that's a shame."
She went on to say that her peers probably thought, "She doesn't really deserve that" or "What is she really doing in that role? That role is not interesting enough, it's not dark enough, it's not edgy enough."
"Like, you know, all of the bulls**t of like, 'Oh, she got it is because it's a good story, not because she deserves it,'" Ferrera said of her moment of self-doubt. She then noted that some people were also making her feel that way back then.
"There were people in my life perpetuating those narratives and making me feel like I hadn't earned this moment," she said. "When I look back at that time, my heart aches for that 22-year-old girl, who didn't get to really enjoy those moments."
What Happened To America Ferrera?
Ferrera clarified to Shepard that she "loved" playing Betty despite her awful Emmy moment. "First of all, I loved this character, I loved this world," she said of the four-season show. "I loved my cast. To have the feeling that this character, this story, is so needed in the culture right now."
She continued: "I just have a gut instinct that it's going to speak so strongly to so many people, myself included. ... I loved every minute of being Betty." Unfortunately, it didn't have the same positive impact on her personal life.
"The hoopla and the whirlwind that happened around it was challenging and exhausting and my whole life changed," she shared. "It wasn't really being famous, it was what it did for my personal relationships, what it did to my familial relationships." At that time, she also doubted her relationship with her now husband, Ryan Piers Williams.
"At the time we'd been together one year and then, boom, everything changed, so that was crazy,'" she explained. "It's like, this guy that I really like, but I don't see him for three days on end and he's working. Is this gonna survive this?"
It all worked out, though. They now have two children together. Career-wise, Ferrera went on to star in more films and shows, including Superstore which she left in season 6 to move on to a new chapter in her life and work. You'll also be seeing her in the most highly anticipated movie of the year, Barbie.
