Tv series ‘Grand Hotel’, interview with actress Justina Adorno

Latina actress Justina Adorno is set to star in the bold and provocative ABC drama series “Grand Hotel”. She will play ‘Yoli,’ the black sheep daughter of the extravagant Mendoza family who owns the luxurious Miami Beach Grand Hotel. Justina Adorno worked also on tv series “The Bachelorette”.

Q. Tell us about your role as “Yoli” and what can we expect from the next few episodes of “Grand Hotel.”

A. Yoli is a bit of a sassy lady, but sassy for all the right reasons. She is one to call things out for what they are in the moment. You’ll get to see a little bit more about why she is the way she is and her complexities in the next few episodes. You’ll see deeper into who she is, and I am so excited for everyone to see that. 

Look at the Gallery: Tv series Grand Hotel

Q. Were you a fan of the original Spanish series “Grand Hotel”? 

A. When the original Spanish series was on Netflix, I was just browsing and randomly clicked on it without knowing what it was. It was in Spanish, so I decided to put the subtitles on to learn the language while letting the characters tell their story through their body language. The show was so captivating; I watched three episodes and I was hooked by the first one. Then, I forgot what it was called, so I couldn’t go back to it. Years later, my dad was telling me about this Spanish show called the ‘Gran Hotel’ without making that connection. 

Q. How did you get involved with the adaptation on ABC?

A. When I got the audition, my eyes lit up and I finally made the connection and realized the show got lost and came back into my life in the most beautiful way. I remember watching the first episode of ‘Gran Hotel’ and thinking that everyone needs to watch it. Even though the show is in Spanish, it doesn’t even matter. I can only hope that our show (Grand Hotel) does the same for our audience and the original fans of the Spanish series. We take a lot of the story line from the original and our amazing writers have made it modern with their own flare by pulling some of the original characters apart or fusing two characters together. They also made the cast very diverse and because of that, our audience will feel that they relate more to this incredible story.

Q. What was it like to work on a show produced by Eva Longoria?

A. It was a dream come true. She is a brilliant person. She saw the show, knew that it was special and needed to adapt it for American TV. She turned it into this amazing, magical project and I am so grateful they included me in this journey. I love this show and it’s because of Eva. She set the tone during the pilot and if it wasn’t for her, it wouldn’t reach the success it has now and will continue to be after this. 

Q. How long have you been acting? 

A. I have been “acting” since I was five years old watching Disney movies over and over until the tapes broke. I would memorize every line while acting it out, singing, and dancing. I didn’t see this as something I would do for the rest of my life, but I also knew I had to do it in some capacity. Every time I watched any play or musical, I was always so taken and inspired by it. Whenever I watched a movie, I felt overwhelmed with emotions. I knew I needed to become an actor and give back to other people by changing someone’s life like these pieces of art have changed mine. 

Grand Hotel

Q. What was your journey like in the industry?

A. I auditioned for a program at my high school and later got accepted into a boarding school for acting for the last two years of high school. The audition process showed me that I could do this and all I wanted was to continue learning my craft. As soon as I graduated college, I went straight to New York and I was signed by an agent from my senior showcase. I started learning the business side of acting and how important it was to work on myself and build relationships with casting directors. As I learned and grew, my career grew with it. I always say that you’re going to have doubts, but you must believe in yourself three times stronger than those doubts. 

Q. Tell us about your passion and involvement with animal rights. Are you involved with any non-profit organizations?

A. I have been more invested in my career, I have not been as involved as I would like to be but I always knew I would. Instead of going out during the weekends in college, I would spend the day at the local animal shelter cleaning dog cages and walking the dogs just because I wanted to. When I moved to New York, I started seeing little cats on the streets that looked like they needed a home. Some of them looked sick and scared, so I reached out to this Instagram account: @littlewanderersnyc and and started helping me, help them get foster homes! 

Q. What lead you to become vegan? 

A. I went from being vegetarian for a big portion of my life on and off to being pescatarian and finally becoming vegan. Now, I am happy to be educating other people the same way others educated me on what’s happening behind closed doors with these animals. I feel so connected with them. I feel like it’s my purpose on this planet to be the voice for the voiceless and animals are what I gravitate toward the most. 

Q. Do you have any advice for anyone who is thinking about becoming vegan?

A. My advice for anyone thinking about becoming vegan would be to never lose focus on what really matters no matter what others may say. By living a plant-based lifestyle, you’re going to see a lot of the truth and it will be ugly, uncomfortable, and devastating. You need to see it to let it affect you and go through the transition by feeling connected and making it personal.

Q. What is your next project?

A. I am still focusing on “Grand Hotel,” but my next project will be based around my vegan journey and it’s something that I’m really passionate about. It might take a few years or two months, but I want to help people the way I wish I was helped sooner. I wish I was vegan sooner. I am also always writing songs, so you never know what can happen with that. Maybe I will collaborate with some artists and have someone sing one of my songs. I am just taking life one day at a time.  

You can follow Justina on Instagram: @justina.justina and her plant-based page is: @justinaveganjourney. 

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