Into It with Sam Sanders
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It was like winning Miss Universe, she says.
Thats what I started doing.
The comedy tracks the Castelli familys move from the Dominican Republic to Miami in the 1980s.
The news hit her hard.
There was like a burst of flames from within me.
I felt really, really hot.
I thought I was going into menopause.
I had tests done and everything, and my gynecologist was like, No, youre not.
Forestieri later got another call where she learnedGordita Chronicleswas being taken off the HBO Max platform entirely.
So far,HBO Max has taken more than 80 titles off its platformin the last few months.
It was all filtered through Sony.
They just told us they were no longer going to do live-action kids and family programming.
How did you feel when you heard that?Devastated.
I thought it was just a b.s.
excuse, until two or three weeks later when all these other shows got canceled.
Then it seemed like we were the canary in the coal mine.
They decided not to releaseBatgirl.
And then I started thinking, Is it something against Dominicans?
Because Leslie Grace is Dominican.
Maybe the new leadership at Warner Bros.
Discovery just doesnt like Dominicans for whatever reason, I dont know!
But then it started becoming clear that it was an industrywide contraction in streaming.
I had only been on two shows when I soldGordita Chronicles:Good TroubleandSelena: The Series.
Then the show was a casualty of the streaming wars.
So now I see it as the industry giveth and the industry taketh.
Can you remember that second call?Yeah.
But in this industry, its a different game.
Sometimes theres a reason youre given, and then underneath theres a real reason.
A lot of people of color really connected to this show.
Thats without even counting the kids.
We had a lot of fans under 18.
And I think that was to not draw more negative attention to the decision that was made.
So where can you findGordita Chroniclesright now?
Where is it?The show is physically and spiritually in limbo.
Right now you’ve got the option to only see it on American Airlines and on JetBlue.
Im going to have to take a plane to watch your show.
Is the whole season on there?Its the first four, five, or six episodes.
I seem to recall the Halloween one.
I took a flight back from Miami in January, and I saw it on there.
I watched a couple episodes just for fun.
People still write to me like, Oh my God, I discovered the show on the plane.
Where can I see the rest?
Wow.Yeah, right now you cant.
At least I have copies that were given to me.
Could you put it online yourself, ostensibly, if you wanted to?
Is there a SoundCloud or Bandcamp for TV shows?Thats a good question.
Right now, Sony is working to get the first season on another platform.
I dont have the latest information on that.
I really hope that happens, so people can see it.
This whole experience has just been a lesson in how the industry works.
Whats been the biggest lesson in that regard?Theres bigger forces that are out of your control.
And also, I have to acknowledge, as Latinos, we have a huge problem.
Our shows keep getting canceled.
It just feels like its two, three times harder for us.
And thats something Ive been thinking about for the last few months, Okay.
What can be done to help the next show?
So what can we do?
I havent found a solution yet, but its a big problem, and it is frustrating.
Some days I can push it aside.
We got great press.
Whats the use of coming up with another show?
Thats what sometimes I think.
But I also give a shot to temper all those negative thoughts with positive thoughts.
It just feels like now Ive really been inducted into Hollywood.
Its painful and its not always fun.
Its not always a premiere with Eva Longoria and Zoe Saldana.
You have more days of disappointment than you do celebration.
But we do have a huge problem on our hands.
Do you think its going to get better anytime soon?
Any of this?I dont know.
I used to think that things were on an upward trend.
I was like, Oh my God, these characters feel like women that Ive known.
It feels like myself.
It was a critically acclaimed show.
I thought things were going to get better for us as Latino creatives going forward.
But now, I dont know.
The industrys going through so many changes.
It feels like every week theres some new bombshell piece of news.
And thats rational and reasonable.
And then theres the big industrywide things that I feel like I cant control.
So I feel like we need to maybe think about new strategies.
But I dont know what those are yet.
