Camila Moreno is a fresh new face to the entertainment industry. She can be seen in her first major leading acting role as a series regular in Ava DuVernay’s highly anticipated superhero series “Naomi” for The CW. “Naomi” premieres tonight!
Based on the bestselling comic series co-written by Brian Michael Bendis and David F. Walker, the series adaptation follows a teen girl’s journey (Kaci Walfall) from her small northwestern town to the heights of the multiverse. When a supernatural event shakes her hometown to the core, Naomi sets out to uncover its origins, and what she discovers will challenge everything we believe about our heroes. Fans of the comics will be intrigued by Camila’s shining role as newcomer Lourdes, a young woman with a sarcastic sense of humor who works in a vintage collectibles shop and joins in on Naomi’s antics.
Check out my interview with Camila!
How does it feel that the premiere is tonight?
Camila: I feel very excited. Yeah. You know, we’ve worked on this for a long time and I’m ready to watch a bloom.
Do you have any plans for the premiere?
Camila: Not really. I think I’m going to go to a friend’s house and watch it together. Nothing big.
Were you familiar with the comics before you were cast as Lourdes?
Camila: I was. I started reading them when I found out there was an audition for it (“Naomi”). And honestly, I immediately fell in love with it… I auditioned for the show because my manager sent me the breakdown for it. I was invited to audition. So yeah, that’s how I found out about the audition. And then I immediately wanted to read about this comic book. And so, I immediately looked it up online and started reading it. I read it so quickly. It’s a very good comic book.
How would you describe Lourdes?
Camila: Lourdes is a young woman who is beautifully and authentically herself. She’s not afraid to be herself and I think that’s very refreshing. She’s a great friend and she’s honestly not afraid of anything.
What do you find most exciting about playing Lourdes?
Camila: I think playing such an unapologetically herself character is very exciting. I think in spite of me, I consider myself to be quite sure of myself, but I think Lourdes takes that to a whole nother level. The bravery with which she presents herself to the world, just like being like, ‘Hey, this is me. You can take it or you can leave it. I’m not judging anyone. I’m just being myself and that’s the only thing I know how to do.’ So I think it’s very exciting to be able to live in that space. And honestly, I’ve been learning a lot.
And she also has purple hair, which is pretty awesome. Did you have any say in what Lourdes would look like?
Camila: Not really, I mean, obviously once we’re on set, I can say whether I’m uncomfortable with something or anything like that. Honestly, I just loved the stylists, the wardrobe designers, and makeup artists and hairstylists. I think it’s just really exciting to get to embody someone so different from myself. I love it. I love it all honestly.
Is her look very different from yours or would you adopt some of her style?
Camila: I think I’ve seamlessly been adopting certain things. Like just yesterday, I got purple highlights on my hair. And I’m very excited about that. I felt like a little kid getting a new toy. So yeah, I think in spite of us being different in our styles, I think there are things about Lourdes’s style that I would love to adopt and I have been, really not on purpose.
This show has a very diverse cast, what does it mean to you to be part of a show like this?
Camila: It means the world to me. Honestly, being a part of one of those diverse shows on TV right now is incredible. I mean, I would’ve loved to see a show like this growing up. I think every child has the right to be able to see themselves projected on their TV screens because it opens their mind to bigger, incredible, unthinkable opportunities and dreams. It’s an honor. Honestly.
What can viewers expect from this season?
Camila: I think the audience will be in for a great ride. We will get to see Naomi discover herself and discover the world around her and a whole new perspective, and I think that’s very exciting. You take this young girl who’s confident and who’s really great at pretty much everything and her world gets shaken up by an event that occurs in her hometown. I think that’s pretty exciting in and of itself.
Are you able to drop any spoiler-free hints about Lourdes’ journey in the series?
Camila: I mean, all I can say is that she’s her own woman and she doesn’t compare herself to anyone else. We’ll get to see a lot of that.
Will Superman appear in the show?
Camila: You know, I will leave that for you to find out for yourself. But I do want to say that this is a very exciting show, and I am pretty certain that people will very invested in the characters and the storyline.
Thank you so much for chatting with me, is there anything else that you would like to say about “Naomi?”
Camila: Just tune in tonight and buckle up!
