20 Famous Hispanic People Who Are Killing It in 2022
These women are on fire.
National Hispanic Heritage Month begins September 15, and ends on October 15, 2022. It's a special time dedicated to celebrating the positive influences of Hispanic and Latin American culture on our society. Many of those contributions would not have been possible without famous Hispanic people—and women in particular.
Alongside those more established names are a slew of rising figures in the worlds of film, politics, and literature, telling important Latinx and Afro-Latino stories and championing diversity in gender, sexuality, and ethnicity.
Ahead, a look at just a few of the badass Latina and Hispanic women who are making a splash in 2022.
Indya Moore
Moore, who is of Puerto Rican and Dominican descent and identifies as Afro-Taíno, was the breakout star of FX's Pose. But in addition to being a model and actor, they were featured on the Time 100 list in 2019 for their work as a transgender activist and leading voice speaking in support of marginalized communities.
Rita Moreno
Did you know that Rita Moreno is the only Latinx actress with an EGOT—Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony—under her belt? And her accolades don't stop there: In 2019, the Puerto Rican actress also became the first Latinx performer to earn a Peabody Career Achievement Award. In addition to starring in the West Side Story remake, Moreno continued to reprise her role in the former-Netflix turned-POP-TV series One Day at a Time, which came to an end in 2020 after if its fourth season.
Jennifer Lopez
Where do we even begin with Jennifer Lopez? After nearly three decades in show business, the Puerto Rican A-lister captured the world's attention with her Super Bowl LIV Halftime Show in 2020. Her starring turn in Hustlers, a crime comedy-drama based on a true story of a group of strippers who embezzled money from wealthy clients, earned rave reviews, albeit no Oscar nomination. Up next, she has The Godmother, a hard-edged biopic of drug lord Griselda Blanco.
Mariah Carey
Carey, whose mother is Irish-American while her father was Black and Venezuelan, is the iconic diva who has long cemented herself as a musical legend. In addition to classic albums like Music Box, Butterfly, and The Emancipation of Mimi, Carey's incomparable voice has earned her 19 #1 songs on Billboard's Hot 100, five Grammys, 10 American Music Awards, and 19 World Music Awards. In 2020, she published her revealing memoir, The Meaning of Mariah Carey, in collaboration with journalist Michaela Angela Davis.
Sonia Sotomayor
When former President Barack Obama appointed Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court of the United States, she became the first Hispanic and Latina Justice. When she isn't making impassioned dissents on issues of race, ethnic identity, gender, and much more on the country's highest court, she's writing children's books. In her 2019 book, Just Ask! Be Different, Be Brave, Be You, Sotomayor introduces readers to children who face several "life challenges" as they work together to create a garden of different flowers and plants.
Alexis Bledel
Though Bledel is known by Gilmore Girls superfans as Rory, Bledel—whose father was born and raised in Argentina and mother was raised in Mexico—stars as Emily on the hit Hulu series The Handmaid's Tale. Soon, she'll be serving us some more much-needed nostalgia with Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 3.
Rosalía
If you don't know the name Rosalía yet, allow us to introduce you. The rising Spanish singer was nominated for Best New Artist at the 2020 Grammys, and took home Best Latin Rock, Urban or Alternative Album for El Mal Querer. Lately, she's been tearing up the charts with songs like "La Fama" with the Weeknd and "Candy." Fun fact: She was also the only musician featured in Time magazine's "Next Generation Leaders" in 2019.
Camila Cabello
In 2019, Camila Cabello scored a huge hit with "Señorita," featuring Shawn Mendes, which climbed to the No. 1 position on the Billboard Hot 100. She released her sophomore album, Romance, in December 2019, scoring hits like the platinum-certified "My Oh My." She's one of the most omnipresent pop stars around today.
Cardi B
Cardi B became a household name following the release of her commercial debut single, "Bodak Yellow." On September 25, 2017, the song reached the No. 1 spot, making Cardi the first female rapper to do so with a solo single since Lauryn Hill's "Doo Wop (That Thing)" in 1998. She also became the first person of Dominican descent to reach No. 1 in the history of the Hot 100 since it launched in 1958. Cardi made her film debut alongside Jennifer Lopez and Constance Wu in Hustlers, and had a brief role in the action blockbuster F9.
Eva Longoria
It's been a busy few years for Eva Longoria. The mother of 4-year-old Santiago stepped into the role of executive producer and cast member on the ABC series Grand Hotel. Plus, she starred in the live-action Dora and the Lost City of Gold alongside Isabela Moner, Eugenio Derbez, Michael Peña, and Danny Trejo. Oh, and in her free time? Longoria—who has directed episodes of series like Black-ish and Jane the Virgin—says she has many more plans to work behind the camera, and is directing (and starring in) the upcoming film 24-7.
Mj Rodriguez
Rodriguez found success via Ryan Murphy's groundbreaking drama Pose, which wrapped its third and final season last year. The series also earned the star a platform as a passionate trans activist, with Advocate naming her one of their Women of the Year in 2020. Now Rodriguez is moving on to her musical career under the name Michaela Jaé and stars in the Apple TV+ comedy series Loot alongside Maya Rudolph.
Daniela Vega
Chilean actress Daniela Vega delivered a stunning performance in the Oscar-nominated A Fantastic Woman and though she has been relatively quiet since the film's release in 2018, her impact continues to ripple. She was on Time's 100 Most Influential People list and became the first transgender person to present at the Academy Awards. Vega's role in Un Domingo de Julio en Santiago is another show-stopping turn.
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
Often referred to by her initials, AOC, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez made history when she became the youngest woman ever to serve in the United States Congress at 29. Since being elected in 2018, the Puerto Rican Bronx native has continued to make headlines, thanks to her Green New Deal and outspoken commentary on social media. She handily won re-election in the Democratic primary, ensuring she'll remain a fixture in local and national politics.
Carmen Maria Machado
Writer Carmen Marie Machado is one of the most acclaimed young names in sci-fi and horror fiction, with the 2017 collection Her Body and Other Parties winning numerous awards and rave reviews. With a penchant for subverting genre tropes and an ability to integrate heavy real-world subject matter—2019's In the Dream House chronicles an abusive relationship she endured—Machado is sure to continue breaking boundaries for queer authors.
Sofía Vergara
Since Sofía Vergara started playing the role of Gloria Delgado-Pritchett on Modern Family in 2009, she's been nominated for four Golden Globes, four Emmys, and seven SAG awards. The role, along with a slew of endorsement and licensing deals, landed the Colombian actress at the top of the list of highest-paid TV actresses in 2019—for the eighth year in a row. Following the end of Modern Family (the sitcom enjoyed a record-breaking run with 250 episodes), Vergara lent her unmistakable voice to the animated film Koati.
Shakira
As one of the world's best-selling music artists, Shakira is always looking for ways to stay connected to her fans. When she's not sharing pictures of her kids or making history with Jennifer Lopez during the Super Bowl Halftime Show, the Colombian singer is... well, quite literally taking over the world. The 2018 El Dorado World Tour was the first time she toured in the U.S. in seven years—and to celebrate the milestone, she released a concert film in theaters.
Julia Salazar
Along with AOC, 31-year-old New York State Senator Julia Salazar is part of a progressive wave of young women in politics fighting for a more equitable world. She is a champion for sex worker rights, immigration and criminal justice reform, and serves as Chair of New York's Committee on Women's Health. Winning her last primary in Brooklyn's District 18 with nearly 84 percent of the vote, Salazar may well become a figure on the national scene soon enough.
Marialy Rivas
Chilean filmmaker Marialy Rivas has been an indie cinema darling since the release of 2012's Young & Wild, and continues to tell critical and underreported stories. Young & Wild focused on a bisexual teenager growing up in a conservative Protestant family, while her latest, Princesita, explores a young girl's life in a cult of "toxic masculinity."
Tessa Thompson
Born to an Afro-Panamanian father and mother of Mexican ancestry, Tessa Thompson has become not just a bankable box office draw in films like Thor: Ragnarok and Creed, but a daring actress capable of incredibly moving, tender performances. More recently, she starred in the romantic drama Sylvie's Love and the scintillating thriller Passing, as well as a continued role on Westworld.
Julia Alvarez
In 2020, Julia Alvarez returned to adult fiction after a 16-year hiatus, penning the dazzling Afterlife. And if that gets you hooked, she has a vast bibliography of nonfiction, books for young readers, poetry, and picture books, as she is one of the most prolific authors of the past few decades.
Grant Rindner is a culture and music journalist in New York. He has written for Billboard, Complex, and i-D, among other outlets.
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