Interview: Valeria Jauregui Discusses Acting, Being a Woman in the Industry, Using Her Voice for Change, and Her Dream Role
Actress Valeria Jauregui is crushing her Hollywood goals after her breakout role as Maggie Hollister on Fox’s Deputy.
Make sure you keep your eye out for the bilingual actress and singer, who played an influential role of Fox’s Deputy, to see what’s next on the horizon from her. She competed in La Voz Kids USA, earning a spot in the finals and participated in Miss Teen Texas. Her platform was “Mirror mirror on the wall, love thyself most of all.” On top of all that, she has modeling experience in both the Macy’s Fashion Show and Parker Trade Show. Valeria is a native of Texas and has participated in the Flawless Brow commercials in both English and Spanish. She is showing the world her talent and proving she has a bright future ahead.
Read our exclusive interview with Valeria below to find out more on her acting journey, being a female in the industry, what self-love means to her, how she prepares for roles, her motivations, how she uses her voice, and more.
GLITTER: How long have you been acting?
VALERIA: I started with theatre when I was eight years old and then got into film acting around twelve, so in total nine years now!
GLITTER: What would you say was your big break?
VALERIA: I would say I haven’t had a “big break” because I would define that as landing a leading role in something that does extremely well. You never really know what that will be, and I think it’s also personal and different for everyone. But the biggest thing I’ve done is Deputy which I am so grateful for!
GLITTER: What can you tell us about the FOX show Deputy? Who did you play?
VALERIA: Deputy blended the spirit of a classic Western with a modern-day attitude and emotionally driven, visceral storytelling. Deputy brought a gritty authenticity to the modern cop drama by featuring an ensemble of ambitious and complicated human beings who won’t rest until justice is served. My role as Maggie was fun to play because she’s sweet, sarcastic, and very caring. We liked to joke around on set about how she was the most understanding fourteen-year-old there ever was. Playing her was challenging in a sense where I still had to keep in mind that she is way younger than me, and being 14, you think you know everything when you don’t.
GLITTER: What can you tell us about the first season without giving away to people who haven’t seen it?
VALERIA: It’s got everything. You want cops? We’ve got them. Horses? Got them. Strong female leads? Got them. Badass fight scenes? Yup, that too. LGBT history being made on TV? Yeah, we did that. Keep naming it, Deputy is unlike anything, and it has a unique style to it. It’s heartfelt yet action-packed. The cast is terrific. Just watch it.
GLITTER: How are you like your character?
VALERIA: Well, I think Maggie gets sarcastic with her parents sometimes and I for sure do all the time. We are both understanding and love our family.
GLITTER: How do you prepare for your roles?
VALERIA: My favorite part of the job is the preparation for a role. Researching their skill set, their life, and how it affects their personality. The weird quirks they have. Relationships with everyone and anything. Speaking to the director about what they want and how they want the story portrayed, reading the script multiple times thinking about different things every time, and taking notes—making a playlist for my character or a journal—basically creating a person. I could go on and on about this, but I’ll stop by saying I love psychology and getting to create a character and giving them flaws, and their uniqueness fascinates me…there’s nothing quite like it. There are things I learn daily that add to the process, and it’s different for each character.
GLITTER: What is your approach to auditioning?
VALERIA: I usually do my character research, memorize incredibly well, so I’m not thinking and stressing over what my next line is. I’ll try different ways of approaching a character and just play around with the material until I find what I think feels best and most natural. Once I go to the audition I can simply just be in the moment and let go. Before auditioning, I’ll stay focused and connected to myself and shut out the world for the time being. It’s all about being present and controlling the nerves before stepping into the room. With all that being said I’ve done this and still had terrible auditions, so it’s also just an “it is what it is” type thing, and you learn something new from each one.
GLITTER: How do you use your voice for change?
VALERIA: By doing interviews such as these and not being afraid to speak my truth. I do struggle with finding the authority within myself of how do I know that what I’m saying is “right.” But that’s the thing, I think there is no right or wrong there just simply is, and you can either choose to say something or choose to be quiet and follow. I’ve never been good at following orders or trends. It’s just my personality, at the end of the day I guess I want to rebel against specific issues and use my voice in whichever way I can to help. I am still working on perfecting my opinions and educating myself on what I believe in so that when I do start to speak up even more, on social media, I am confident that I said what needed to be said and don’t regret anything. Being a teenager is tricky because I have constant doubt that I might be young and naïve, but things like these certainly help me begin to voice my opinion.
GLITTER: What are your thoughts on the current state of our nation and the #BlackLivesMatter Movement?
VALERIA: I think that this movement is long overdue and that people like me who are privileged need to do everything they can to support the changes that must be made. I have been educating myself on these issues, watching videos, having conversations with my family and friends, signing petitions, and encouraging those who can to vote. It’s incredible to see how people are coming together to demand justice.
GLITTER: What can others do to show support?
VALERIA: You can do so much. If you can’t protest, donate! If you can’t donate, support black-owned businesses, sign important petitions or talk about the issue with people who don’t want to help and see what you can do to change their mind. There is so much that you can do as long as you are not staying silent. Educate yourself because none of this was taught in schools as it should be. This cannot be another issue that we obsess on and then let fade away… this is something that must change, and until it does, I hope everyone stays with it as I know I will.
GLITTER: What positive message do you hope to send women who follow you?
VALERIA: First, know that you’re not alone. To make a change, we all need to support each other as a community. I want women who follow me to realize and open their eyes to everything that needs to change for us and not be afraid to defend that and stand up for what they believe in. There will be no change if people don’t want to speak up and deny the more significant influence. Coco Chanel is a prominent example because she changed women’s fashion from corsets that wouldn’t let them breathe or even laugh comfortably, to a loose yet stylish manner. Of course, her voice was put down at first, but she never gave up and looked at the change that she embarked on.
GLITTER: Many women are coming forward in media and standing up for their rights as women. How important is this issue to you?
VALERIA: One of the most pressing issues in my mind 24/7 is women’s rights and how unfair the world has been to women. Because I started acting at such a young age, I wasn’t used to the uncertainty of being a girl in the industry, and the unfair circumstances that come along with it. As I see myself getting older, things in audition rooms and sets have certainly changed, and I’m sure it hasn’t even started. I think it’s because I’m still very young, but thankfully I haven’t had any bad experiences with being a girl trying to make it in Hollywood, but I love watching and reading interviews of women who have. Jenna Fisher speaks about this issue in her book, there is an article by Brit Marling that is fascinating, speeches by Emma Watson, and things like those inspire me to want to raise my voice. I find that some women in film are so contrived and sexualized, and I think that’s because when cinema began, all of the writers were old white men who always wanted to make the male character the protagonist who saves the story and ends up with the pretty girl. Of course, back then I’m sure film influenced real-life; entertainment was informing our culture. We’ve come a long way since then, and now I see our culture enforcing entertainment more and stepping out of the “fake reality” cinema and TV box that is so fantasizing. But there is still a long way to go, and I even see with my generation that being known or interpreted as a “feminist” scares away some people. I guess they have this idea of it being a personal attack on men rather than a patriarchal system much more significant than an individual gender. All we want is gender equality. It is not girls against boys.
GLITTER: What pushes and motivates you on a daily basis?
VALERIA: Many things, and it’s always something different. The main thing, though, is my desire to accomplish my dreams as an actress, and with that, try to make a change in the world and help as many people as I can. I want to stay true to myself, find my style, and paint my story as mine. The people who inspire me are unique and stand up for what they believe in, even if it betrays society’s influence. I think we have too many people following negative stereotypes and stipulations that were placed long ago instead of working to embrace the uniqueness of our humanity. My anger towards things I stand against drives me to want to continue to educate myself and be a person who can inspire others.
GLITTER: What would be a dream role for you?
VALERIA: Probably a strong female lead that represents the Latin community in a twisted, yet out of this world adventure fantasy. But watch me come up with something else next week as I am always changing my mind about the characters, I see myself in.
GLITTER: What’s a day in the life for you like in isolation?
VALERIA: Every day is different for me. I do schoolwork, and sometimes I’ll sing and write songs. I like to practice skills daily like guitar, stretching and working out, painting, reading, watching interviews, etc. I like to switch it up every day because I get bored very quickly!
GLITTER: Favorite ways to find your Zen?
VALERIA: Meditation, yoga, reading, and tea.
GLITTER: The first place you’ll go when isolation ends?
VALERIA: The Movie Theatre, of course!
GLITTER: Glitter has a Celebrity #SelfLoveCampaign, and we want to know what self-love means to you?
VALERIA: I feel like self-love is something we all struggle with, especially at my age. I think the society we live in can brainwash us to feel sad when we’re alone or make us feel like happiness is automatic and comes from someone or something when it’s entirely intentional. At the end of the day, you just have yourself, and to be okay with that is vital for living a happy life. The relationship you have with yourself is the most important. How you see and treat yourself will reflect on how you see and treat other people.
GLITTER: What’s on your playlist right now?
VALERIA: Right now, I’ve been listening a lot to the song “Time Is Up” by Poppy and Diplo. It’s such a good song, give it a listen! Some other songs I’ve recently added to my playlist are “50//50” by Vantage and “Questioning My Mind” by Amber Lucid.
GLITTER: What’s your skincare routine consist of?
VALERIA: I’ve struggled with acne throughout my teen years, so I’ve tried many different products, and at the end of the day, what worked for me is my dermatologist’s products. I use a face wash and then moisturize with the products they gave me. I have insanely dry skin, and while shooting Deputy in Albuquerque, New Mexico (the driest place), my skin just became awful, so it was a slow recovery process after wrapping the show. Still, I would say to anyone struggling with their skin, go to a dermatologist and get products prescribed to your exact type of skin! Oh, and drink lots of water.
GLITTER: Favorite fashion indulgence?
VALERIA: At the end of the day, I end up wearing what fits my mood and makes me feel happy and comfortable. I love Madison Baylee’s, and Lennon Stella’s fits! I also love Emily Ratajkowski and Kendal Jenner’s street fashion.
GLITTER: Any projects you can tell us about that you’re working on next?
VALERIA: Not yet, but I am continuing to audition, write songs, and I’m going to college next semester so I will surely be busy and keep you updated on my Instagram for what’s to come. Thanks for reading!
GLITTER: How can fans follow you?
VALERIA: My Instagram is @valeria_jauregui.
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