Actress, Producer & Director

Eva Longoria

Golden Globe-nominated and SAG Award-winning actress, producer, director, entrepreneur, philanthropist, Time’s Up founder, and L’Oréal Paris Global Brand Ambassador, Eva Longoriais leading the charge of diverse and female representation as one of the most significant trailblazers in Hollywood by choosing purposeful projects that accurately represent Latinx and other underrepresented communities. In 2019, under the largest deal 20th Century Fox Television and Universal Pictures has ever made with a Latina, Longoria, who was heavily wooed into the groundbreaking deal due to her strong producing history in the Latinx community, produced the highest-rated summertime drama series to debut in 4 years, “Grand Hotel” (ABC). The TV show also marks the first major network series drama to feature a majority Latinx stars and a predominately female production crew, a decision that Longoria resolutely made. At the helm of her production company, UnbeliEVAble Entertainment, Longoria also produced and/or put into development dozens of other projects including the two-time 2019 Emmy Award-nominated NETFLIX documentary REVERSING ROE. After being hotly pursed and entertaining numerous pilots this season given her impressive record of directing such critically acclaimed and award-winning shows including “Black-ish” and “Jane the Virgin,” Longoria directed and executive produced the pilot episode for CW’s “Glamorous,” which made her only 1 of 2 Latinas to direct during the 2019 pilot season. Solidifying Longoria’s reputation for selecting inclusive projects with purpose, she stars in Paramount’s live-action feature film DORA AND THE LOST CITY OF GOLD (currently in theatres world-wide) which features a predominately Latinx cast and a Latina heroine lead. Longoria also stars opposite Tessa Thompson in the jazz era film SYLVIE (slated for a 2020 release). Next, Longoria will co-star and Executive Produce alongside Kerry Washington, Universal’s feature film 24/7 which will also mark her feature directing debut. As an activist and philanthropist, Longoria continuously uses her star power to shine her light on important causes close to her heart – whether that’s using her birth announcement to discuss migrant children being held in camps at the border or creating opportunities for women and people of color through education and entrepreneurship. Consistently churning out brilliant work by creating and influencing some of the best and most exciting film and TV projects of our time, Longoria is fortifying herself as a trusted name and powerhouse both in front of and behind the camera, with 2019 marking an exceptional point in her career.

Through her production company, Longoria steadily produces a myriad of projects including theABC series “Grand Hotel” which she also directs and guest stars in. The show is a modernadaptation of the popular Spanish series “Gran Hotel” and when Longoria discovered theoriginal series, she flew to Spain to meet the writers, ultimately convincing them to give her the American TV rights. Longoria was drawn to the upstairs/downstairs element of the show where, in her American version, the upstairs is an affluent, educated and successful Latino family –something not typically portrayed in media. Not only is it the first US major network TV show to feature a predominately Latinx cast (9 out of 11 series regulars) but as executive producer for the series, Longoria made it a point of hiring women and people of color in key roles behind the camera as well. Longoria has taken a spearheading step and hired women to direct a majority of the series’ episodes, as well as hired all women for the show’s assistant directors and Director of Photography (Alison Kelly) – a department which is statistically 97% men. “Grand Hotel,” which stars Academy Award-nominated actor Demián Bichir and Roselyn Sanchez, premiered this year as the highest-rated summertime drama debut in 4 years.

Longoria and UnbeliEVAble also recently produced the two-time 2019 Emmy Award-nominated REVERSING ROE, a Netflix documentary that explores the battle over women’s reproductive rights which premiered at the Telluride Film Festival. Additional producer credits include CLASS APART, an HBO docu film about Mexican American lawyers from Texas who argue a civil rights case all the way to the Supreme Court – and win. Longoria also executive produced, “Telenovela,” and executive produced Lifetime’s hit series “Devious Maids” – both groundbreaking shows for featuring a predominantly Latinx cast, with “Devious Maids” the first TV show ever to have 5 Latina leads. Additionally, Longoria produced and directed GO SEBASTIAN GO, a documentary short which premiered at the TriBeCa Film Festival as part of the ESPN documentary film series VERSUS, which she produced under the“ESPN 30 for 30” banner. Longoria was also the first and longest running executive producer and host of the American Latino Media Arts (ALMA) Awards which celebrate and highlight the best American Latino contributions to music, television and film.

Longoria recently teamed up with Emmy Award-winning writer Lena Waithe and MACRO andThe Black List to launch ‘The MACRO Episodic Lab, Powered by The Black List,’ which will offerpeople of color the opportunity to develop and produce an original digital or television script. The mission of the project is to discover, support and empower these creatives with tools and resources, and to help launch careers for those whom typically do not have access to the traditional Hollywood system. As if that’s not enough, in the wake of the #MeToo Movement that engulfed the entertainment industry, Longoria joined forces with Reese Witherspoon, Natalie Portman and other leading Hollywood women to say that time was up, co-founding the#TimesUp Campaign which has since swept all industries around the world. Powered by women, #TimesUp addresses systemic inequality and injustice in the workplace.

Eva Longoria’s greatest work is what she is doing as a champion of charities and organizationsthat help bring awareness to the issues faced by women and Latino communities. Committed to empowering Latinas everywhere, Longoria established the Eva Longoria Foundation (ELF) in 2012 to help Latinas build better futures for themselves and their families through education and entrepreneurship. ELF has made STEM education for Latina youth one of its primary focuses because it believes that Latinas represent an untapped talent pool to fill many future technology positions. STEM careers can lift up the Latinx community and make our country more competitive. To date, ELF has helped more than 2,100 low-income youth engage in STEM activities and inspired them to explore STEM career paths. ELF’s mentorship programs haveconnected more than 1,500 Latina students with high-performing peers and professional women who share their backgrounds. Additionally, more than 5,000 parents in Los Angeles and Mexico City have graduated from the Foundation’s parent engagement training programs, which help parents better support their daughters’ educational aspirations. Students whose parents participate in ELF’s program in Los Angeles graduate from high school at a rate of 96%,compared to the California state-wide average of 80%. ELF also provides first-generation Latina college students with scholarships to pay for a variety of costs associated with enrolling in and attending college. ELF has also provided nearly $2 million in microloans and business training to Latina entrepreneurs, who in turn have grown their businesses and have created or retained more than 600 jobs (evalongoriafoundation.org).

Serving others was ingrained in who she was as a child growing up and in 2006 Longoria co- founded the non-profit organization Eva’s Heroes, dedicated to enriching the lives of adolescents and young adults with developmental challenges by providing an inclusive setting built on the four tenets of: interact, grow, learn, and love. Always the philanthropist, Longoria is also the spokesperson for Padres Contra el Cancer, a nonprofit organization that is committed to improving the quality of life for Latino children with cancer and their families, Padres is the only Latino program in the United States that is focused on addressing the needs of the entire family.

This year Longoria celebrates 15 years as a Global Brand Ambassador for L’Oréal Paris. She also has her own fashion line, The Eva Longoria Collection, which has shown at NYFW; has a home collection line with JCPenney; a New York Times bestselling cookbook EVA’S KITCHEN; and created the fragrances “EVA” and “EVAmour.

Longoria was named ‘Philanthropist of the Year’ by The Hollywood Reporter and honored by Variety with a ‘Lifetime Achievement Award’ for their Power of Women issue. Longoria hasreceived countless other awards for her philanthropy and activism. Longoria additionally received her Master’s degree in Chicano Studies from California State University, Northridge, writing her thesis on “Success STEMS from Diversity: The Value of Latinas in STEM Careers.”

You can follow Eva on social media:
Facebook: @evalongoria
Instagram: @evalongoria
Twitter: @evalongoria
Snapchat: @realevalongoria