Exclusive Interview: Pop Culturalist Chats with Orange Is the New Black’s Melinna Bobadilla

Up-and-coming actress Melinna Bobadilla is a new addition to the award-winning Netflix series, Orange is the New Black. With the show in its final season, Melinna plays a pivotal character whose storyline is important and topical. It’s the perfect role for Melinna, who has always been passionate about telling stories that have not been told and representing communities that are often forgotten.

We had the pleasure of speaking with Melinna about her breakout performance.

PC: Tell us about your character in the new season of Orange is the New Black. What audiences should know about Santos?
Melinna: Santos-Chaj is a young indigenous Guatemalan woman who speaks Maya k’iche and no Spanish or English. She leaves Guatemala to escape violence only to be met by more violence—both sexual and state sanctioned. On her journey north, she ends up imprisoned at the PolyCon ICE Detention Facility. Aside from already being dehumanized because she is a brown, undocumented woman, she’s isolated because no one speaks her language.

Although she finds herself in a desperate situation, she doesn’t give up and continues to try to fight for herself. At a time in the United States when immigrants are under attack, and primarily those from Central America and Mexico, Santos’ story is eerily timely because it highlights the intersection of immigrant rights issues and reproductive justice. She’s a survivor of rape who becomes impregnated by her rapist on her journey to the U.S. and she finds herself in ICE detention, only to have a new set of oppressors controlling her body and her reproductive freedom. It’s a heartbreaking story, but one we can’t look away from.

PC: How familiar were you with Orange is the New Black? Were there any nerves heading into the project given the fanbase and established cast?
Melinna: I was a fan of the show since season 1. Even in 2019, there are few shows that feature multiple lead characters who are Latina, black, queer, trans, or other underrepresented groups. I was nervous, but not because of the fan base or the established cast; it had more to do with taking on a character who represents the traumas and oppressions so many migrants are currently facing in this country. I wanted to do her justice because there are thousands of “Santos” living in the shadows without documentation or already in ICE detention, and they deserve justice.

PC: How similar or different would you say you are to your character?
Melinna: I would say that despite both of us being brown women, there is a world of difference between us. I walk with the privilege of having U.S. citizenship and had access to higher education. I’m also extremely fortunate to have my family intact and have not been separated from them by borders, inhumane immigration policies, war, or economic destabilization at the hands of foreign governments (as is the case with the U.S. having intervened in Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, etc.). I do, however, know that there are people out there like the U.S. president and his supporters who see us both through a racist lens and as people deserving less respect and dignity simply for being brown.

PC: With this being the final season, what would your parting words be to Santos?
Melinna: It was an honor to breathe life into this woman. I know that I have a solemn responsibility to not stand by idly and silently while this government continues to tear families apart and imprison innocent people like her, who have done nothing but the same any human on the planet has the right to do: migrate to survive—whether to escape violence or for better economic opportunities to feed oneself and their loved ones—and to ultimately live in dignity.

PC: If you had to summarize the final season of Orange is the New Black in five words, what would they be?
Melinna: Heartbreaking, infuriating, real, raw, and NECESSARY.

PC: Besides Orange is the New Black, do you have any other upcoming projects that you can chat about?
Melinna: Yes! You can catch me in the upcoming Netflix/Anonymous Content film, The Laundromat. It’s about the Panama papers scandal and I’m starring opposite Meryl Streep, Antonio Banderas, and Gary Oldman. Also, I’m in the new Apple TV+ streaming show, Little America, which tells the stories of various immigrant families.

Pop Culturalist Speed Round

PC: Guilty pleasure TV show?
Melinna: Sex and the City! I love the strong female friendships and the fashion was ahead of its time, but I will say, the politics around race and class left MUCH to be desired.

PC: Guilty pleasure movie?
Melinna: Mean Girls or Devil Wears Prada. They still make me laugh and I watch them over and over again.

PC: Favorite book?
Melinna: This Bridge Called My Back: Writings by Radical Women of Color

PC: Favorite play or musical?
Melinna: In the Heights or Hamilton

PC: Last show you binge-watched?
Melinna: Season 1 of Pose on FX! I finished it in about two or three days and I’m so happy I get to look forward to a new episode each week now that I’m on season 2.

PC: Hidden talent?
Melinna: Accents and voices

To keep up with Melinna, follow her on Twitter and Instagram, and catch the new season of Orange Is the New Black on Netflix today.

Photo Credit: Greg Wallace