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Selena Gomez just played a rare role.
Singer and pop actress to play Peruvian-American mountaineer trailblazer Silvia Vasquez-Lavado in upcoming biopic written and directed by Elgin James (“Lowriders”) and produced by Oscar winner Donna Gigliotti (“Hidden Figures”) . The film is based on Vasquez-Lavado’s upcoming memoir, “In the Shadow of the Mountain”, which will be released in 2022.
The project, which Gomez and Vasquez-Lavado shared on social networks, is already launched as Oscar material.
“I am so honored and grateful to share this exciting news, which has been in the works for 10 months, that a team of stars has opted for my next memoir … for a film adaptation,” Vasquez-Lavado wrote on Wednesday. on Instagram, calling Gomez “bold, talented and brilliant.”
But fans of the actress had mixed emotions about her upcoming role. While most have expressed their enthusiasm for Gomez, some speculation has abounded that the actress will play a lesbian trailblazer.
Vasquez-Lavado was the first gay woman to complete the Seven Summits, climbing the highest peaks on each of the seven continents. She claimed this title in June 2018.
“But Selena is not gay. I wish they had given unknown LGBTQ actors a chance to play such a defining role, ”a Twitter user wrote. “I love Selena, I just wish this casting of straight actors in the LGBTQ roles phase was over! I love Simon, Brokeback Mountain, and so many other great movies that use straight actors.
Representatives for Gomez did not immediately respond to the Times’ request for comment.
Others, however, pointed out that Vasquez-Lavado herself would assist with the film’s executive production, indicating her approval of the casting decision. (The mountaineer also wrote on Instagram that she was “honored and touched for the bold, talented and brilliant @selenagomez taking the lead role.”)
When Between the Lines asked Gomez in 2015 if she had ever questioned her sexuality, the actress replied, “Oh, I think everyone does, no matter who they are. Yes of course. Absolutely. I think it’s healthy to have a perspective on who you are deep down, to question yourself and to challenge yourself; it’s important to do it.
Gomez and Vasquez-Lavado also faced their fair share of obstacles.
The singer’s latest album, “Rare,” hinted at part of her battle with depression and anxiety. “Is there a place I can hide?” she wonders on “A Sweeter Place”: “There must be a sweeter place – we can sweeten the taste.”
The executive producer of “13 Reasons Why” opened up over the summer about living with bipolar disorder during the pandemic lockdown. Most recently, Gomez wrote for CNN Style on how beauty can influence mental health.
“We are constantly bombarded with images and social media posts that make people feel like they need to achieve perfection, which is impossible to achieve,” she said. “I think admitting that I’m human, and that I’m not perfect – no one is – was actually more beneficial for the people who loved me.
Vasquez-Lavado, meanwhile, survived sexual abuse as a child in Peru. Over 30 years later, she founded Courageous Girls, a non-profit organization that works to heal and empower survivors of violence and abuse by nature.
“Silvia is a force of nature,” Gigliotti told The Hollywood Reporter. “Scott [Budnick] and I’m delighted to be working with Elgin and Selena to tell this story of resilience, courage, adventure and humanity.
“The first time I saw Mount Everest gave me a security, a softness, a tenderness, a sense of security that I had never felt,” Vasquez-Lavado told the Chicago Tribune. “When you experience trauma, you detach yourself from your body, from your own personality. I was so moved by the mountains that it revived my life.
“I went from being a survivor to being empowered,” she says.
In November 2015, Vasquez-Lavado traveled to the foot of Mount Everest with a group of Nepalese girls, all of whom had been trafficked to India.
“My brave young daughters stood dumbfounded as they gazed at Everest. They were there, their dream had come true, unlike many of their dreams which had been shattered by empty promises, ”Vasquez-Lavado wrote on his blog.
“We put together the beautiful prayer flags with everything we wanted to leave behind and for everything we wanted to bring into our lives,” she continued. “A new beginning for many of us; a new way to leave behind so much of the painful past.
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