Meet Latina teen actress Paulina Chávez, the star of the newest Netflix sitcom "The Expanding Universe of Ashley Garcia." As the Latina community confronts stereotypes, apart from the discrimination they face as a minority in the United States, Chávez's role as teen genius Ashley Garcia--the youngest person to ever earn a Ph.D. and land a dream STEM job at NASA--is a gamechanger.

The series is co-created by Mario Lopez, with several episodes directed by Eva Longoria.

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According to a recent article, Chávez's eloquence and wit make her a perfect fit for the character of Ashley Garcia, highlighting positive roles and opportunities for young women and Latinas both in the entertainment world and in STEM.


On auditioning for Ashley Garcia

In a recent interview, Chávez shares her motivation for auditioning for the role of Ashley Garcia.

"When I received the audition for Ashley Garcia, I was immediately captivated by the character," she said. "To have an opportunity to audition to portray a genius Latina was exciting, and I related to her in the fact that we both focused on our career early on and as Latinas have over protecting/loving moms."

When asked if Ashley will promote other Latina/Hispanic girls to go into STEM, Chávez said she believes "it will provide young girls and young Latinos with a vision of the many options of what is possible and by all means show the young audience the careers available in STEM."


On relating to her character

Chávez also admits she relates to Ashley in several ways.

"I believe we are both passionate and dedicated to work towards our goals," she said. "We are both Latinas who have been focusing on training to pursue our dreams. In order to be able to follow my dreams, I was homeschooled and did not experience the middle school and high school years. Ashley moved across the country to work as a robotics engineer at JPL in Pasadena. I also moved from Texas to Los Angeles to work on the Netflix series and follow my dreams."

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Like her character's family, Chávez, whose family came from El Paso and moved to San Antonio, Texas, when she was six, is very supportive and helps each other pursue their goals.

"As a family, we made some moves/changes to support each other's careers and opportunities that have presented themselves," she said. "I have three sisters, so my mom is overprotective of all of us. She always looks out for the best for each of us."


On her role as Ashley compared to other roles

"This show is a multi-cam, and this was my first experience in that type of production," said Chávez. "We shot in front of a live studio audience. It brought me back to my theater days, where I got to perform in front of an audience. Every week we had a different audience, and it was a great way to connect with them."


On the impact of the show to the Latina Community

Chávez believes The Expanding Universe of Ashley Garcia offers an opportunity for the Latina community "to see themselves in positive roles on TV."

"I have the opportunity to be part of the movement of showcasing Latinos in Hollywood with the role of Ashley Garcia," said Chávez. "I feel very fortunate to be able to represent Latinos and inspire them to follow their dreams."

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This quarantine season, stream, and get inspired by Paulina Chávez's The Expanding Universe of Ashley Garcia on Netflix.