At 23 years old, Isabela Merced can be proud to have appeared in films alongside actors such as Benicio del Toro, Josh Brolin, Andy García and Mark Wahlberg. And also with actresses such as Eva Longoria, Gloria Estefan and Sydney Sweeney, to name a few. At the age of 10, she made her debut on Broadway in a production of Eva sings in Spanish alongside Ricky Martin. As a child, Merced – who was born in Cleveland, Ohio to an American father and a Peruvian mother – was a regular at the video store. From the age of six, she was interested in the films of American film legends such as Shirley Temple and Judy Garland, such as The Wizard of Oz.

Just like Dorothy with her red shoes and her adventures on the yellow brick road, the actress has come a long way in the last 10 years and has starred in important and lucrative franchises such as Transformers: The Last Knight (2017) and brings the famous animated series to life Dora the Explorer in the movie Dora and the Lost City of Gold (2019). In her latest film, Merced has directed a completely new genre – sci-fi horror. Alien: Romulus, the seventh film in the popular saga from the 1980s.

“In space, no one can hear you scream.” This famous quote has touched the hearts and souls of generations of moviegoers, and for the past four decades, the franchise created by Dan O’Bannon has set the standard in the science fiction and horror genres. Alien: Romulus returns to the origin of the saga: it takes place about 20 years after Ridley Scott’s first film, released in 1979, and 37 years before the events of the sequel. Aliensdirected by James Cameron, released in 1986.

Romulus — directed by Uruguayan filmmaker Fede Álvarez — is set around the year 2140. According to the synopsis, Rain (Cailee Spaeny), Andy (David Jonsson) and Kay (Isabela Merced) along with other young people collect the remains of a dismantled space station in order to find the technology they need to escape their doomed planet, only to panic when they accidentally awaken the most terrifying organism in the universe.

Merced describes filming her first horror movie in a video call as a “difficult challenge” but “fun.” “For me, it was special to explore different levels of fear and experience what it can feel like when you’re faced with different combinations of emotions that you can explore in a film of this nature,” she says.

Álvarez — who has made a name for himself in the horror genre with original films such as Don’t breathe (2016) and its remake of evil Dead (2013) – Merced wanted him to maintain the intensity and momentum between takes. Foreigner The saga has always been characterized by its tense, unexpected and claustrophobic settings, so Merced took up the challenge. “Fede knows all the details of his film. Every shot has an important meaning. He also understands this genre, it is his specialty. He is a fan of Foreignerso he created a love letter to the other films,” she says.

“To keep the adrenaline going, I did cardio exercises between takes to get my heart rate up. Sometimes Fede would surprise me with jokes or sounds from his iPad, which had buttons with screams or sounds from the Xenomorph (the antagonist of the film series). In one of the scenes shown in the trailer, you can see the Xenomorph jumping towards Kay’s hideout. After about 11 takes, Fede came up with the idea, without telling me, to pour a bucket of ice cold water on me. I started shaking and that ended up in the final cut,” she recalls, laughing.

Important film franchises

Merced says she has always been interested in horror. She describes herself as a fan of the gore genre and the early Seen Films that follow a sociopath, better known as the serial killer Jigsaw, who seeks revenge through bloody games and torture. For Merced, watching a horror film is a fun experience. “I love it. I love feeling that pressure. It gives me energy. I think it’s a beautiful experience in the cinema. Feeling those emotions with a group of people you don’t know. As my first horror film, it was an honor and super cool. It was exactly what I wanted to explore as an actress,” she says.

Since the beginning of her career as Isabela Moner in the Nickelodeon children’s series 100 things to do before high school, The actress has built up an impressive filmography and has starred alongside film veterans and big names such as Benicio del Toro and Josh Brolin in films such as Sicario – The Soldier (2018). Her professional name is now Isabela Merced, a tribute to her grandmother Yolanda Merced Salazar Pittman and her strength and sacrifice as a migrant.

Merced has also landed roles in major superhero sagas, including Anya Corazón in Spider Man spin off Madame Web (2024); and Kendra Saunders, the heroine Hawkgirl, in Superman: Legacy, whose publication is planned for 2025.

“It hasn’t been easy. I’ve been working for many years now. At 23, I feel like I have a lot of experience, but I love that it’s been a very slow build and that I still maintain my privacy. I’ve also been able to explore so many different genres while continuing to grow as a person and an artist. I’m very proud of my projects from the beginning of my career because they were a beautiful experience. I’ve learned a lot and I think I still haven’t lost that enthusiasm for the projects I’m shooting right now,” says the actress.

Another project in Merced’s pipeline is the second season of the post-apocalyptic series The Last of Uswhere she stars alongside Chilean star Pedro Pascal and British actress Bella Ramsey. The series – an adaptation of the video game of the same name – received 24 nominations at last year’s Emmy Awards, and although it didn’t take home any of the awards, it was one of the highest-rated and most critically acclaimed series of 2023.

In the second season of The Last of UsIn The Last Man: A New Year, Merced plays Dina, the romantic interest of Ramsay’s character Ellie. Merced admits that she finished the second installment of the video game – on which the second season is based – the weekend before she auditioned for the role. The actress has no qualms about being part of franchises that are so important to fans.

“For me, it’s mostly fun. I’m a huge science fiction fan, a superhero fan, and I personally consider myself a nerd who is obsessed with something new every month. That’s why I think it’s worth working on two projects at the same time all year long, like Superman And The Last of Us. It’s worth it. Sometimes it’s difficult, but also challenging and different. I need that kind of stimulation, otherwise I get bored,” says the actress, who will undoubtedly continue to make waves in 2025.

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