Eva Longoria has been praised by her peers for "widening the path" for Latinas as she was honored with the Crystal Award for Advocacy at the 50th Women in Film gala in Hollywood.
Eva posed for pictures in a figure-hugging silver mesh dress that featured long sleeves and a roll neck and was paired with a matching slip underneath. She accessorized with gold platform heels, and kept her hair sleek.
The actress, who this year directed her first movie, Flamin' Hot, was honored along with Linda Yvette Chávez, one of the screenwriters of the film; other honorees included America Ferrera, an Honoree of the Jane Fonda Humanitarian Award, Celine Song and Greta Lee, also honorees of the Crystal Award for Advocacy; and Yara Shahidi who was named the Max Mara Face of the Future.
© VALERIE MACONFriend Diana-Maria Riva, Eva's date for the evening, told HELLO! that "it is women like Eva and America who keep widening the path" for other Latina women.
"It is not about making the path exclusive to anyone, it is about widening it so more can be involved, and when it comes to Latinas in front of and behind the camera we are already so low on the percentage scale of how many there are of us," the Glamorous actress added.
"One day, Eva told me, 'We all rise with this,' and this ripple effect [after this movie] is one we will all feel in the best way."
© VALERIE MACONFlamin' Hot is an adaptation of the memoirs of Richard Montanez, a former janitor who has always credited himself as the brainchild of the Flamin' Hot Cheetos phenomenon.
However, Frito-Lay has disavowed Montanez's claim, attributing the snack's creation to Lynne Greenfield, a lower-tier employee, as per a Los Angeles Times investigation conducted in 2021.
© Steve GranitzFlamin' Hot writer Linda told HELLO! that being honored by Women in Film, which is celebrating 50 years of fighting for gender equity in Hollywood, was "beautiful", as star Annie Gonzalez praised the organization for recognizing the need to "lift up" Latina voices with the decision to honor Eva, America and Linda.
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© Rich PolkOther guests at the event included songwriter Diane Warren, who wrote the song 'The Fire Inside' for Eva's film, and revealed that she "kept bugging" Eva to let her know when the film was ready for a soundtrack because she was so keen to work with the filmmaker.
Diane, who infamously has never won an Oscar after 14 nominations, revealed that writing for the film came easy to her: "I wrote down the title as I watched the first cut, and there were two meanings - the Flamin' Hot Cheetos themselves, but also it's about passion to make something happen when every door slams – and I lived that. I didn't know anyone in the film or music business, so I was always told I couldn't do it, so writing this, I was writing about myself too."
See more pictures of the red carpet...
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