In the new movie Alita: Battle Angel, produced by James Cameron with director Robert Rodriguez, Rosa Salazar stars as the titular cyborg who has little trouble destroying any wall she sets her strangely-large eyes on.
It turns out things in real life aren't so different, however.
In a recent comment to Variety, the actress sent a clear message to politicians who made building walls a point of their policy.
While at her new movie's premier on Tuesday, February 5, Salazar told Variety:
"We're here to stay, baby. Ain't no wall going to keep us out."
The actress continued:
"Just being a Latinx actress at the helm of something like this in itself is a message. You know I carry my name with me wherever I go. I'm Rosa Bianca Salazar, and… this is the next wave of Latino casting."
Salazar is having quite the moment online, where she can do no wrong amongst her fans on social media.
James Cameron was also at the premier, though in a capacity he has little experience with.
His duties on the Avatar sequels led Cameron to give up the director's helm on a movie he's shepherded through production for over two decades, but some distance has its perks.
He told Variety how it felt to be watching a movie as a producer rather than director:
"When I watch a film that I've directed, it takes 10 years before I can really watch it kind of as an audience member. I could watch 'Alita' all day long…especially when I sit next to [Rosa] because she laughs and whoops through the whole movie."
ALITA: BATTLE ANGEL | OFFICIAL HD TRAILER #3 | 2019youtu.be
Working with the mega-director has also given fellow movie-maker Rodriguez some insight as to what makes Cameron tick:
"I always wondered why [Cameron] didn't do more realistic stuff again…He was making more and more fantasy with special effects, and now I see why. Some of these images, you can't even see unless you know you're dreaming."
Be sure to catch Alita: Battle Angel when it hits theaters this February 14—what better way to spend Valentine's Day?
