The ‘Flamin’ Hot’ Cast on Bringing the True Story to Life

Flamin’ Hot tells us the story of how those infamous Cheetos came to be. If you grew up in the 90s and early 00s, you know what I’m talking about. They were all the rage. I myself was still a regular Cheetos kind of girl but I understood the obsession with them. Now, thanks to director Eva Longoria, we were taken into the world of Hot Cheetos with her new film. Starring Jesse Garcia as Richard Montañez, the movie shows us the idea and creation of the beloved snack.

For the release of the film, I was lucky enough to sit down with some of the cast to talk about the movie and bringing this story to life. Including Matt Walsh, who plays Lonny Mason in the film, and Dennis Haysbert, who plays Clarence. Bringing the real life story to life isn’t always easy and so I asked both Walsh and Haysbert about this film in particular and the excitement in telling a real life story in this format.

“That’s an interesting question,” Haysbert said. “I always fall back on the fact that there was the camaraderie, how it brought everybody together because everybody was excited about this because nobody knew the story. And the more we got into the shooting of it, we were discovering more and more and more about the story. It was fascinating. It’s fascinating that it came to pass. I mean, he was one phone hang up from not having it happen.”

You can see my full conversation with Matt Walsh and Dennis Haysbert here:

Truth to a relationship

At the center of the film is Richard’s relationship with his wife Judy. Richard (Garcia) and Judy (Annie Gonzalez) don’t have a perfect marriage but they try. Seeing their relationship grow throughout the film and through Richard’s success is fascinating and it’s all because of Gonzalez and Garcia’s chemistry together. So I asked them about how they built that relationship for audiences to cling to.

“I give her shit every day,” Garcia said. “I constantly give her shit. Like I’m teasing her about everything, all with love. You should have seen the Big Bird dress that she was wearing the other day,” he teased to which Gonzalez chimed in to defend her dress she wore saying “It was gorgeous and it had feathers and he kept calling me Big Bird. I looked like a goddess.” The back and forth between them made it clear that their chemistry came from a deep respect for each other and their teasing really is built on a genuine care that comes across on screen together.

You can see my full conversation with Jesse Garcia and Annie Gonzalez here:

Flamin’ Hot is streaming on Hulu now.

(featured image: Walt Disney Studios)