As unlikely as it is that a show called “Jane the Virgin” would even exist, the CW drama has broken barriers and exceeded expectations on several levels.
The show gave the youth-driven network its first Golden Globe nominations, including a win for Best Actress – Musical or Comedy, for star Gina Rodriguez.
On a show steeped in telenovela lore with all the crazy twists and turns to go with it — she does play a virgin accidentally artificially inseminated with the sperm of a man she once shared a magical kiss with, after all — Rodriguez got the run of the gamut in terms of acting.
Below, she tells TheWrap which scene she found the toughest to shoot, which scenes were the most fun, which category she’d add to the Emmys and which show(s) she most recently binge-watched.
TheWrap: What was the toughest scene you had to do this season?
Rodriguez: Giving birth on screen was the most vulnerable experience I think I’ve had in a very long time. And to pay homage to that very vulnerable experience for women. I think Jennie Urman [the showrunner and writer of the episode] and the director Zetna Fuentes did a marvelous job, I feel very very lucky for that. That was an experience I wanted to give that truth to and give life to that experience because we’ve been waiting for it all season.
Which was the most fun?
Oh, everything. Everything was so much fun. Anything involving my father, Jaime [Camill, who plays Rogelio de la Vega], all the fantasy sequences … Playing the Pregnant Punisher and Juana, the romance novelist character Jane came up with, that was all so much fun to live in this world she created.
Let’s assume that somebody has never seen your show. What would you say to persuade them to watch it?
If you want some awesome guilty pleasure fun and comedy and drama, something heartfelt on a Monday night — who doesn’t need that on a Monday night? — girl, you need to watch our show!
Who else on your show really deserves an Emmy and why?
Oooh, all of them! Every single one of them. I’ve seen them transform and stretch and thrive this entire season. It was a joy and an honor to be a part of that. To have this relationship with each and every one of them, I couldn’t even pick one, I think they all really worked their buns off and I’m very lucky.
Are you a binge-watcher? Or do you like to watch one episode a week?
You know, both. I wait patiently for the shows that I’m really excited about, I like the once a week with the nice little break in between. It’s like a little treasure, an experience, like Sunday nights with “Game of Thrones,” like that kind of experience. But then I need to binge. I need like that day. If I need a day to relax and not move, I am all for binging.
What was the last thing you binged and how long did you go for?
“The Jinx.” I saw “The Jinx,” the whole thing, in one sitting. Ugh, so good. So scary. Does that count as a show? Also “Better Call Saul.”
If you could add any new category to the Emmys, serious or silly, what would it be?
I guess I would add Breakouts. Do they have a Breakouts category at the Emmys? Yeah, I think I would add Breakouts or like New Recognition. Recognizing new artists, new actors. Those categories are tough when you’re entering as a newbie. Somebody that doesn’t have as many seasons under their belt, you know? It’s tough to enter that arena. I think that would be really awesome.