‘Selena’ actress Natasha Perez on ‘human compassion’ for Yolanda Saldivar

When actress Natasha Perez booked the role of Yolanda Saldivar for Netflix’s Selena: The Series, she knew portraying the woman who killed Tejano star Selena Quintanilla in 1995 was going to be a challenge.

Perez looked at archival footage of Saldivar to capture her voice and body language. She also studied trauma because she wanted to dissect Saldivar on a deeper level and “help tell Selena’s story beyond the killing.”

“I got the chance to play a very complex character,” Perez told MySA during a recent interview. “My job as an actor was to represent that character in the most humane way I could. I really tried to detach myself from asking questions about [the murder]. I didn’t want to judge the character while I was playing her.”

Nearly three years after the second and final season of Selena: The Series premiered, Perez is looking back at her role as Saldivar and answering some difficult questions about the woman she portrayed. She recently watched the two-part docuseries Selena and Yolanda: The Secrets Between Them.

“Nothing [Saldivar] says [in the docuseries] is very different than the conspiracy theories online, but it’s important to get different perspectives,” Perez said. “I hope [the docuseries] helps [Saldivar’s] family heal by feeling heard, if that’s what they needed, but that’s not going to bring Selena back.”

Perez is well aware that a year from March 30 Saldivar will become eligible for parole after serving 30 years for first-degree murder. It’s a subject Perez said she’s avoided talking about publicly until now.

For Perez, whether Saldivar should be given the chance to be released from prison next year hinges on how much one values the legal system.

“Your feelings really shouldn’t meddle in that,” Perez said. “It doesn’t matter how much I hate someone. If they’re going through a legal process, let the legal process be what it is. Then, you can intervene. Considering parole is not a matter of opinion.”

The bigger question for Perez is whether Saldivar has actually been rehabilitated during her three decades behind bars. It’s an answer she said is complicated because she doesn’t know if Saldivar was given the tools she needed to “release trauma, heal wounds, and repent.”

“I really don’t know if a system that takes everything from a human and makes them more unhuman can really provide the opportunity for that to happen,” she said. “We have a correctional system more than a rehabilitation one.”

Perez said that despite the horrifying thing Saldivar did, she has a “human compassion” for her. She believes that prior to killing Selena, Saldivar was “in a lot of pain.” Through her study of trauma for the role, she learned that “hurt people hurt people.”

If Saldivar is granted parole next year, Perez hopes Selena fans will do what they do best and “continue to love Selena and her music” and to be inspired by the legacy she’s left behind.

“We should just let the universe take care of it, and let God save [Saldivar’s] soul,” Perez said. “I think the best way to honor Selena would be to move on and just let [Saldivar] be.”