On December 4, Netflix released Selena: The Series based on the life of late Tejano singer Selena Quintanilla. The Mexican-American superstar is played by Christian Serratos, who you may know from Twilight or Ned’s Declassified School Survival Guide.
One of the show’s executive producers is Selena’s older sister, Suzette Quintanilla. She was also involved in the production of the movie Selena from the 90s starring Jennifer Lopez, which you may have seen if you took Spanish in middle school like I did.
Most of the first season, as there are plans to continue the series, is about Selena and her family figuring out their band and finding ways to gain popularity and money. It’s essentially the beginning of her career in the 80s.
Based on both critic and audience scores from Rotten Tomatoes, people don’t seem to be liking the show. From critics, it received 33%, and the audience ranked it at 43%. People might be comparing it to the movie, which had more success overall. I watched the whole show in a weekend, I’m really never busy, and I do have a few thoughts on the show. I kind of have to agree with the ratings it has.
I’ve always loved Selena. I was really excited when I heard about the series, but it left me unimpressed. The show barely even focussed on Selena, but I couldn’t even tell you what the focus actually was. The writing was borderline cringe worthy, and they had a 30 year old playing a 15 year old for multiple episodes. Something about it just rubbed me the wrong way. Some of the acting wasn’t really that good either, but to be fair, I don’t know many of the actors in the show.
I still think I would watch the next season when or if it comes out, because I’m curious to see if they will change anything about the style of the show. If you like Selena, it’s definitely an interesting watch and allows you to learn more about her earlier years. However, if you didn’t know much about her and wanted to use this show as a way to get into her and her music, I’d start with the J-Lo movie.