"13 Reasons Why" Star Inde Navarrette On Bringing to Life Monty's Sister, Estela, in the Show's Final Season
Saying goodbye to the character that you've played for four years was no doubt one of the hardest tasks the 13 Reasons Why cast had to pull off this season. But Inde Navarrette had an even harder one when she joined the cast to play Estela, the younger sister of Monty de la Cruz. Not only was she joining the show in its final season, she also had to bring to life a character that most viewers already had an excuse to question. For some, it could have been easy to view Estela as a villain who is out to catch their favorite characters as they're the ones who know the truth behind Monty's death. Instead, Inde's performance brings to life a new character, one who hopes to break the cycle that both Estela, Monty, and kids around the world are stuck in.
In an exclusive interview, Seventeen got to talk to Inde Navarrette about joining the show for the last season, Estela and Tyler's relationship, and her hopes for Estela after the show ends.
*Major spoilers for season 4 of 13 Reasons Why below!*
17: What was your reaction when you found out who Estela really was?
IN: They're very locked down on a lot of stuff to keep any leaks from happening. I knew that someone had died and I was trying to figure out who. To play Monty's sibling was really nerve-wracking in the beginning because he's such a vilified character. I didn't know how the audience was going to react to me. I didn't know if I was going to be playing devil's advocate. Especially for a series like 13 Reasons Why, when new characters get introduced, you kind of have this feeling of 'Can I trust them or not?'
17: Estela's story is rough in the beginning because she has to deal with the pressure from the football players to publicly mourn her brother, while also seeing the damage that he had done to others.
IN: I'm actually really glad that I got this role to show that sympathetic side. She can mourn for her brother, but also she has to really tiptoe around everybody else, because of how much damage her brother has caused these people. Whenever I was talking with Tim[othy Granaderos, who plays Monty] about it — we didn't have any scenes together — but I reached out and I asked, 'How do you think that [Estela and Monty's] home life was?' And he kept repeating that 'Monty was a protector for Estela. That no matter what, he always tried to take care of and shield her from what was going on. And, in turn, he took most of the trauma. He ended up projecting all of that hate onto other people.
A post shared by Inde Fabiola Navarrette (@indenavarrette) on Jun 5, 2020 at 10:52am PDT
17: It had to be particularly hard on Estela, especially since in Latinx families, you're taught to stand up for your family no matter what. The person who protected her throughout her life was not who she thought she was.
IN: And [he] ended up hurting somebody else. That, in turn, just completely rocked her world. Especially Latinx families, we're very secretive on things and family is the number one thing. She can't ignore what her brother did to other people, which is why she ultimately joins HO. She publicly shows that she did not agree at all with what her brother did. She wants to change the culture and she does that by having the courage to go to Jessica, joining the club, and saying 'This is not what I stand for'. She starts to look up to Jessica as a big sister along the way.
17: Estela and Jessica's relationship is subtle, but they also have a big impact on each other. Why do you think that is?
IN: [Estela] loves a protector and I think for her that's what Jessica was to her. Jessica was able to get over what Bryce had done to her, heal, and come out on top as a woman. She also starts to work on that herself. She thinks, 'Everybody's going to talk about my brother. But you know what? I know who I am. I know who my brother was and what he did. I'm healing from that and am going to come out on top.' Estela wants to be exactly like her. She wants to come out a better person through all the trauma by healing.
17: In the finale, Jessica passed on the HO bullhorn to Estela. Were you surprised by that gesture?
IN: I didn't expect Estela to take over HO. When I read that I was like, 'Oh my god, that makes so much sense.' It was really beautiful in a way to be able to see Estela grow. She was very shy and timid and always looking down. Slowly you see her put her head up and smiling more. Her first line after is, 'Can I go tell Tyler?' She's excited to go tell this person she created a relationship with that she loves. That's a huge accomplishment for her and shows a lot of growth. It's beautiful.
17: Tyler and Estela's relationship started out from their scene together in the bathroom during the alleged school shooting. How was it acting out those scenes?
IN: I'm getting a little teary eyed thinking about it, because that day was the hardest on set and that I've had thus far with acting. Sexual assault is such a hard subject for me personally and with certain viewers. It's so intense, because they have this fear from the shooting and so she drops down just crying. She hears breathing, she sees she's knocking down the doors, and she sees Tyler. It forces them to have that conversation, whether or not either of them were ready for it. That's when their truth really speaks the loudest. Estela really doesn't know what's going on and she is really trying to understand how to talk to him without mentioning her brother.
She says "I love [Monty]' and he answers with, 'Then he was really good to have a sister like you because that means that you cared.' Tyler just ends up breaking down and opens about the fact that he almost shot the school last year. Just having them to be able to connect on that level since they're both healing from the same person, it was a really beautiful scene.
17: Were you expecting them to get together at the end as you read the scripts?
IN: It took me completely by surprise. I didn't think that she was going to have a love interest. It had been rumored, but I thought it was just like people getting excited because it's a possible love interest for Tyler. They are so adorable. Devin [Druid] is a sweetheart. His energy is just unmatched.
17: What are you hopes for Estela in the future since we won't get a season 5?
IN: When they were filming the prom scene and you got to see Winston with Monty, I would have loved to see that with Estela. Monty saying, 'Just let me go. I love you, just let me go.' She'd finally forgive herself for what he had done. I think that she would have become an activist. Estela would get out of the house of her abusive father and go off to college. She would have a cool job where she was able to be a boss and have kids and live life. If that's with Tyler, then it's with him. She would create a warm family that's able to live in love with everything that they've gone through.
17: In a way, that would also break the cycle of toxic machismo that is seen in Estela's household.
IN: I think it's super interesting that the term daddy issues is meant to put down women when, in turn, the message is that the man has failed. She does have those issues of trusting and not being able to open up thinking, 'Is this person going to hurt me?' Tyler is not that person at all, especially with machismo. Not just because he's white, but just because of the way he's grown up and the stuff that he's gone through. You know, suegras and abuelitas are thought to take care of the boys. These are times where that's got to stop.
17: Part of Monty lashing out was due to the fact that he was unable to accept his own sexuality, which is also common in Latinx families. Do you think things would've been different if he talked to Estela about it?
IN: Being bisexual, I understand how much you could definitely keep it to yourself because it's such a sticky subject. With my family being exposed to it earlier on with my cousin coming out, it wasn't that big of a deal. But I know for a fact that I have friends who are queer or lesbian or trans that are in ethnic communities where it's a lot harder. I think that if he would have come out to her, she definitely would have accepted him. She would have supported him because that was her role model.
17: In line with 13 Reasons Why's anti-bullying message, you have recently spoken out against people who have sent threats to one of your cousins on Instagram. Can you talk about that and what inspired you to use your platform?
IN: My cousin and I are a month apart and we have always been best friends. When she was younger, she got attacked by a pit bull. It was really hard growing up, because she had something that not everybody else had. It was really hard for me to see the way that kids would react and treat her. She even got pushed into a wall and broke her arm when she was in the fifth grade. Watching that from such a young age and seeing the way that the world was treating her just because of something that was different, I got exposed to the darkness in the world. She is one of the strongest people that I know. No matter what, her spirit continuously grows. As of recently, people have found her social media and they think it's okay to bully her. So I think that whenever it comes to that, I will always speak out on it. That is definitely something that I'm very passionate about.
She's actually on the show. I wanted to show her that if you just continue to work as hard as you can, you can get out of that and be successful. So I flew her out. She's in the scene where Diego's pouring one out, right next to Charlie and Alex. She got so much love from the cast.
17: You're about to start filming Superman and Lois for The CW. How is it to be a part of a series with such iconic characters?
IN: I'm really excited to go to Canada since I've never been. The boys who play Superman and Lois' sons and I are in this group chat to create a rapport before we go there. To be able to play such an iconic role as Sarah Cushing is really scary, but at the same time, I get to educate myself on something that I didn't know much about. I'm doing as much research as I can on her.
Being a Latina, this representation is huge for us. Just being able to have little girls and boys look at themselves on the TV and say, 'Oh, my gosh. They're like me. They speak the same language,' is just so cool. Slowly but surely we're getting that representation and love. Especially with Black Lives Matter, everybody's just coming out and being like, 'Listen to us. We're going to show you why we're just as important and our voices are just as meaningful.' So I love it and I'm super excited.
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