ROBERT RODRIGUEZ - RODRIGUEZ SHOT SHORT WITH HAYEK TO HELP HER LAND HOLLYWOOD BREAK

RODRIGUEZ SHOT SHORT WITH HAYEK TO HELP HER LAND HOLLYWOOD BREAK

Moviemaker ROBERT RODRIGUEZ had to shoot a short film with SALMA HAYEK before he could convince studio bosses to hire the Mexican actress for DESPERADO - because they weren't sure her English was good enough for Hollywood.
The film gave the sexy star her big break and became her first English-language movie - and she had Rodriguez to thank for going out of his way to land her the part as Antonio Banderas' sidekick.
The director tells Latina magazine, "I was a big fan from the beginning. I gave her her first English major film role in Desperado. But before I could, I had to shoot a cable movie with her, called Roadracers, so I could show the studios that she could act in English and be great.
"I had to stick to my guns by saying, 'We have to hire a Latino, not just put brown face on someone.'"