Xochitl Gomez On Leading Hive, Representation, and Bringing The Film To Spanish-Speaking Audiences
Xochitl Gomez is no stranger to babysitting, although the kids in Hive are more dangerous than they seem. She plays Sasha who must confront an insectoid creature lurking in a playground that uses a hive mind of kids to prey on the working class people of the neighborhood. Speaking with Pop Culture Planet’s Kristen Maldonado, director/writer Felipe Vargas and actors Xochitl Gomez and Aaron Dominguez spoke about expanding the film’s unsettling concept, the importance of representation, and what it truly means to lead.
Originally a short film, Vargas and Gomez reunited to turn the horror film into a feature for Tubi. “The concept was fun. What if there was a horror film set in a playground? What if there was something going on with the children of this playground? But that's not a full movie, right? You need to take that little core and start building circles around it. A big one was, okay, there's this sibling dynamic that we're going to ground this in. There is an element of working class folks and what that experience is like. There's also a bigger world-building of this creature. What is in that tube slide? What is the terror that continues beyond?” Vargas told me. “Those were all things that we started to think about and it was great to be able to bring back Xochitl from the short film [and] to be able to welcome Aaron to the team. [It] made the feature so much bigger.”
Gomez made her acting debut as Dawn in The Baby-Sitter’s Club before leaving to join the Marvel Cinematic Universe as America Chavez. “I'm gonna be honest, having the prior babysitting role experience really gave me comfort and confidence going into leading a film because this is my first time leading a film,” said Gomez. “I was kind of nervous because I've had opportunities to do horror movies, but I've always passed because I just didn't ever think that the character was strong enough. When the feature came back after doing the short, I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, this is perfect.’ Because this is just such a great representation for Latinas and just for girls in general to see someone continue to fight on. Even though you have someone that you support and love and is your family, when you're struggling say that they don't believe you, and you continue to get past that. [Doing] what you think is right is a great message. To use your voice. I just hope that my fans can also be able to see that and recognize that.”
"She was amazing. She is this movie,” said Vargas about casting Gomez. “Not only did she bring such a joy to the set, there was a fun in the making of this movie, but [she’s] a total professional. Because a horror movie, right, it's a lot of scared reactions. What does that mean? Xochitl started weaving into the details of the script and all these emotions that you can pack into a character. The anxiety and the different degrees of that and then there's the charm and the fun and the laughing it off and there's the love, but there's also the stress. There was just such a human experience that she brought to her that I thought was really fantastic.”
While this may be her first time leading a film, Gomez already understand what it means to be a leader on a project. “In Mexico and some Latin America countries, [people] won't be able to see the movie because the movie won't be dubbed in Spanish. I've given up my styling and hair and makeup budget so that it can go towards that,” Gomez shared. “Felipe and Aaron have also chipped in so we can get those people to be able to see Hive as well.”
There are beautiful cultural influences that come though, especially with Sasha’s candy and how it grounds them in tough moments. The cast shared the people in their life that ground them and help them get back to themselves. “It’s talking to my grandmother every Sunday. No matter what's happening, I'll call her up. I'll tell her what's going on in my life. It immediately just grounds you when you're talking to someone who has that life experience and who you've known since you were a kid. It just helps things settle down,” explained Vargas. “With the candies that you mentioned, it's interesting you asked because originally it was just generic candies and [Xochitl] sent me some photos. [She] said, ‘I grew up eating these. Let's put these in the movie.’ It gave it so much more texture and tone.”
“For me, it would be my mom. You can see some of that in this film is just the sacrifice that one can make so that your family can succeed,” said Gomez. “I wouldn't be here without the support of my mom. She literally stopped her work so that she could drive me to auditions. There's nothing more that grounds you than someone who's been there and supports you since the very beginning, especially being in settings where it's like movies and all the things. You need the person that knows you best to be by your side and knows when you're like, ‘You're tired. Let's go home. Let's watch a movie.’ She's here with us today.”
“Mine's in line with all of them. It's funny how, within the film aspect and even here now, we're all talking about the things that ground us and they're all rooted in community or family. Mine is the same thing. I grew up all imperfect and having dysfunction as well to an extent like we all do, but my family and I are very close. Both of my parents are very supportive,” shared Dominguez. “Amost all the time [I] hold the weekends for them just because I like to spend time with them or make sure that they're still being taken care of as well. [I want them to] have full lives, to be able to come hang out with their kids, and do things that are still fun. […] The second for me is my daughter as well. I've got a three-year-old and, as soon as I get to talk to her every single day, everything else becomes secondary and tertiary. Nothing else matters.”
“So everyone should watch this with their family,” laughed Vargas, as we joked about how screaming together brings families together.
Hive is streaming now on Tubi.
