America Ferrera Reacts to the Possibility of an ‘Ugly Betty’ Reunion (Exclusive)

After spending some time in BarbieLand, America Ferrera would be more than happy to return to the world of Mode!

ET’s Nischelle Turner spoke with the actress at Elle‘s Women in Hollywood event on Tuesday — where Ferrera was recognized as a 2023 honoree — and she opened up about the possibility of a buzzed-about reunion for her hit late-2000s sitcom, Ugly Betty.

Last week, executive producer Salma Hayek shared a flashback post thanking fans for their continued love for the show and praising Ferrera’s talents.

“I am so excited that a new generation is discovering Ugly Betty,” she wrote in part. “It was groundbreaking at its time and has remained relevant throughout all these years. America, I’m so proud of all your accomplishments; we couldn’t have done it without such a great cast.”

As for a reunion, Ferrera told ET, “I think there has been like a deep desire there for a long time because our Ugly Betty family is so close and so we love each other so much.

“I think we’d all come back in a heartbeat,” she revealed, conceding, “It takes a lot of work to get a thing off the ground — maybe we’ll figure it out.”

But, the actress insisted, “Betty is my heart. I would be thrilled.”

Ferrera had a blockbuster 2023 with her starring role in Greta Gerwig’s Barbie movie. Though she didn’t play one of the many Barbies, the actress went viral with an epic monologue on the impossible standards of womanhood that motivates the Barbies to take back their autonomy from the Kens.

“I think that it speaks to how much we need to hear our own voices,” she said of the epic moment — which, according to co-star Alexandra Shipp, she delivered “100 times” on set.

“Greta and Noah [Baumbach] wrote the monologue and it was my job to try to deliver it as honestly and as truthfully as I could,” she recalled. “It wasn’t that hard, as it resonated with me deeply. And I’m so grateful that it’s resonating with audiences and that it’s moving them. I think that’s what the power of storytelling is, it makes us feel seen in our private, intimate experiences.”

As for what it means to her to be recognized as a “Woman in Hollywood,” Ferrera said she focuses on “being able to create space through our advocacy.”

“[It’s important] to be able to be more than just carrying the label of women — getting to be artists, getting to be in our craft, getting to talk about our craft and tell stories that really transcend the labels that we’ve had to build our careers under,” she added.

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