Salma Hayek responds to Hilaria Baldwin heritage controversy

Salma Hayek thought last month’s controversy over Hilaria Baldwin’s roots was “crazy,” but she’s not all that interested in it.

Baldwin was accused by a Twitter user of having faked a Spanish heritage, although she’s actually a white woman born in Boston. While Baldwin confirmed that both of those things are true, she also explained that her love of and familiarity with Spain is genuine. For instance, she said her family spent time there when she was growing up. They spoke Spanish in their home and ate Spanish food. Later, she changed her first name from Hillary to Hilaria, and most of her family has since moved to the Spanish island of Mallorca.

Hayek, who’s Mexican-American, addressed the subject during an appearance on SiriusXM’s Andy Cohen Live.

“We all lie a little bit. She makes my friend happy,” Hayek said of Alec Baldwin, with whom she co-starred on seven episodes of the NBC sitcom 30 Rock in 2009 and 2013. “She’s a good… she fooled me because she’s such a good mother and she has five [kids].”

The Baldwins, who married in 2012, share five young children.

“And you know, I don’t care,” Hayek continued. “She… I’m sorry. I know. I don’t mean to betray or hurt anybody’s feelings. And I don’t know if it’s right or if it’s wrong and, I don’t, I’m not gonna judge somebody just because of that one thing.”

Hayek noted her own background and said that, in some way, she’s flattered.

“I feel honor that somebody wants to be, their alter ego it’s to be like something that is similar to my roots. It makes me feel proud that people are inspired because, you know, I am Mexican-Lebanese, but my grandparents, my ancestors on my mother’s side are Spanish,” she said. “I think she’s smart to want to be Spanish. We’re cool. You know, it’s a bizarre story. It is a bizarre story, but don’t we all create our own character in life? I mean, this might be extreme. OK. I don’t care. She’s not, not a bad person, not a bad person, a good person, a good mother and a good wife. She makes my friend happy. She’s very kind to me. And that’s all I care about.”

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Baldwin herself responded to the criticism on social media when it first surfaced.

She also gave an interview to the New York Times.

“The things I have shared about myself are very clear,” Baldwin told the newspaper in December. “I was born in Boston. I spent time in Boston and in Spain. My family now lives in Spain. I moved to New York when I was 19 years old and I have lived here ever since. For me, I feel like I have spent 10 years sharing that story over and over again. And now it seems like it’s not enough.”

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Originally published February 1, 2021, 9:34 PM