How Salma Hayek Really Felt About Black Mirror Script & 'Disgusting' Version of Herself

Season 6 of Black Mirror has seen many big-name stars join the cast. Aaron Paul, Josh Hartnett, Michael Cera, Kate Mara, John Hannah, Daniel Portman, Zazie Beetz, and other world-famous performers made sure that the new chapter of the technophobic series is filled with the best acting possible.

But there was one star for whom the decision to join the Netflix hit was a difficult one. The reason is that she had to play herself.

In the first episode of the season, 'Joan Is Awful,' Salma Hayek plays herself. Well, a comically grotesque version of herself. Joan, the story's protagonist, played by Annie Murphy, finds out that Streamberry, the fictional analog of Netflix, has started making an AI-created show based on her life and starring Hayek, or rather her digital image. When things get crazy, the two women come together to end the show.

Speaking about the episode, Salma Hayek told Radio Times that she was on the fence about participating in it because of the plot.

'There are so many moments that shocked me in the script,' the actress said.

The actress is probably referring to the moment when Joan decides to ruin the show, which repeats her life step by step, and goes to a church in a ridiculous outfit, full of burgers and laxatives. The scene that takes place there is enough to shock the fictional Hayek, who sees her digital image repeating all of Joan's actions, and prompt her to end Streamberry's show.

The scene was also apparently enough to make the real Hayek question her participation in Black Mirror: 'There is one huge [moment] that I had to come to terms with, and made me ask myself, "Do I really want to do this? Am I going to get in trouble?"'

But fortunately, the actress put her doubts aside, and 'Joan Is Awful' became a unique experience for her and her viewers.

'I got to explore the concepts and clichés people have about me and be self-deprecating,' Hayek continued. 'It's as if I created an alter ego where I could do the most disgusting, grotesque things that you would never do in real life. And have permission to do that.'

Though comically absurd and lighthearted, 'Joan Is Awful' is a profound meta-commentary on the modern content epidemic and the exploitative nature of pop culture. We're certainly glad that the A-lister agreed to take part in the episode, as her performance in it made the message much more powerful.

Source: The Independent.