A Purr-fect Pair!

Salma Hayek reunites with

co-star Antonio Banderas in

"PUSS IN BOOTS."

By Marci Miller

Salma Hayek with Puss In Boots alter ego, Kitty Softpaws.

This fall, Hollywood A-lister Salma Hayek reunites with longtime co-star Antonio Banderas as the pair pussyfoot around in Dreamworks' new animated feature, "Puss In Boots", opening in theatres nationwide on October 28. In the film, Hayek plays Kitty Softpaws, a feline foil to Banderas' Puss In Boots, whose character has been spun-off from the wildly popular Shrek franchise. Born in Mexico, this Latina actress got her big break when she starred with Banderas in the 1995 hit "Desperado" and eventually received an Oscar nomination for her portrayal of Frida Kahlo in the 2002 film, "Frida" which she also produced.

We recently had the chance to talk to Salma Hayek about bringing Kitty Softpaws to life on the big screen, working once again with Antonia Banderas, and how she balances her career with motherhood.

You've made a couple of films already with Antonio Banderas. Were you able to record any of your sessions together and did your personal chemistry get reflected in the film?

You know, they usually never do the recordings together. Antonio and I are both super busy. But we just had to do this movie because it was just too good not to make it happen. So we did it apart and even when he was not in the room, I could almost feel him as a ghost doing his thing. And I think we have great chemistry in the film.

You've done both live action and animated films. Do you prefer one over the other?

Well, they both have their charms in different ways. I really loved doing this movie because the people involved in the film were just so nice and accommodating. I don't know how many countries and cities I actually worked on this movie from. Because you can go to any studio in any city and via satellite, they direct you and tell you what to do, and you can be doing this film. So we did a couple of these sessions in Paris, we did them in Boston, we did them in L.A...and it's so convenient and easy. My experience with "Puss In Boots" has been really, really good. I'm going to miss it as we've been doing it for three years. It was wonderful and convenient and I was so proud to show it to my little daughter.

What you think about the current roles available for women in Hollywood, and if you thought there were enough choices for actresses like yourself?

Well no, there are never enough choices. But I'll tell you, I have a great win in this one. Every thing Puss does, Kitty Softpaws outsmarts him. How many times do you get a part where the female outsmarts the male every time in every way? And she's always one step ahead and she's actually a comprehensive character. I love her - I love her because she starts out one thing and she's finishes something else. It has a dramatic art and I think that Kitty Softpaws is a great female character, one of the few wonderful ones that are out there.  She's ingenious, smart and very coquettish and she uses her charms. But when you think of her, you don't think of sexy and I think that's also important for girls. She's a strong woman that speaks her mind and that she's very good at what she does, even though what she does is not something that's very good. But she does have her redemption and I think it's great for girls to see that.

Is it more difficult to get into character when you're just doing voice work?

At the beginning, this was. They did not let me read the script and they hadn't drawn anything yet. So I was completely in a panic.   There was one guy that would just say, "These are your lines, this is what's happening." I would have it described to me what kind of a situation Kitty Softpaws was in. But I never once read a script.

So, the movie was a surprise for me, too. I'm like, "Oh that's what happened." I had my own version of the film in my head. However, somehow I got a hold of the character, and it was very easy for me once I knew what the character was. I was able to improvise a lot - a lot of lines that I made up ended up in this film. And you wouldn't suspect that I was improvising without ever reading the script, so it was really cool. It was hard at the beginning, and then it became easy.

How do you balance work and motherhood and do you have a support network?

The most important thing about the balance is that you can not see it as equally balanced. Because you have to understand that motherhood has to be your priority. You've got to have the priority on something and when it's time to make a decision, it's easier to make a decision if you understand your priority. So, for me, a way of keeping the balance is understanding that my daughter is my priority.

I have a support team, but I really do believe that kids have to be raised by the parents. And it's good to get some help but there's got to also be a balance with a very high percentage of the parents taking care of their children. Like I never go on a trip and leave my child with a nanny. I've never done that in my life. She's with me most of the time. And I think that's important.  I think that it's also important for them to feel that it's you taking care of them. I cook for her, I give her a bath, I brush her teeth, it's important to combine these things and a nice experience for a working mommy.

What is the best advice you've ever received? 

My mother would tell me when I complained of being bored, "Only stupid people get bored. Smart people never get bored because they have a vast imagination and a brain that can always find something productive or exciting to do, or to think about, or to imagine." And I think this is sort of beautiful concept and it really stuck with me for the rest of my life.  And my father gave me advice too. He said, "I'm going to do everything for you, but you have to promise me that you will never let anyone else treat you less than that, you will never stand for it, and that you have to treat all the people the same." And this has meant so much in my life.  And, you know, I've worked a lot with women that have been through abuse and I think it's important to teach children not only to treat everybody well, but also to stand up for themselves, not in a bully way but in a kind way. And that's it. 

In Theatres October 28!

Click here to visit film's website.