It is not an exaggeration to say that Paula Echevarría (Candás, 45 years old) is one of the most famous women in Spain.
To her work in film and television, where she debuted more than two decades ago, is added the indisputable influence of her as one of the homeland queens of Instagram.
The Asturian has known how to take advantage of the possibilities of social networks to multiply her visibility and approach a diverse audience.
After some time away from the sets (her last job of hers as an actress was in the 2019 film
If I were rich
), she has returned to television this year, but in a different way.
Echevarría debuted last September as a
Got Talent jury
.
The program broadcast on Telecinco has been "a gift" for the interpreter.
After a lifetime of media exposure, with all that that entails, this time she is the one who must judge: “I usually side with the contestant because I have lived through that situation a lot.
They have judged me a lot, I have done many
castings
and they have determined if I am worth or not, if I fit in or not… Giving a 'no' to a participant costs, but there are many and not all can pass, but it costs ”, he explains .
His return to
prime time
does not take time away from his other professional projects.
The red carpet is like a second home for the actress and she walks comfortably and closely with the press and photographers.
This was demonstrated at the Moët & Chandon Effervescence party, held on November 30 at the Palacio de Cibeles to welcome Christmas and toast the charity initiative Toast for Cause, which this time supports the sustainable vision of the chef from Cádiz Ángel León, in charge of designing the menu for the evening
.
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“I consider myself lucky because I have so many things, people ask me: 'When are you going back to work?'
But I haven't stopped!
They understand work as filming, but I have a thousand other avenues open and thanks to them I can allow myself to choose right now the projects that fill me up and make me happy”.
Of course, there are things that do not enter into their plans.
For example, presenting the Goya gala.
"I really like going to the gala and seeing my colleagues, but I don't think I would dare to present it if they proposed it to me", and describes Clara Lago and Antonio de la Torre, hosts of the 2023 edition, as "super brave" .
The actress's new priorities are clear, which is why she has rejected several "very cool" projects but with filming thousands of kilometers from her home, from Istanbul to Hungary or the Dominican Republic.
What makes her “happy above all else,” she says, is spending time with her family.
But that doesn't mean she doesn't miss acting on TV and in movies.
At the moment, she trusts that she "will come up with a project here, to be able to do it and go home."
Paula Echevarría in an act in the courtyard of the Madrid City Hall, on November 30, 2022. Luis Sevillano
At home is her 14-year-old teenage daughter and her year-and-a-half-year-old son, as well as her partner, former soccer player Miguel Torres.
The three are responsible for the fact that 2022 has been "a great year" for Paula Echevarría.
"Sometimes it's scary to say it, it may be the best stage of my life on all levels," she reflects.
Work and family are there, but his new way of dealing with day to day has been key on his path to happiness: "As I have aged, I have stopped paying attention to bullshit and have given priority to the things that really matter." .
I am in that personal moment of paying attention to what is really worth it”.
She is very active on social networks, where she has more than 3.6 million followers on her Instagram account, and her naturalness is perhaps one of the reasons for her success.
Without premeditated strategy, she publishes what she wants and when she wants.
However, she has her own red lines and avoids giving opinions about things "too momentous".
The reason?
“I don't want to blurt something out of my mouth and have someone change her mind.
Face to face with you, I can discuss any topic we want, but I don't like it on a social network, ”she argues.
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An actress by profession, she has nothing against those who have followed the opposite path to hers: first be an
influencer
and, thanks to the visibility on the networks, make the leap to acting.
She does not hesitate when asked if she agrees with those who point out a certain intrusiveness in the sector: “For me the word intrusiveness does not exist.
Everyone is valid to do something, they can do it.
In fact, Dulceida is making a movie right now, I think it's phenomenal.
I was the first who, being an actress, began to make magazine covers, advertising campaigns….
In other words, if you are good at something and you can do it, and if the person who hires you considers that you are the right person, who am I to say anything”.
It is enough to do a quick search on the internet to see the overwhelming amount of news published daily with the name of the actress as a claim.
"I don't find out because I don't watch a lot of TV, nor do I surf to see what is said about me," she says about it.
She even, on occasion, unwittingly makes headlines.
This is what happened when she went through the LOS40 Music Awards on November 4.
Echevarría presented, together with the soccer player Alexia Putellas, the award for best album of the year to Rosalía.
So far everything normal, if it weren't for the fact that in her thank-you speech the singer of
Motomami
referred to Paula Echevarría as María.
An unimportant oversight that Twitter was in charge of viralizing.
The truth is that not even Paula herself found out what had happened until minutes later: “We were on stage, everyone shouting and singing and there was a brutal comeback.
When you spoke, you heard yourself, and I didn't hear it.
And when I was already sitting at my table, we had already come down from the stage and everything, Rosalía came to ask me for forgiveness, ”she recalls laughing.