Soraya Montenegro is a fictional character in the
Mexican
Mexican may refer to:
Mexico and its culture
*Being related to, from, or connected to the country of Mexico, in North America
** People
*** Mexicans, inhabitants of the country Mexico and their descendants
*** Mexica, ancient indigenous people ...
telenovela
A telenovela is a type of a television serial drama or soap opera produced primarily in Latin America. The word combines ''tele'' (for "television") and ''novela'' (meaning "novel"). Similar drama genres around the world include '' teleserye'' ...
''
María la del Barrio
''María la del Barrio'' ( Lit: ''Maria from the neighborhood''/English title: ''Humble Maria'') is a Mexican telenovela produced by Angelli Nesma Medina for Televisa in 1995. The series is a remake of ''Los ricos también lloran''. ''María l ...
''. Soraya is the typical villain of Mexican melodramas; she serves as a prominent antagonist and is characterized by violence, jealousy, insanity, and emotional instability. She was portrayed by
Itatí Cantoral
Itatí Guadalupe Cantoral Zucchi (born May 13, 1975) is a Mexican actress, singer, dancer, and producer, She is of Spanish and Italian descent. She is best known for her roles as Soraya Montenegro in Televisa's telenovela ''María la del Barri ...
in the original Mexican series and became one of the most recognizable villains in telenovelas as a consequence of the popularity of ''María la del Barrio'' worldwide. Her popularity reached a new peak with the rise of social media, where her performances are enjoyed for being overly dramatic.
Concept and creation
Soraya Montenegro was conceived by Mexican producer
Valentin Pimstein as the antagonist of the first story arc of ''
María la del Barrio
''María la del Barrio'' ( Lit: ''Maria from the neighborhood''/English title: ''Humble Maria'') is a Mexican telenovela produced by Angelli Nesma Medina for Televisa in 1995. The series is a remake of ''Los ricos también lloran''. ''María l ...
'', a remake of 1979 telenovela ''
Los ricos también lloran
''Los ricos también lloran'' ("The Rich Also Cry") is a popular telenovela produced in Mexico in 1979, starring Verónica Castro, Rogelio Guerra and Rocío Banquells. Castro also sang the theme ''Aprendí a Llorar'' ("I learned to cry"), a song w ...
''. Soraya is loosely based on Esther Izaguirre, one of the villains of the old telenovela, but with considerable changes to her background, origin and mental state. Pimstein originally intended Soraya to die at the end of the first story arc. Nevertheless, he brought her back stating that Thalia needed a strong counterpart that could test her role as the heroine of the story.
Character biography
Original series
Soraya Montenegro is the wealthy and evil niece of Victoria Montenegro de la Vega. She likes Luis Fernando and intends to get married with him, but he falls in love with María instead. Soraya manages to marry Luis Fernando by faking a pregnancy, but he escapes when her lie is revealed. She tries to poison María and attempts to kill her accomplice before he turns her in, but falls from the apartment and is presumed dead.
During her absence, María and Luis Fernando get married. María gives away her newborn son, Fernando, while suffering a mental disorder. She reunited with him, now nicknamed "Nandito", fourteen years later. It is revealed that Soraya had not died, and was taken to the United States for a long recovery. Soraya marries Oscar Montalban, and she murders him in order to keep all his fortune and goods. However, she must remain the stepmother of Oscar's daughter, the disabled Alicia, and keep her nanny Esperanza. Soraya moves back to Mexico to resume her vengeance plots against María and Luis Fernando, but falls in love with Nandito. Infuriated when Nandito falls in love with Alicia instead, she attacks him and Esperanza, leaving Nandito near death and causing Esperanza to suffer from amnesia. Soraya murders her mother Calixta and frames Nandito, but María takes the blame and goes to prison. María is eventually declared innocent, but Soraya captures her and takes her to a wood cabin, with the intention to burn it down with María inside. María is rescued by Luis Fernando, but Soraya dies instead in the fire.
Philippine remake
Soraya Montenegro - The rich niece of Victoria. Soraya is deeply infatuated with Luis and is jealous of Maria. Soraya attempts to ruin Maria's life and claim Luis as her own, but fails. Soraya goes insane after her nanny Calixta, who is later revealed to be her mother, died. Soraya visits the Del La Vegas and attempts to attack them with a knife and Maria attempts to stop her but Soraya pushes Maria away, hitting the wall and knocking her unconscious. Soraya is dragged away by Fernando and is arrested and the Del La Vegas threatens to place a restraining order on Soraya if she returns. Later, Soraya gives up her wicked ways and works at a hospital and encounters Maria. Soraya takes Maria's baby and gives it to Victoria. Soraya later dies from cancer.
Remakes and reception
Soraya Montenegro is remembered as an archetypical example of a
telenovela
A telenovela is a type of a television serial drama or soap opera produced primarily in Latin America. The word combines ''tele'' (for "television") and ''novela'' (meaning "novel"). Similar drama genres around the world include '' teleserye'' ...
villain, famous for her overacting and overreactions. She stayed popular in the 2000s as many of her scenes became
internet meme
An Internet meme, commonly known simply as a meme ( ), is an idea, behavior, style, or image that is spread via the Internet, often through social media platforms. What is considered a meme may vary across different communities on the Internet ...
s, even among teenagers that never watched that
soap opera
A soap opera, or ''soap'' for short, is a typically long-running radio or television serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term "soap opera" originated from radio dramas originally being sponsored ...
.
One of the most famous scenes is when she discovered Nandito kissing Alicia, and started to attack everyone.
Itatí Cantoral played Soraya again in 2016, in a commercial for the fourth season of the ''
Orange Is the New Black
''Orange Is the New Black'' (sometimes abbreviated to ''OITNB'') is an American comedy-drama streaming television series created by Jenji Kohan for Netflix. The series is based on Piper Kerman's memoir '' Orange Is the New Black: My Year in a Wo ...
'' series. She appears as an inmate of the prison, mistreating the other inmates. The character was modified to fit the tone of the series, and became a convicted murderer. It was rumored that Cantoral would appear in commercials for further series in
Netflix
Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...
, but she denied those rumors.
Actress
Daniela Luján
Daniela Luján (; born Daniela Barrios Rodriguez, 5 April 1988) is a Mexican pop singer and actress. She is considered the "Queen of Telenovelas for Children" for having starred in telenovelas of world success, being: Luz Clarita and El diario ...
played Soraya in a recreation of the scene where she attacks Nandito, Alicia and Esperanza, at the TV program ''
Verdad o reto''. Itatí Cantoral was present in the audience, and praised Luján's work.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Montenegro, Soraya
Telenovela characters
Television characters introduced in 1995
Fictional Mexican people
Fictional serial killers
Film and television memes
Orange Is the New Black characters
Internet memes