Mayan Lopez, star of “Lopez vs. Lopez” and daughter to comedian George Lopez, has opened up about following in her father’s showbiz footsteps. Speaking at NBC’s virtual summer press tour panel at the Television Critics Association, she said that growing up behind the scenes of “The George Lopez Show” is where she first “fell in love” with acting and creating – but she’s still had to pay her dues and put in the work.
“People always think that I was born with a silver spoon in my mouth, like no…. I came up as my dad’s career was coming up,” she said. “I was about 5 years old, like 7 or 8, and I got to see onscreen and behind the scenes the hard work that comes with show business. I really fell in love with the business side as well as the on-camera side.”
The comedic actress said her first job was as an assistant director on the set of the beloved 2000s sitcom. “They called me ‘Kid AD.’ I used to have a little headset, I made 20 bucks an hour and in about four weeks I was able to buy an American Girl doll,” she remembered. “I would go and get Constance Marie, who played Angie [on ‘The George Lopez Show’], and take her to makeup. So that was my first job. And then I used to make quesadillas in craft services, and I would carry them on a little plate around for everyone.”
“Some of my greatest memories are sitting on the cameras and having to be really still as they were making a take,” Lopez continued. “I got the bug — my dad and I always joked that…it’s genetic. It’s proven here, and I got to really fall in love. That love has only grown in this show [“Lopez vs. Lopez”]. It’s surreal that I’ve watched my dad do this and now I get to have the honor and privilege of playing alongside him [on] something that’s so personal to us and our family. It’s the dream of a lifetime.”
In addition to George and Mayan Lopez, “Lopez vs. Lopez” stars Selenis Leyva, Brice Gonzalez, Matt Shively and recurring actors Laci Mosley and Kiran Deol. The sitcom, which is inspired by Mayan and George’s real relationship as a previously estranged father-daughter duo, is about a working-class family and their dysfunction, reconnection and all the pain and joy in between.
“Lopez vs. Lopez” will premiere on NBC on Nov. 4 at 8 p.m. ET/PT. Universal Television is behind the series, which is produced by Mohawk Productions, Travieso Productions, Mi Vida Loba and 3 Arts. Debby Wolfe (“One Day at a Time”) serves as showrunner, writer and executive producer, along with EP and writer Bruce Helford, who created “The George Lopez Show.” Additional EPs are Katie Newman, Michael Rotenberg and George Lopez, with Mayan Lopez producing.
