Selena Quintanilla’s father reveals some secrets of the upcoming Netflix series about the late singer

Abraham Quintanilla said that for him, Christian Serratos was the best candidate

UPDATED JANUARY 3, 2020 3:18 PM ESTJAN 3, 2020, 3:18 PM EST

Little by little, more and more details are being revealed about the new Selena Quintanilla series, which will be produced by Netflix. The father of the late 'Queen of Tex-Mex', Mr. Abraham Quintanilla — who has been involved in the project — shared his opinion about Christian Serratos, the actress in charge of playing the singer.

Christian Serratos, whom we have seen in series like <i>The Walking Dead</i>, will play Selena

In an interview with the Mexican newspaper Reforma, Quintanilla said Serratos was his favorite candidate. "The girl (Serratos) is fine, you will not find anyone who resembles Selena, but of all the photographs they sent, I liked her more," he said.

Christian Serratos as Selena Netflix series — Selena: the series will be released in 2020 and has the authorization of the Quintanilla family

"(The series) is totally based on Selena and my family," said Quintanilla, who explained that he and his family did not interfere too much in the selection process. “We just tell them if we like or not (the casting). Of all, she (Serratos) was the best."

The producer explained that the casting to choose the actress who would play the role of Selena was carried out in several places and that the acting experience prevailed over the physical resemblance with the interpreter of Como la Flor.

Christian Serratos, plays Selena Quintanilla — The exact date of the premiere is yet to be defined

“We had casting in six cities; I had liked a girl for the character from the Miami casting. She physically looked a lot like Selena, but she had no acting experience,” he said.

After an arduous search, Christian — who gives life to the character of ‘Rosita' in The Walking Dead —was chosen. "(For the series) we all agreed that she (Serratos) was the best, we liked her best."

Surprisingly, Quintanilla added that Jennifer Lopez also did not stand out for having a great resemblance to her daughter, but that in the end, the movie Selena (1997) was a success. “She (Jennifer Lopez) was the last to do it (the test), and they took me out and said: 'Mr. Quintanilla, she doesn't look like Selena, but with makeup and clothes we are going to make her look like her,'” he added.

This is how JLo's life changed after starring as Selena

When Jennifer Lopez played Selena Quintanilla, she was 27 years old and her career was just taking off. The film, directed by Gregory Nava, became an instant success. With a budget of $20 million, he raised more than $65 million in the United States.

In addition to that, Jennifer became the first Latina actress to earn a million dollars and was nominated as Best Actress in Comedy or Musical at the Golden Globes of 1998.