Gael García Bernal on Becoming Cassandro, the “Liberace of Lucha Libre”

In director Roger Ross Williams’s Cassandro, Gael García Bernal takes on the titular role of the real-life luchador who changed the face of Mexican wrestling. Born Saúl Armendáriz in El Paso, Texas, Cassandro rose to fame in the late ’80s, when he flipped the script on the effeminate exotico archetype, which historically had been taunted and always lost to the more macho técnicos (good guys) and rudos (villains). Donning red lipstick and over-the-top costumes, García Bernal approached the role of the "Liberace of Lucha Libre” with a gusto that’s earned him rave reviews. The movie premiered at Sundance last year to critical acclaim as well—and filming it gave Bernal a chance to give his costar, Bad Bunny, a kiss during a clandestine scene between the two. Below, the actor discusses loving Lucha Libre as a kid, his favorite part of participating in wrestling, and the very specific skill he picked up on The Motorcycle Diaries set.

How well did you know the story of Cassandro, the person?

I was familiar with the real-life character of Cassandro, because I’m a big fan of Lucha Libre [Mexican wrestling]. I remember all the Exóticos, who don’t wear actual masks but still do in the sense that they invent a character. They have all the makeup and are very glam. Cassandro was openly gay and managed to subvert what people thought about the Exóticos. With Cassandro and his contemporaries, they started to become the main characters of Lucha Libre.

How much training did this film require?

I had never wrestled before. First, I had to gain a lot of weight. That was fun! But then I had to start the actual wrestling, and everything started to hurt. Everything. But for me, Lucha Libre means more than just the physical, performative, and theatrical aspects. Like my promoter says in the film, “The world is very fucked-up, and people need to go into an arena and see good beat evil for a little while.”

You are wearing very little clothing in the movie.

Shiny, simple clothes! Cassandro made his own clothes in the beginning. It’s part of a pathway to build your character. Getting into those costumes, I loved that idea. Let’s get all the makeup!

The more spangles, the better.

Exactly! Fantastic!

What was your favorite part about wrestling?

It was fascinating to see the agility and the condition that the wrestlers have, the strength they have, the ability to do the most [life-threatening] somersaults and other crazy things, plus their performances. In Lucha Libre, you experience a great sport that is very competitive and highly skilled. It's incredibly hard and strong, yet it has that theatrical aspect as well. There's a catharsis that occurs that's quite incredible.

Do you have any secret skills?

I used to be able to disassemble the gearbox and the motor of the motorcycle that I used in The Motorcycle Diaries, then assemble it back together again. I have to find something with each character that [requires me to learn a skill]. A lot of the skills I had, like party tricks, I tried in Cassandro. I am able to do a somersault and a flip. This was the first time I tried doing them—I looked good at it when I was young. Now, there's a feeling from the outside of: "No, stop it. Don't do this."

Senior Style Editor: Allia Alliata di Montereale. Senior Fashion Market Editor and Menswear Director: Jenna Wojciechowski. Hair for portfolio by Mustafa Yanaz for Dyson at Art+Commerce; makeup for portfolio by Emi Kaneko for Tom Ford at Bryant Artists; manicures for portfolio by Michelle Saunders for Chanel. Set design by Peter Klein at Frank Reps. Special thanks to Ms. Bebe at Outfitters Wig Shop in Hollywood.

Produced by Connect the Dots; Executive Producer: Wes Olson; Producer: Zack Higginbottom; Production manager: Nicole Morra; Production coordinator: David Cahill; First photography assistant: Trevor Pikhart; Second photography assistant: Jeremy Eric Sinclair; Digital Technician: Brendan Pattengale; Postproduction by Lucas Rios Palazesi at Quickfix; Fashion assistants: Tori López, Tyler VanVranken, Molly Cody, India Reed, John Celaya, Kaamilah Thomas, Emily Cancelosi, Allie Kessler, Juliana Bassi, Karla Garcia, Jacqueline Chen, Cosima Croquet; Production assistants: Mateo Calvo, Aspen Miller, Nico Robledo, Griffin Koerner, Danielle Rouleau, Nicolo Battaglini, Juanes Montoya, Juan Calvo, Lily Cordingley, Nathan Gallie, Cameron Hoge, Jack Fahey, Cole Ewing, Karlie Ofstedahl; Hair assistants: Takao Hayashi, Andres Copeland; Makeup assistants: Amelia Berger, Willie Huang; Manicure assistants: Rachel Messick, Marissa Asprer; Set assistants: Christopher Crash Richard, Winston Willingham; Tailors: Irina Tshartaryan, Elma Click, Gayane Mnatsakanyan at Susie’s Custom Designs, Inc.