Isabella Ferreira wanted to play Gabriela in the 2022 Hulu film Crush partly because its LGBTQ+ characters get to be part of a light teen love story, rather than having the plot revolve around coming out. In her interview with POPSUGAR, she also praised the film’s supportive school-and-family setting and Gabriela’s Latina identity.
Why Ferreira liked the story
Ferreira said she enjoyed that Crush embraces LGBTQ+ characters without centering their coming-out stories. She described it as “a classic love story,” with queer identity present in the characters’ lives rather than serving as the story’s main conflict. In the interview text carried by 50 Signs, Ferreira framed that approach as one reason she wanted to take the role.
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The supportive world around the characters
Ferreira described the film’s teens as out and surrounded by supportive parents and classmates. “I just feel this positive depiction normalizes and encourages a safe environment for LGBTQ+ teens,” she said. That is her view of what the film’s depiction can communicate; it is not a claim about measured audience effects.
She also reflected on the kind of story she would have appreciated when she was younger: “I feel I would’ve liked to watch something like this when I was young,” and “Just a fun movie or show that would make me feel safe and that also normalizes LGBTQ+ youth stories.”
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Gabriela’s identity and character
Ferreira valued that Gabriela, called Gabby in the interview, is Latina. She described her as a familiar “It girl” character she had long wanted to play. The interview also highlights Gabriela’s colorful, fashionable costumes and fruit earrings—details Ferreira praised as part of the role’s appeal.
Gabriela is a star athlete. Ferreira said the track scenes challenged her, and that she ran more before filming to prepare. In the film’s story, Paige joins the school track team and grows closer to Gabriela and Gabriela’s sister, AJ.
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Filming and the film’s release
The interview identifies Crush as a Hulu film that premiered on April 29, 2022. Ferreira recalled filming in Syracuse, New York, amid summer heat and rain, and said the production helped the cast bond. She described wrapping on the final day at about 3 a.m. before an early flight. These are her recollections of the shoot; the interview does not establish the film’s current streaming availability.
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