Actress Alexa PenaVega, best known for her roles in “Spy Kids” and on the Hallmark Channel, has become one of Hollywood’s most outspoken advocates for life, as well as openly living her Christian faith.
Despite facing consequences for being openly pro-life, PenaVega has remained steadfast in her beliefs, and is committed to changing the culture in Hollywood, one step at a time. She recently sat down with Live Action founder and president Lila Rose, where she spoke about her life in Hollywood, meeting and marrying her husband, her pro-life advocacy, the tragic loss of her daughter to stillbirth, and more.
Solid family life kept her safe and healthy
PenaVega said her mother, who was a model, was her entry into the Hollywood industry, but that she worked hard to ensure her children were safe and healthy.
“I think something my mom did different than a lot of the parents in the industry was that she never compromised family. She wanted to make sure that she was the one still raising us, not sending us to set with a manager or with a nanny… or, like, going to set with me, and then a nanny raising the other kids. She really made sure that we were a tight knit community.”
She added, “So if I had to go film in Austin, Texas, like during ‘Spy Kids’ — that was a six-month shoot — we flew as a family unit to Austin. We all moved there. We did the movie and then we came back,” she said. “And I think there’s something really important about keeping that foundation, especially for young kids, because this industry will eat you up. I mean, it will just destroy families. And I think keeping that foundation really allowed us to get through the industry, not completely unscathed, but for the most part, pretty well.”
She also said her childhood in Hollywood was less toxic because there was no social media presence, allowing her to just be a child.
“We were just kids playing dress up. And we were so excited to show up to set just because it was fun,” she said. “Not because we were like, we’re going to try to be movie stars. Like that wasn’t even in our head. We just loved our jobs. And I think kids nowadays are so aware of, this can make me famous. And this can make me, you know, like social media, like, these are gonna give me social media views, whatever. And it just makes me so sad because a lot of that innocence is lost.”
The husband she didn’t know she needed
PenaVega also opened up about how she met her husband, Carlos PenaVega. Both were at low points in their lives, having both just gone through traumatic divorces; Carlos in particular was beginning to struggle with alcoholism. A friend brought him to his church, and then to a bible study, which changed his life. Carlos not only found faith, but it was how he and Alexa met.
“I always laugh because Carlos was literally… everything I never knew I wanted. So my ‘no’ list was Carlos,” she laughed. “And God was like, I’m just going to show you something for a second, because you actually need all those things. That’s why you’re steering away from it. And he’s perfect.”
Heartbreaking loss leads to an ‘awakening’
The PenaVegas have four children, and announced earlier this year that they had experienced a stillbirth with their daughter, Indy. She explained that her church and her faith in God helped her navigate through the heartbreak.
“She just brought us so much closer together,” she said of Indy. “She gave us so many new, fresh perspectives on life, really gave us a boldness and a fearlessness that I think otherwise, we felt a little bit more silenced, or a little bit more like, oh, well, we don’t want to ruffle feathers. So we would kind of stay a little bit more quiet. And after Indy, it was almost like this awakening. She brought, like, the warrior side out of us. I can’t explain it. And then after experiencing her and God carrying me through that, I’m like, I don’t want to be quiet about this. I want everybody to know how much God showed up for us in this season. And I had no idea the impact that would have on other people.”
PenaVega has also become an outspoken advocate for life, and told Rose that the culture of our country needs to change.
“Right now, abortion is a cultural norm. Nobody thinks anything of it. It’s just a normal thing,” she said. “Just like beating your wife is a normal thing. Just like slavery back in the day was a normal thing. It was their cultural norm. We need a massive culture shift.”
“You can be that voice”
She also encouraged people to realize that they can make a difference by being open about their pro-life beliefs, planting seeds that may grow in the future. And though being openly pro-life has led to backlash for her in pro-abortion Hollywood, PenaVega plans to continue to speak out and be an example for others, so that they might gain the courage to speak out as well.
“You can be that voice for somebody else who is hesitant about standing up or stepping forward. So I feel like it takes one person to go against the grain to inspire a whole league of people to follow in your steps,” she said. “So it’s hard to step out. I understand that, but think of how many people feel exactly like you, that are just waiting for the right person to use their voice, to feel encouraged enough to also use theirs.”
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