America Ferrera's Surprising Secret: The Unusual Guilty Pleasure She Can't Resist

America Ferrera. Anthony Harvey/Shutterstock

In a recent interview with Vanity Fair, America Ferrera, who plays Barbie in the movie, shared a surprising guilty pleasure that left fans surprised. Ferrera, 39, admitted that not showering for a few days brings her joy. She made this confession during a discussion with her Barbie costars Margot Robbie, Kate McKinnon, and Issa Rae, as well as director Greta Gerwig.

Before revealing her secret indulgence, the cast made various guesses about what it could be. Gerwig, aged 39, suggested, "Maybe a massage or something?" Meanwhile, Rae, aged 38, wondered if it was "being away from her children." However, the revelation that it was "not showering" came as a surprise. Robbie humorously remarked, "I would have never expected that."

Ferrera, who portrays the character Gloria, a Mattel worker, in the highly anticipated summer blockbuster, disclosed that she is thankful for portraying a human rather than a doll in the Barbie film.

In a recent interview with Digital Spy on Tuesday, July 18, the actress behind "Ugly Betty" shared her perspective on playing the role of Gloria in the much-awaited movie. She expressed that she did not want to conform to the typical Barbie stereotype, as it wasn't as interesting to her. For her, the movie's message is that beauty has no singular standard, and there is no one correct way to be intelligent or even be like Barbie. Embracing our unique selves and celebrating that is important, she highlighted.

“It was like a miracle, something that rarely, if ever, happens in my career. Out of the blue, a fantastic director reached out to me and offered me a role," Ferrera excitedly shared in a Los Angeles Times interview on Thursday, July 20. "Getting to explore this character through Gloria's perspective felt like a magical gift that is so rare in our culture. When we do get it, we have to fight for it, create it, and show why it matters. So when I received the script, I didn't expect it at all. My initial thought was, 'They'll never give [Gerwig] the green light to make this.'"

In the Barbie movie, Ferrera is part of a talented cast that includes Robbie as Barbie, Ryan Gosling as Ken, McKinnon, Rae, Will Ferrell, Michael Cera, and Simu Liu. Recently, Robbie revealed that she had one non-negotiable condition before accepting the role of the iconic doll in Gerwig's upcoming film.

She stated in a June Time magazine cover story, "If Mattel hadn't introduced a variety of Barbies, I wouldn't have been interested in making a Barbie film. It is not right to define Barbie as the sole portrayal of beauty and behavior that women should strive for."

Originally, Barbie was supposed to be reimagined by Diablo Cody with Amy Schumer in the lead role before Gerwig agreed to direct the film. However, Schumer, 42, dropped out of the project in 2017 due to scheduling conflicts and later revealed that she didn't approve of the film's direction.

"I'm really excited to watch the movie, it looks amazing," Schumer expressed during an interview on Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen in June. "We originally mentioned scheduling conflicts as the reason, but in reality, it was more about creative differences. However, the film now has a fresh team working on it, and it appears to have a strong feminist vibe which is pretty cool. So, I'll definitely be seeing the movie."

Barbie is set to be released in theaters on Friday, July 21.