Vaneza Pitynski looks forward to ‘causing dramatics’ in ‘Brothers Garcia’ sequel
She may have been the only Garcia sister in the 2000 Nickelodeon series The Brothers Garcia, but actress Vaneza Pitynski remembers her time playing Lorena Garcia on the show fondly. She never felt like she was playing backup to the boys.
“[The original series] was always about the Garcia brothers but with Lorena in tow causing dramatics and wreaking havoc on them,” Pitynski told MySA during a recent interview.
Co-created by Jeff Valdez, The Brothers Garcia aired for four seasons between July 2000 and August 2004. It was considered the first English-language sitcom to feature an all-Latino cast and production team. The series followed a middle-class, Mexican American family living in San Antonio. The Garcia family included mother Sonia (Ada Maris), father Ray (Carlos Lacamara), their three sons Carlos (Jeffrey Licon), George (Bobby Gonzalez) and Larry (Alvin Alvarez), and their daughter Lorena (Pitynski), who was also Larry’s fraternal twin.
Eighteen years since the series ended, Valdez has brought all six of the original actors back for a sequel, this time with HBO Max. The new series, The Garcias, reunites the entire main cast and introduces audiences to each of the siblings’ own families they’ve formed over the years.
Lorena’s life has changed quite a bit since the last time viewers saw her. She is a weather reporter for a San Antonio TV station, married to a man in the military named Julian Ramirez (Paul Rodriguez Jr.), and is a mother to a young son named Max (Oliver Alexander), who enjoys cooking. In The Garcias, the entire family goes on vacation to Mexico and decides to extend their time on the beach by a couple of months.
Since Lorena was the only girl in the family in the original series, Pitynski is glad that the three brothers have grown up, gotten married and now have their own daughters.
“It’s been really fun to pivot and see a bunch of strong, talented, funny, loving women,” she said.
When Valdez gave Pitynski a call to let her know the sequel had been greenlit, she wasn’t sure whether to believe him at first but was excited when she realized the news was true.
“My reaction was, ‘What?!” Pitynski said. “It’s been a few years in the making, so we’ve all been waiting. Jeff said, ‘We’re going to HBO Max’ and I was like, ‘Oh, my, God. We’re going!’”
Now that the first season has wrapped, Pitynski still can’t believe the new series is about to premiere on a streaming platform.
“Last week, I was making my dinner and sat down on the couch and saw that the trailer was up on HBO Max with the words ‘Coming Soon,’” she said. “It was insane. It doesn’t feel real, but we’re so close to coming out.”
Whether the sequel had happened or not, Lorena was always going to be a part of who Pitynski is. It’s a character she has always kept close to her heart.
“Lorena never left,” she said. “Lorena is Lorena. She’s just a bit older this time around.”
The Garcias premieres Thursday, April 14 on HBO Max.
—-
Kiko Martinez for MySA