Film

Gloria Calderón Kellett Talks ‘With Love’ and Proves We Need Romcoms

Lead Photo: HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA - DECEMBER 09: Gloria Calderon Kellett attends the season premiere of Amazon Prime's "With Love" at NeueHouse Los Angeles on December 09, 2021 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Gregg DeGuire/Getty Images,)
HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA - DECEMBER 09: Gloria Calderon Kellett attends the season premiere of Amazon Prime's "With Love" at NeueHouse Los Angeles on December 09, 2021 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Gregg DeGuire/Getty Images,)

If there’s anything that we learned from Gloria Calderòn Kellett, it’s that we need more romcoms in our lives. We need that joy, that spark, and that sense that everything’s going to be ok because love will triumph in the end while being surrounded by those we care about. And we need it now more than ever. 

Remezcla got a chance to speak with the creator of what’s going to be your newest holiday romcom obsession With Love. This story is a combination of everything you love about romcoms, tropes and all, but for our communities and those who’ve missed their families and traditions since the pandemic hit.

According to Kellett, this is what inspired her to get writing. “The pandemic made me really sad. I was robbed of that and I missed everybody so much. So, I was watching romcoms last Christmas and I went…wait a minute, there’s like one Christmas movie that we have. That’s it. That’s sad. I need to fix this.”

The key to fixing that, and finding a way to make With Love the best holiday romcom she could, was by finding a way to represent all of those in our communities. Because too often, we don’t see the true variety that comes with being Latine. And Kellett wanted to make our reality something we could see on screen while healing us from the pain of the past couple of years.

“Beyond Latinidad, we have all experienced this collective trauma.” Kellett explained before going on as to how social media has helped her understand how varied we are, “On my Instagram feed it’s Black and Brown and queer and Asian bodies consistently being put in trauma [movies and shows]. And I said, “God, I just want to make something as a salve. I want to make something that’s a hug and people getting to be joyful, getting to be with family, and the love where we’re sitting in.”

That’s why we need romcoms. Because they’re cathartic, because they’re healing, and because through them we can show others that we’re not a monolith. And to keep that going, to make With Love the most honest version of itself when it comes to representation, Kellett was very clear that the writers she surrounds herself with are more than important, they’re essential.

That was especially true for the story of one of her favorite characters in With Love, Sol Delgado, played by Isis King. Because the show isn’t just about the siblings you meet in the beginning of With Love. It’s also about Sol and her love story while being trans. “I am a cis-straight lady. I’m Latina but cis and straight. And so I rely on these beautiful lived experiences [from our Afro-Latine trans non-binary writer] and their point of view.” 

And she has no problem stepping aside and handing the reins to those that have lived these LGBTQ experiences. “I just try to get out of the way so they can tell these stories authentically. They deserve that same love I received in the One Day at a Time room from Mike [Royce] and Norman [Lear]. I try to do the same for the next batch of storytellers.”

Ultimately, With Love is a romcom full of love, kindness, hope, and inspiration. It’s about telling the stories that need to be told while giving us the same feelings movies like Love, Actually and When Harry Met Sally did but for our communities. And that’s why you should be watching Gloria Calderón Kellett’s With Love when it hits Amazon Prime on December 17, 2021.