She first gained recognition after being handpicked by Jennifer Lopez to become the spokesmodel for her fashion line, JLO by Jennifer Lopez, and has since amassed an impressive resume of diverse roles. This August, actress Natalie Martinez stars opposite Vince Vaughn in the Apple TV+’s Bad Monkey, a drama series that explores the life of a detective who is drawn to a case revolving around a severed arm. (The first two episodes on August 14, followed by new episodes every Wednesday through October 9.) Martinez plays a Miami medical examiner who helps to investigate the crime and, while the plot may sound “out there,” as the Florida native told us, playing the part was like coming home.
The show is getting a lot of buzz. What are you excited for people to see with the series?
“I’m so excited for this show. I think it’s safe to say it is one of my favorite projects so far, for so many reasons. I’m a huge fan of Apple TV+, they have such great content. And Bill Lawrence does such great TV. Such an amazing, brilliant creator. Then you have Vince Vaughn, who is a legend. Then the cast…Michelle Monaghan, Meredith Hagner, Jodie Turner-Smith. Such a great cast, and such a great ensemble from top to bottom. It was really exciting to work on. It’s my first comedy, and I got to do it with these legends, and I’m just really proud of the work that we’ve done.”
When you’re on a series or a movie or any project, what do you do at the end of the day to get out of character and go back to your regular life?
“This one was easy, because she is a Cuban-American from Miami, and I am just that. [laughs] It was actually fun, because we got to shoot in Miami and in other areas as well, like Key West, Key Largo and all around Miami-Dade County, which is where I’m from. I was able to go back home and see my grandmother, stay at my aunt’s house and have family around all the time, which I don’t normally have since I live in Los Angeles and I’m usually traveling for work.
That added even more for the character, because it was like I never really got out of her. I was just in Miami living, shooting the series. But, also, she’s a coroner, and she has some challenges that she faces in her job. It’s not an easy job. Sometimes, you get really hard cases that are a little hard to see and acknowledge. She also finds herself in this place where she’s not happy in her career—because it’s just not a happy place to be in.
When Vince Vaughn comes to her with this case, it brings this new life back into her. They both get obsessed and can’t let go and try to figure out what happened, where did this arm come from, and it gives her this whole new perspective on things. It gives her this whole new energy to do something different, a motivation. What was good here shooting in Miami is that I was able to really immerse into the character—and for everyone in the show, being in the culture of Miami, in the heat, in the humidity, really adds to the character, and to the show. There’s an authenticity that you just can’t fake.”
Since you are a native of Florida, what are some of your go-to beauty products? I’m sure you know the good SPFs.
“Yes. For me, I definitely love my EltaMD sunscreen, that tinted sunscreen ($41). That’s my go-to for everything. I even use that when I want to put makeup on. I use it as my base, because I don’t really like to wear too much makeup during the day, and it gives you that perfect coverage where I’m glowing and protected. You can’t ask for more.”
Great product.
“Yes! And I’m a huge ZO Skin Health. I use the whole collection. I have some melasma from after pregnancy, and, just because I’m a very active person, and I grew up in Miami going to the beach. Sadly, I wasn’t onto skin care until a little later in my game, [laughs] so I definitely have some sun damage, and I find that their products really help clear that out. I’m very active. I play tennis. I go for runs. I’ve always been to the beach. I’ve always done all these things, so having a skin regimen really helps.
Then, I would have to say for hair products, I love me some Color Wow. I have really curly hair and a lot of it, so if I’m doing a blow-dry, I definitely use Color Wow’s Dream Coat ($28). There’s just something about it that really holds it down.”
Those are all good ones. My last question: What are you excited for next, as we wrap up summer?
“I’m excited for the show to roll out. It’s such a fun show to watch, and I feel like we need those little escapes. You can get into this one, and there’s so many fun characters. What I like, too, is that on August 14th, they’re going to drop two episodes, but then a week—every week—they drop a new one, so you have something to look forward to. Let’s finish off our summer with a great hit TV series! [laughs] Other than that, I’m looking forward to spending time with my family and my friends. I’m off to go shoot another movie soon, and I am just making the most of this press tour. I’m really excited for Bad Monkey to come out and for the world to see what we did.”
