To say that Humberly González is busy these days would be an understatement. Fresh off the success of Star Wars Outlaws, in which she voices protagonist Kay Vess (nominated for “Best Performance” at the 2024 Game Awards), the 33-year-old Venezuelan actress currently has not one, but two Netflix shows in the Top 10.

González plays journalist Jenna Tate in Kevin Williamson’s juicy new crime series The Waterfront and reprises her role as high school senior Sophie Sanchez in Season 3 of the popular YA drama Ginny & Georgia.

Both shows spent considerable time sitting at #1 on the Netflix chart. On top of these recent hit projects, she was nominated for a BAFTA Award earlier this year and recently received the Rising Star Award at the Future of Film Showcase.

“I don’t understand what’s happening,” she tells The Nerds of Color over Zoom. “The Netflix [Instagram] pages are posting the Ginny & Georgia and The Waterfront photos next to each other, and it’s so surreal to see it. That’s my literal dream. It doesn’t feel real. I literally texted my team, ‘You guys, what’s going on? This is amazing!’”

The Toronto actress kicked off her acting career roughly a decade ago by dipping her toes in various theater roles, including a stint as Gabriella Montez in a community production of High School Musical. She’s racked up an impressive resume over the years, playing memorable characters in films and TV shows like Utopia Falls, Tarot, and Star Trek: Section 31, and even leading Hallmark’s first lesbian-centered film, Friends & Family Christmas.

Amid her packed schedule, González took the time to chat with The Nerds of Color about the success of The Waterfront and Ginny & Georgia. We discussed the complex relationships on The Waterfront, why she thinks Sophine could still be “endgame” on Ginny & Georgia, the importance of authentic representation, her future career aspirations (hint: it involves the MCU), and more. Read the full interview below!

WARNING: This interview contains spoilers for The Waterfront and Ginny & Georgia Season 3.

The Nerds of Color: What was it like going from playing a high schooler on Ginny & Georgia to a grown adult on The Waterfront?

González: I was ready, honestly. I’ve essentially been in high school for the past six years of my life on [Ginny & Georgia]. It’s amazing to dive deeper into a more mature role and have more drama and emotional scenes, because I do have depth as an actor. I’m not a teenager, even though I literally got ID’d yesterday. I was like, “You think I’m 18? Thank you!” I do play a high schooler on screen, but also, no, I’m 33. I’m so ready to play my age.

You recently told ELLE that your Ginny & Georgia character, Sophie Sanchez, was originally written to be Italian, but you asked for her to be changed to Latina to reflect your heritage. It reminded me of how Isa Briones, who plays Dr. Santos on The Pitt, similarly asked for her character’s last name to something more in line with her Filipino background. What made you decide to ask for this change, and why do you feel it was important for you to do so?

I don’t know what got into me, because I had never been on such a big set. It’s almost like, “Who gave her the right to even consider that?” I was talking to the creator, Sarah Lampert, and getting background on the character, that it was [based on] someone she went to high school with. She was Italian, so that’s how Lampert wrote it. When they saw me and casted me, I guess the thought didn’t even cross their mind to change it, because I am ambiguous. I know that I can probably play different races, but it’s so much cooler to make it authentic to who you are. 

I was like, “You know, like, my mom’s last name is Sanchez, and I’m Latina. Do you have any qualms about changing her name?” I liked the alliteration of Sophie Sanchez. Instantly, the creator was like, “Oh my gosh, I love that idea. Let me get in contact with Netflix and figure this out, ’cause we can totally make that happen.” I didn’t wanna step on any toes, but it was more of a curiosity and excitement. What an opportunity to make her from Venezuela and speak Spanish!

Your character in The Waterfront, Jenna, gets tangled up with her high school sweetheart. Obviously it’s very messy in this case because marriages and kids are involved, but it got me thinking about how powerful first loves can be even years later. Do you see Sophie and Max [Sara Waisglass] also crossing paths again in a similar fashion later in life?

I do. I also think that it was all timing. Feelings are really strong, and sometimes you don’t forget them, but the timing of everything is how it works out. With Max and Sophie, I think… in my opinion, Sophie really got spooked with how she felt about Max, and that was the excuse of, “You know, this isn’t it. This isn’t what it is for me. I’m going to college.” That might have not been the greatest choice, but I’ve definitely been there as a person — when it’s a connection that’s too much too soon or at the wrong time, so I convince myself that it’s not real, or that I don’t feel the way that I do. I believe in second chances. I believe in people coming back together. So yeah, it always makes me happy to think about that. They could be endgame.

You’ve said you don’t know yet if you’ll be back for Ginny & Georgia Season 4. If you do return, what are your hopes for Max and Sophie? Is there an aspect of Sophie’s character that you’d like to see explored more in depth?

If Sophie comes back to Max, I would love to hear her explanation for that. Just the truth about why she ended it the way she did and why she was so standoffish. I think it’s super human that she ended up kind of pushing her away, but in Season 3, you get to see have this friendship and this care. The way that Sophie looks at Max, the way that she lifts her up and always asks how she’s doing and if she wants to talk about it and checks in on her… that is a basis for a relationship. Sophie might not even know that that’s how she feels. I don’t know that Sophie’s been in love either, and maybe this is her first love. There’s so many unknowns, but I’d love to see a bit more background into her emotions and what she was going through when Max was going through hell. 

Yeah, I think that’s a question a lot of fans have been asking: Why did Sophie dump Max and then come back? But also, that does happen, especially in high school.

It’s hard. They’re literally kids figuring out the world and life, and how to navigate emotions. Sometimes it’s fight or flight, you know? And I think in that moment, Sophie was in flight mode.

Do you have a favorite scene you filmed with Sara Waisglass this season?

I think it has to be the one where she’s like, “She just wants to dance,” and I’m like, “Let her dance.” There was a lot of really fun banter in that scene at the start, when Max is saying all these things, and I’m like, “Mm-hmm. Yeah. Who’s Wolf?” You kinda go back to how they first met. Do you remember when Max comes in spewing out all this stuff, and I’m just watching her? It really reminded me of that first scene we ever shot together. I think it was kind of like a salute to 2019 when we shot the scene where they first meet. Here they are again in that same scenario and, and Sophie’s just there listening to her, giving her advice. She doesn’t think Max is annoying or oversharing. This is their relationship.

On a more personal note, you’ve been very open about your identity as a queer woman, and you’ve played multiple queer characters on screen over the years. Coming from someone who lives in the US, the climate around LGBT rights is pretty scary right now. A lot of viewers have felt really represented by Sophie and her relationship with Max — I mean, people are still making edits of them constantly. What’s it been like for you to see this kind of huge reaction from the fandom?

To this day, I still get so many messages about how my portrayal of queer characters on screen has helped so many people. I remember having fans even from In the Dark, which was my first pilot, where I also played a queer character. From there, I had OG fans who followed me to Utopia Falls, to Christmas movies, to Ginny & Georgia. I’ve received messages that are years apart — they’ll come back and be like, “Thank you for that, because now I’m proud and I’m out.”

I think we’re always going to find hate and violence in the world, but you can’t give up. I still believe that love conquers all, because I think when you are your full self, that is true freedom, and freedom is scary to people who want to control [others]. It’s Pride Weekend this weekend in Toronto, and I get to hang out with my queer community, go out and celebrate, and just keep spreading the love. That’s the only way that I can continue to exist when they’re trying to tamper down the community and take away our rights and take away our voice. Love is magic, it’s palpable, and that’s why people are threatened by it. So, I hope that, safely enough, we can continue to be ourselves.

Jumping back to The Waterfront, you had great chemistry with Jake Weary [Cane], but I also loved your scenes with Danielle Campbell [Peyton]. I was especially struck by how Peyton handled things with Jenna in the finale. She was so ready to fight about Cane, but then instantly put her anger aside when Jenna needed support. What are your thoughts on their dynamic?

Outside of our characters, Danielle and I got really close really fast from the start. She’s one of my best friends in the cast. We were like, “I can’t believe we have to be kind of enemies and mean to each other.” Every time we shot those scenes and they yelled, “Cut!,” we’d be giggling and hugging, like, “I love you. I’m sorry I have to be mean to you.” But, I love that that’s where they took Danielle’s [character], because I think what it adds to and might foreshadow is the fact there’s this connection between women… that you understand when someone is in a tough place. 

At the end of the day, I think Jenna and Cane have a connection that is inevitable and very obvious. It’s something you hear from Bree [Melissa Benoist] and even from their parents. They all thought that they were going to be together and something went wrong. I think in that moment, Peyton recognizes that too, and she can put her rage and her emotionality aside, because why fight something that she also knows is the truth? It also shows Peyton’s heart and how much she is willing to sacrifice herself for other people. I do really like that they come together and there’s this camaraderie between the women, because Jenna’s hurting too.

Had you watched any of Danielle Campbell’s projects before you met on set?

No, which is crazy, because we would go out when we were in Wilmington, and she got stopped all the time. I was like, “Oh my God, my friend’s so famous. She’s so loved, so popular. I love this for you! Yes, let me take your photos!” I’m gonna have to do a binge watch of all of Dani’s work because, I mean, she’s fantastic. She’s so amazing in [The Waterfront] too. I think it’s also a more mature, in-depth role for her, so it’s really cool to see her chops in this.

One of my favorite Waterfront moments is when you and Cane take the gummies during dinner. What was it like filming that scene?

I was so scared. I’ve never had to play high and drunk in a scene, and I got so much advice. It was a lot of trial and error for sure. But I did have to eat a lot of hush puppies, and I had never eaten them before, so it was cool to try them. The entire restaurant smelled like hush puppies, because they were actually cooking them in the back. [The scene] was so playful, and I surprised myself with what came out, because I’d never had to do that. 

It’s funny, because that scene was humorous, but I also feel like it was anxiety-inducing on the level of The Bear.

I love those scenes where everybody has a point of view, and you’re just watching like, “I don’t know…” I mean, at any point they could just start throwing fists. Who knows? The men might fight. The girls might fight. 

On another note, you also voiced the lead character in Star Wars: Outlaws, Kay Vess, in 2024. You played a Latina lead in the Star Wars franchise, which is awesome. What really stands out to me though, is how complex and layered Kay is. Were you involved in the creative process at all?

No, they had been developing the character for years before I even jumped on board. But something happens when you have a script and then you have a real person bringing it to life. It just becomes three dimensional. A lot of life gets breathed into it. They started almost rewriting things in the way that I was performing it, with a little bit of sass and attitude and confidence. It’s all so nuanced and detailed. I think about the rise of AI and how dangerous that could be for all of us, and this is such a prime example of how no matter how much information you input into any machine, it’ll never be the same as someone’s experiences. 

It’s a very collaborative effort. When we were on set and something didn’t match up, I always offered a line that I was like, “This doesn’t feel right. Can I say it this way?” Or like, “This wouldn’t happen. I don’t think Kay would…” And then they incorporated that [feedback], so that was really great. Even if they had a script, I was always able to be true to who I know Kay to be.

You’ve played lots of different kinds of roles over the years, and so many of these properties have massive fanbases, like Star Wars and Star Trek. Does it ever feel nerve-wracking to step into fandom spaces?

I think last summer was probably the biggest test of all, because I went to conventions, I did Comic-Con, and I went to LA for the Game Awards. I was like, “If anything was gonna happen, it would be now,” that people might rival the fact that I’m in Star Trek and Star Wars, and I was there for both. There’s not a lot of actors, if any, that have been in both of these giant franchises. But I actually was met with so much love and excitement. I think because I was so excited and happy, people couldn’t really be mad at that. At the end of the day, it is my job, and it just so happens that I was blessed with both of these projects during the same timeline. I learned a lot. The fandoms are so passionate about anything that they love. It was so beautiful to see the cosplays, the art, and the messages. So no, I wasn’t scared. I was just like, what an honor it is to be in this world. Not a lot of people are privy to that.

Final question: If you could join any franchise, what would it be?

Right now I’m so excited that Maria de Faría, who is also Venezuelan, is in the new Superman. I always dreamt of being in Marvel or DC and being a superhero or supervillain, because I would love to do action. I wanna train and feel strong and do green screens in a really badass film, like Tomb Raider style. When I thought about Latino representation [in film], I always thought about Michelle Rodríguez in Fast & Furious. I want my own version of that where people will be like, “Ooh, it’s like what Humberly was in this action film.” I want to be that one role that becomes so badass and recognized all over.

Absolutely love that. Let’s get Sophie Sanchez to the MCU.

Let’s go to The MCU! I’d like that.

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The Waterfront and Season 3 of Ginny & Georgia are both streaming now on Netflix.

Note: interview has been condensed for length and clarity.