Entertainment

Blanca From 'Orange Is The New Black' Looks Like A Different Person In Real Life

by Billy Lorusso
Netflix/YouTube

OK, so it's no huge secret actors can take on some dramatically different looks when they get into character.

I mean, Mike Myers was practically unrecognizable as Shrek. It's all part of the craft, right? Well, the women of Orange Is The New Black are certainly no exception to this rule. They, too, are dedicated to looking their parts on the show.

In and out of costume, the inmates of Litchfield look like different people, and I would like to call attention to one cast member in particular whose on-set and off-set looks are polar opposites.

That's right, Blanca Flores. You may know Blanca as the darkly humored inmate who started a peaceful protest and peed her pants in Season 4. On the show, she has messy hair, poor hygiene, and a unibrow that would make Frida Kahlo gasp.

But, in real life, Laura Gómez is the exact opposite: She has gorgeous dark hair, a beautiful smile, and is noticeably lacking a unibrow.

Gómez's drastic physical transformation while in character only complements the amazing work she does as an actress on the show.

For comparison, here is a picture of Gómez in character as Blanca:

Netflix/YouTube

And here is a picture of Gómez in real life:

Here she is again, on set, scowling as Blanca:

Netflix/YouTube

And here she is again in real life, not scowling, and looking fabulous:

Here is one more example of how drastic Gómez's transformation is, side by side, for your comparison:

Netflix/Wetpaint/YouTube

Looks aren't the only thing different about Blanca and Laura Gómez, though. During an interview with Wetpaint, you can see how genuine and sweet the actress is, which is very different from her outwardly tough character.

Though the actress and the character are drastically different in some areas, Gómez said during the interview she "connect[s] with [Blanca] in that [they] have the same temper." She went on to say that her character is "very odd, but very wise."

All I know is, different or not, I can't picture anyone else playing Blanca as well as Gómez does.