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Eva Longoria is magnetic when she tells stories—both onscreen and IRL. When she hops onto Zoom from the Cannes Film Festival to share her latest passion project, her whole face lights up and I can't help but lean closer to my screen. “The story found me,” she tells Glamour. “My agent sent me the script, and I was like, ‘I need to tell this story.’”
The script in question became Longoria's directorial debut, Flamin' Hot, which chronicles Richard Montañez's path from janitor at Frito Lay to the man who made Flamin' Hot Cheetos a global phenomenon. “He's Mexican American,” she says. “And you know, he looks like me, he looks like my dad, he sounds like my family. It was a community I knew well.” Longoria has always been vocal about her role as a Latina multihyphenate in Hollywood. (At the peak of her Desperate Housewives fame, she famously remarked on the subversive thrill of being a Latina on television who employed a white gardener.)
“I've been told no,” she says. “I've been told, 'You shouldn't do that. No, women don't do those jobs. Ideas don't come from people like you.’” In those rejections, she recognized the same obstacles Montañez faces throughout his narrative. “He's there to say, ‘But why not?’” she says. “He really questioned this archaic system and protocol, and changed it.”
Longoria has worn many hats throughout her career of questioning archaic systems: actor, producer, director, founding member of Time’s Up, activist, philanthropist—the list goes on. On the Cannes red carpet, she's also a L'Oréal ambassador of almost 20 years, there to highlight the L'Oréal Paris Lights on Women Award, the brand's commitment to honoring one rising female filmmaker in partnership with the Short Films competition. “It's hard for female filmmakers to have opportunities in this industry, and it's important to applaud them when they get it,” she says.
Cannes is also an opportunity for Longoria, a self-described “skin care maximalist,” to roll out the beauty glam. “That's the fun part of Cannes,” she says. “Every red carpet is different, and it's a lot of fun putting those looks together.”
During our interview Longoria gives me a hint about the direction of her next big look. “Last night it was a lip moment, but tonight it will definitely be an eye moment,” she says. When I scroll through Instagram the next day, it turns out to be a combination of chromecore eye shadows paired with siren eyeliner. In the background of her post, she blasts the Ozuna track named after her, winking at the camera when he drops her name.
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Not every day is a Cannes moment for Longoria, but off the carpet, she still stays committed to an extensive routine. “The creams and potions and serums and everything, the light therapies,” she says. “I do so much skin care.” She's also not shy about sharing exactly what that routine entails.
Ahead, Eva Longoria shares her cleansing tips and hydrating on-set essentials for Glamour’s Drop the Routine.
My cleansers
I only use a cleanser at night; I don't cleanse in the morning. I think there's a such thing as overcleansing. I like to get my makeup off with my Bliss Mighty Biome Cleansing Balm and a muslin cloth to really get exfoliated. And then I'll wash my face with my Kiehl's Midnight Recovery Botanical Cleansing Oil.
My face mist and serum
I'm a skin care maximalist, so my routine takes about 20 minutes—the creams and potions and serums and everything. There's always a face mist: the Beautycounter Counter+ Brightening Facial Mist. Then I go in with my serum. I love the L'Oréal Revitalift 1.5% Pure Hyaluronic Acid Serum and use it morning and night.
I stick with products for about a year; it also depends what my skin is going through. If I'm dry—I was just shooting in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and it's super dry there. So I was all about my hyaluronic acid serum. I had to have a way more hydrating routine while I was there. I had a humidifier in my room, it was so drying. But when I'm in LA or Texas, which is more humid, then I don't need as much hydration. Then it's more about plumping or refining.
My moisturizers
I remember doing a commercial with L'Oréal's Revitalift Triple Power Anti-Aging Moisturizer, this cream that has vitamin C and hyaluronic acid. It's plumping—I was like, Oh my God, it's one cream with everything. I use it at night as the last product in my skin care routine. I love that it is has three: hyaluronic acid, vitamin C, and pro-retinol. It leaves my skin feeling smooth and hydrated.
My sunscreen
I love the L'Oréal Revitalift Triple Power Day Lotion SPF 30. It has sunblock, but it's not chalky; it's actually super hydrating. I'm like, This cannot be a sunblock! And it is.
My devices
Right now I'm very much into the Facify Beauty Wand, which is this face massager. It has these rotating balls, you turn it on, and it vibrates, rotates, heats up, and cools. It's this great little machine. I use it every day, especially when I'm shooting, and it just gets the blood flowing. You're doing a facial massage, like doing the work of gua sha but easier because these balls are electronic and they're moving for you. And then I'm using the Lyma Laser lately. Oh my God, I noticed such a difference. Those two have been my go-tos.
Sarah Y. Wu is a beauty writer in Berlin. Follow her on Instagram @say.wu.
