Posted by trx72 at dialup-67.73.35.79.dial1.losangeles1.level3.net on October 17, 2003 at 01:31:28:
Ben's jitters, 'Jersey Girl': Raquel explains it all
By Susan Wloszczyna, USA TODAY
Watch out, Ms. Welch. There's another Raquel out there ready to take the world by storm.
Raquel Castro may only be 9 and has but one feature to her credit. But as the co-star of Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez's other film, Jersey Girl, the Long Island fourth-grader has seen her share of off-screen drama.
"They were saying that because Gigli was a bad movie, they may not bring out Jersey Girl," she says of Ben 'n' Jen's notorious summer flop. "I thought, 'All that work and nothing?'"
Not to worry. The domestic comedy about a workaholic PR exec (Affleck) who must raise his 6-year-old daughter alone after his wife (Lopez) suddenly dies will open March 19 after being moved from this fall.
During her audition, Raquel — who is of Puerto Rican descent, just like her movie mom — figured out quickly that she nailed it. "This lady kept staring at me. Kevin Smith (the director/writer) kept staring at me. They thought I looked like J. Lo. I told my parents, 'I think I got the part.'"
Raquel, who performs songs from Sweeney Todd in the movie and may do a musical version of Interview With the Vampire on Broadway, found the real-life couple to be "very nice. They understand kids. This was Ben's first movie with a kid, and he might not be scared of being a dad now."
She also stands up for the tabloid-taunted pair. "I don't think they are telling the truth about Jen and Ben. I think they are still going to get married. Ben just got nervous. Sometimes, when it's your first wedding, that happens." Yes, she is only 9.