Americans know him as the “king of Latin pop.” But Ricky Martin —whose most famous song, “Livin’ La Vida Loca,” is listed in the Library of Congress' National Recording Registry — wants to break back into acting.
And at age 52, he’s squaring off against Oscar nominee Kristen Wiig in the star-studded miniseries “Palm Royale,” which premieres Wednesday on Apple TV+.
“We fight each other. We don’t agree with each other. We don’t like each other in the beginning of the show. And I think that’s because we’re so alike,” he said in a video interview with NBC News.
The comedy drama miniseries takes place in 1969 and follows Maxine Simmons (played by Wiig), who is determined to get into a high society resort club in Palm Beach, Florida, where Robert Diaz, Martin’s character, works as a bartender.
The show also features best supporting actress Oscar winners Allison Janney and Laura Dern and Emmy-winning comedy legend Carol Burnett.
Martin says that Diaz, like Simmons, is driven by a need to fit in. And while he has been able to gain acceptance into the club “organically,” Simmons is much more disruptive.
“She just wants to be abrupt, and a bit vulgar. And forceful into this world. So we have many clashes in the beginning. But then, because I am empathetic, I hold her hand, and I bring her with me,” Martin said about his character, “because I feel that she’s being abused, and Robert has been abused in the past.”
Historically, Palm Beach has been a home to many of the elite and powerful, from President John F. Kennedy’s winter White House to former President Donald Trump’s opulent private club and residence.
Martin said that the miniseries holds a mirror to different types of segregation that divided society then and now.
“I think it’s a reality that we still face in a lot of clubs in America and in Europe nowadays where a very selected group of people can be part of it,” he said.
Viewers will see the exclusive members of the high society Palm Beach resort contrasted against wider social movements demanding change.
In 1969, for example, the Supreme Court ruled that school districts had to desegregate immediately, and 250,000 people marched on the nation's capital to protest the Vietnam War.
And “Palm Royale,” Martin said, can remind viewers that in order to find happiness, they will need to step out of comfortable spaces to discover who they are “without wearing a mask.”
Off-screen, Martin is a music legend. The singer-turned-actor became a star at a young age in the iconic Puerto Rican boy band Menudo before striking out to become a global pop sensation.
“The wave of music was so powerful that I had no choice but to start surfing that wave, and the story speaks for itself,” he said, looking back on his music career. “We have been able to reach all parts of the world through music.”
And just as his music made inroads in American pop culture, Martin hopes he can do the same with his acting.
“The first time I had the opportunity to do television, to hear the word ‘action’ in front of the camera as an actor, I was 15 years old,” he said. “Then, I had the opportunity to do theater. I even auditioned for New York University, to enter the drama department at the Tisch School of the Arts.”
Martin starred in the revival of the hit musical “Evita” on Broadway over a decade ago. Now, he hopes that “Palm Royale” will be a new steppingstone to a wider acting career.
“At this stage in my life, at my age, I needed to play a little more with emotions, but in this way, to tell stories that are not through music, stories of impact, that make viewers think," Martin said, "and that they go to bed with a little emotional homework to make them better people.”
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