Salma Hayek has been a Hollywood starlet for decades, appearing in dozens of films and earning an Oscar nomination for her role in Frida.
The actress gained international fame thanks to one role but almost lost her opportunity. Here’s how Salma Hayek got cast in the cult classic From Dusk Till Dawn:
⭐ Salma Hayek’s Rise: From Telenovelas to Hollywood Stardom
Born in Mexico, Salma Hayek dreamed of becoming an actress from a young age. She studied acting early on, and after graduating from Universidad Iberoamericana in Mexico City, she set out to pursue a serious acting career.
Hayek’s first role was in the Mexican telenovela Teresa, where she played the titular role. After just a few years starring in the show, she moved to Los Angeles, California, to pursue an acting career in America.
Salma Hayek had her breakthrough as Carolina in the 1995 American neo-Western action film Desperado (Credit: Sony Pictures)
The actress began with many minor roles but was eventually cast in Desperado, which brought her to prominence in Hollywood. A year after acting in Desperado, Hayek starred in From Dusk Till Dawn, a film written by Quentin Tarantino.
🎬 The Wild Story Behind Hayek’s Casting in From Dusk Till Dawn
Fresh off his Best Writing Oscar win for Pulp Fiction, Quentin Tarantino teamed up with director Robert Rodriguez and rounded up some of the finest actors Hollywood had to offer, like George Clooney and Harvey Keitel, for the action-horror film From Dusk Till Dawn.
Quentin Tarantino wrote the screenplay, and George Clooney starred as Seth Gecko in the 1996 American action horror film From Dusk Till Dawn (Credit: Miramax Films / WENN)
Salma Hayek was cast, too, but, as mentioned, she almost lost the part.
✍️ How Tarantino Wrote a Role Just for Salma Hayek
Hayek and Rodriguez had worked together before filming From Dusk Till Dawn. He had hired her to play the role of a stripper in a previous movie of his, Four Rooms.
Salma Hayek as Santanico Pandemonium, the Vampire Queen of the Titty Twister and a former dhampir, in From Dusk till Dawn (Credit: Miramax Films / WENN)
Tarantino saw her performance and wrote the part of Santanico Pandemonium specifically for Hayek. Filmed during the summer of 1995, Salma was 28 years old while shooting at the fictitious Titty Twister bar.
Born on September 2, 1966, in Coatzacoalcos, a port city in the southern part of the Mexican state of Veracruz, she was 29 years old when the film was released on January 17, 1996.
🐍 Hayek’s Biggest Fear Almost Cost Her the Role
Hayek was ready to act in From Dusk Till Dawn. She had signed on to play stripper Santanico Pandemonium, but Tarantino and Rodriguez added a new requirement: Hayek would have to dance while holding a snake.
Salma Hayek reluctantly agreed to portray a snake-dancing stripper vampire in From Dusk Till Dawn (Credit: Miramax Films / WENN)
Hayek’s one major caveat regarding the new requirement was that she was terrified of snakes. Tarantino told Hayek he would give the part to Madonna, claiming she was interested, so Hayek figured out a way to work with a snake despite her phobia.
“Quentin told me, ‘Oh, by the way, you’re dancing with a snake.’ I said, ‘I can’t do that, I can’t do that. It’s my greatest fear,’” Hayek recalled during a 2017 Role Recall interview with Yahoo Entertainment.
“He said, well, Madonna will do it, I already talked to her, and she’s willing to dance with the snake,” she added.
“It was good because I had to overcome my greatest fear. I had to go on trance to do the dance… And there was no choreography. It was improvised. Because you can’t choreograph a snake, we don’t know what she’s going to do!”
🧠 How Hayek Tricked Her Mind to Dance With a Snake
Salma Hayek Pinault’s iconic outfit as Santanico Pandemonium was designed by costume designer Graciela Mazón, who crafted an unforgettable look featuring a feathered headdress, a bejeweled bikini, and a dramatic aesthetic that captured the character’s seductive, otherworldly presence.
Hayek performed the now-legendary dance barefoot—which isn’t surprising, given Quentin Tarantino’s well-known affection for featuring feet in his films.
The petite actress, who needed to pay rent, wasn’t willing to give up the role, but it wasn’t easy for her to dance with the snake.
Salma Hayek Pinault stuns as Santanico Pandemonium in From Dusk Till Dawn, wearing an iconic feathered headdress and bejeweled bikini that defined one of the most unforgettable dance scenes in cult film history (Credit: Miramax Films / WENN)
She prepared for a month in advance, and after learning that snakes symbolize power in certain cultures, the actor put herself in a trance to perform the scene, improvising the entire choreography.
🍿 From Dusk Till Dawn’s Legacy—and Hayek’s Iconic Scene
Like many of Quentin Tarantino’s collaborations, From Dusk Till Dawn has achieved cult classic status—thanks in large part to Salma Hayek’s unforgettable snake-dancing scene, which remains one of the film’s most iconic moments.
Salma Hayek performed a memorable table-top snake dance as a vampire queen in Rodriguez’s cult horror film From Dusk till Dawn (Credit: Miramax Films / WENN)
Had Hayek not needed to pay the rent, she might not have kept the role and overcome her fear of snakes, and we might not have ended up with the iconic film From Dusk Till Dawn.
Salma Hayek’s barefoot dance in From Dusk Till Dawn wasn’t just unforgettable—it was also very on-brand for director Quentin Tarantino. Known for his cinematic obsession with feet, Tarantino has featured barefoot or standout shoe moments in many of his films. Here are a few more iconic examples that prove Salma was in stylish company:
Stepping Into the Spotlight: Quentin Tarantino’s Iconic Footwear Moments
Quentin Tarantino’s films are renowned for their distinctive storytelling and stylistic choices, including a notable emphasis on feet and footwear. Here are some standout shoe moments from his movies::contentReference[oaicite:0]{index=0}
Uma Thurman’s Barefoot Scenes in ‘Kill Bill’
- Film: ‘Kill Bill: Volume 1’ (2003)
- Scene: The Bride, portrayed by Uma Thurman, wills her atrophied feet to move after awakening from a coma, highlighting her bare feet in a poignant sequence.
- Significance: This scene underscores the character’s determination and Tarantino’s recurring focus on feet.
- More Details: Uma Thurman’s iconic barefoot scene in ‘Kill Bill’
Margaret Qualley’s Feet on Display in ‘Once Upon a Time in Hollywood’
- Film: ‘Once Upon a Time in Hollywood’ (2019)
- Scene: Pussycat, played by Margaret Qualley, presses her bare feet against Cliff Booth’s (Brad Pitt) car windshield during a ride.
- Significance: The scene exemplifies Tarantino’s signature inclusion of foot imagery in his films.
- More Details: Margaret Qualley’s memorable foot scene in ‘Once Upon a Time in Hollywood’
Julia Butters in Transparent Pumps at the SAG Awards
- Event: 2020 Screen Actors Guild Awards
- Outfit: Julia Butters, known for her role in ‘Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,’ attended the awards in a glamorous ensemble featuring see-through pumps.
- Significance: Her choice of footwear added a modern, stylish touch to her red carpet appearance.
- More Details: Julia Butters’ fashion-forward look at the SAG Awards
Victoria Pedretti’s Role in ‘Once Upon a Time in Hollywood’
- Film: ‘Once Upon a Time in Hollywood’ (2019)
- Role: Victoria Pedretti portrayed Leslie “Lulu” Van Houten, a member of the Manson family.
- Significance: While specific shoe moments are not highlighted, her inclusion in Tarantino’s filmography contributes to the director’s ensemble of memorable characters.
- More Details: Victoria Pedretti’s journey to ‘Once Upon a Time in Hollywood’
These instances showcase Quentin Tarantino’s distinctive incorporation of foot and footwear imagery, adding depth and personal flair to his cinematic storytelling.
Salma Hayek leads a busy life. If you spent time traveling between houses in London, Paris, Washington, and Los Angeles, you’d also suffer from jet lag.
Sleep-Deprived But Stylish: Salma Hayek Hits Jimmy Kimmel in Gucci and Glitter Heels
Salma Hayek wears her hair down while leaving ABC studios after filming “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” on March 20, 2016, in Los Angeles (Credit: Michael Wright / WENN)
In March 2016, Salma arrived at ABC Studios in Los Angeles for her appearance on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” She was running on three days of no sleep. Yikes.
Salma stayed loyal to one of her go-to brands, Gucci, for her lace dress, which featured the brand’s signature colors around the waist.
Salma Hayek steps out in a sheer black lace Gucci dress cinched with the brand’s signature striped belt, pairing the bold look with glitter-covered Giambattista Valli block heels and strappy front detailing (Credit: Michael Wright / WENN)
The actress turned to Giambattista Valli for her gorgeous, glittered, chunky-heeled sandals.
“I haven’t seen him since he started this part of his entertainment career. I don’t think he would listen to me, no,” Salma told Jimmy about her thoughts on Donald Trump.
“You don’t need to talk sense into him, everyone is entitled to their own madness. You need to talk sense into the people who are not seeing the madness.”
Salma Hayek shows off a nude pedicure in glitter-heeled Giambattista Valli sandals featuring multiple black suede straps and gold-tone buckle accents for a bold, glamorous finish (Credit: Michael Wright / WENN)
We’re pretty sure the jet lag and sleeplessness made her incoherent, which showed in her outfit choice. The dress was custom-made with a black fabric rather than the collection’s traditional green style, which doesn’t make sense to us.
Her Giambattista Valli heels are gorgeous, but, come on, lace and glitter? Really?
Salma Hayek poses for photos with fans despite her lack of sleep (Credit: Michael Wright / WENN)
Even if her jet lag incoherence manifested in her clothing choice, Salma could hold down the fort on her Spanish-English struggle.
You can order a Giambattista Valli pair from the same collection similar to Salma’s at Farfetch.
Giambattista Valli Embellished-Heel Sandals, $1,105.04