Before her casting on Glee, Naya Rivera had made numerous appearances in small roles on popular primetime television shows.
In casting Glee, series creator Ryan Murphy sought actors who could identify with the rush of starring in theatrical roles.
Auditioning actors with no theatrical experience were required to prove they could sing and dance as well as act.
Rivera drew on her own high school experience of unpopularity to prepare for the role, as well as watching films such as Mean Girls to "really get in the zone and feel like a bitchy Sophomore".
She has described Santana as "your typical high school cheerleader, for the most part," explaining: "She's really mean and loves boys.
She's really witty so I love playing her."
She has characterized Santana as "a bit of a bad girl" who is "really snarky and always has these really witty one-liners she throws out there."
Rivera enjoys the fact Santana is competitive and headstrong as she herself shares those traits, but dislikes Santana's mean streak.
She auditioned for the role as she loves singing, dancing and acting, and had never before had the opportunity to combine all three skills in one project.
She finds the show's pacing challenging, especially the dancing, and commented in June 2009 that her most memorable moment on Glee was performing the Cheerios' glee club audition piece, "I Say a Little Prayer".
Santana played a more prominent part in the last nine episodes of Glee's first season.
Rivera commented: "Santana's been wreaking havoc with people's boyfriends and people's babies and teachers—she's the high school terror, and she's going to continue to be the villain."
Although Santana continues to step over others to get what she wants, she exhibits moments of compassion and loyalty to the glee club.

Rivera has been vocal in her support of the Santana/Brittany relationship, and her attitudes toward Santana's emotional attachment have informed her portrayal of the character.
In April 2010, when asked if any of "the guys" were Santana's soul mate, Rivera answered, "I think that Brittany is her soul mate.
I think that they should end up together.
They're in love."
A month later, when interviewed by The Advocate, she reiterated this point, saying, "Maybe they’ll fall in love.
I do think they're soul mates.
Brittany just gets Santana, even though a lot of people don’t like her."
On December 8, 2010, after a surge of fan disappointment over Twitter at the recent absence of Brittana, Rivera tweeted, "There’s been a Brittana fan uproar…Don’t worry, I miss it too."
In January 2011, after several more "Brittana fan uproars", in an article entitled "The future of Brittana: Outlook Not so good", Rivera expressed the reason for such strong fan response: "Honestly, on a deeper level, to the girls that are going through that and it's not so comical in their world, in their everyday lives, they kind of looked up to us, in a sense.
That's kind of my reason for hoping they continue the storyline."
 Ironically, soon after this pessimistic article, Brad Falchuk, co-creator of Glee, tweeted on January 20, "Brittana is on.
Brittana was always on."

Santana's arc following "Sexy", where she admits her romantic feelings for Brittany, sees Santana come to terms with her sexual orientation.
Falchuk describes Santana, from this point, as having come out internally to herself, but being afraid of coming out to her peers. "
Santana is a lesbian.
She might not be ready to come out yet, but she is."
By the middle of the third season, Santana is both out to her peers, and in a public romantic relationship with Brittany.
Before her casting on Glee, Naya Rivera had made numerous appearances in small roles on popular primetime television shows. In casting Glee, series creator Ryan Murphy sought actors who could identify with the rush of starring in theatrical roles. Auditioning actors with no theatrical experience were required to prove they could sing and dance as well as act. Rivera drew on her own high school experience of unpopularity to prepare for the role, as well as watching films such as Mean Girls to "really get in the zone and feel like a bitchy Sophomore". She has described Santana as "your typical high school cheerleader, for the most part," explaining: "She's really mean and loves boys. She's really witty so I love playing her." She has characterized Santana as "a bit of a bad girl" who is "really snarky and always has these really witty one-liners she throws out there." Rivera enjoys the fact Santana is competitive and headstrong as she herself shares those traits, but dislikes Santana's mean streak. She auditioned for the role as she loves singing, dancing and acting, and had never before had the opportunity to combine all three skills in one project. She finds the show's pacing challenging, especially the dancing, and commented in June 2009 that her most memorable moment on Glee was performing the Cheerios' glee club audition piece, "I Say a Little Prayer". Santana played a more prominent part in the last nine episodes of Glee's first season. Rivera commented: "Santana's been wreaking havoc with people's boyfriends and people's babies and teachers—she's the high school terror, and she's going to continue to be the villain." Although Santana continues to step over others to get what she wants, she exhibits moments of compassion and loyalty to the glee club.
Rivera has been vocal in her support of the Santana/Brittany relationship, and her attitudes toward Santana's emotional attachment have informed her portrayal of the character. In April 2010, when asked if any of "the guys" were Santana's soul mate, Rivera answered, "I think that Brittany is her soul mate. I think that they should end up together. They're in love." A month later, when interviewed by The Advocate, she reiterated this point, saying, "Maybe they’ll fall in love. I do think they're soul mates. Brittany just gets Santana, even though a lot of people don’t like her." On December 8, 2010, after a surge of fan disappointment over Twitter at the recent absence of Brittana, Rivera tweeted, "There’s been a Brittana fan uproar…Don’t worry, I miss it too." In January 2011, after several more "Brittana fan uproars", in an article entitled "The future of Brittana: Outlook Not so good", Rivera expressed the reason for such strong fan response: "Honestly, on a deeper level, to the girls that are going through that and it's not so comical in their world, in their everyday lives, they kind of looked up to us, in a sense. That's kind of my reason for hoping they continue the storyline."  Ironically, soon after this pessimistic article, Brad Falchuk, co-creator of Glee, tweeted on January 20, "Brittana is on. Brittana was always on."
Santana's arc following "Sexy", where she admits her romantic feelings for Brittany, sees Santana come to terms with her sexual orientation. Falchuk describes Santana, from this point, as having come out internally to herself, but being afraid of coming out to her peers. "Santana is a lesbian. She might not be ready to come out yet, but she is." By the middle of the third season, Santana is both out to her peers, and in a public romantic relationship with Brittany.
Santana Lopez