As for Penelope Cruz, she prepared for the role of Virginia Vallejo by studying hours and hours of her many televised interviews and shows. Tapping into the emotions of the hard parts of Vallejo's life seems to have been an interesting challenge for Cruz. She explained, “When you portray a character like Virginia, I can’t judge her or justify her. I have the feeling she didn’t know quite what she was getting into. As an actor, I just have to try to understand what was going through her mind when she made some of those decisions. After a while, when she wanted to get out of that relationship, she couldn’t, and that affected her life in so many different ways. There were some scenes that were very hard-core, very hard to play because you had to go to those places. And for me, it was important that this movie was not glamorising the world of the Narco. I feel like some of those scenes have to leave you with pain in your stomach. It can not be a gratuitous violence. I think that our film has accomplished that."