Ulysses was one of the main characters in the first season of “Welcome to Eden”, but died in the last episode after a confrontation with Zoa and Ibón. The actor who brought him to life, Álex Pastrana, was relatively new to the entertainment industry and had to go through a long process to get the role.
The Netflix series premiered in May 2022 and had an international cast, from Mexican stars like Belinda to renowned Spanish actresses like Amaia Salamanca.
Although Álex Pastrana did not return for season 2, which was released on April 21, 2023, the career of the Venezuelan-Spanish interpreter has been on the rise, adding to productions such as season 7 of “Elite” and “La jefa”.
THE STEPS OF THE CASTING THAT ÁLEX PASTRANA FOLLOWED FOR “WELCOME TO EDEN”
It all started in September 2020, when Álex Pastrana was still studying at Estudio Corazza. Confidentially, he received the opportunity to test for a series, but he did not have much information about it, because they did not want the information to leak.
“He gave clues such as knowing how to dive was valued, a paradisiacal environment. I visualized it as ‘Outer Banks’. And the reprints were really cool, which is something that doesn’t happen every day.”, he explained in a Esquire interview in 2022.
The first step was to do a remote audition that consisted of recording himself saying some of the lines of the characters. However, Pastrana did not have high hopes, considering the large number of people who were applying.
“I recorded the selftape, it turned out okay, but I knew it was a pretty massive phase, so I had no hopes. A month later the second phase arrived, more selective, the stomach tightens. Another selftape, another month of waiting”, he added.
During that time, he had already finished his studies in Corazza and the urge to get a job was getting stronger. Fortunately, he was called in for one last test in person.
“When they told me that they were doing an antigen test before the casting, I thought they were serious. There you find out that there are only two actors left per character, that you have passed the international Netflix filter, Ugh! And finally, after another month, the yes came”, he said very proudly.