He was right on the cusp of it all. And then injuries happened – serious damage to the meniscus and patella.
Fernandez lost a year of crucial development. However, all this time he attended evening courses: journalism, media, fine arts. It was like a backup option—an emergency option. But it became something he had to think about.
“I really relate to the Roy Kent storyline, like what happens after football and you go through an existential crisis. That happened to me,” he said.
His studies were in some disarray. He attended some classes but not others. He had classmates both older and younger. Fernandez was hanging on by a thread and was still trying to achieve a dream that was becoming less and less a reality. However, it turned out that he plays well. He was invited to the school theater. And that was all.
“I discovered a new passion that probably wasn’t as big as football later on. But I love telling stories. I love movies,” he said.
“American Psycho”, “Pulp Fiction” and “Fight Club” were his early interests. He also loved Mexican films. He tried football again but was unable to succeed. For three years he stuck around in Guadalajara, starring in short films and commercials, saving money. He got his first job playing an insurance salesman and used the money to go to acting school in the UK. This, he admitted, was terrible.
“I felt very comfortable in Guadalajara. I love my city, I love my family, I love my friends and that’s where I always want to be,” he said. “But it gets to the point where if you want to achieve certain goals, sometimes you can’t achieve them in your hometown.
“You have to go out and really push yourself, and I did that with this crazy dream of acting and film. It was more than just being a good actor or not – because that’s not for me to talk about. I just know that I achieved certain things in my life because I really put myself into situations and scenarios.”