20-year-old Elva Guerra has fans seeking out more information on her after making a name for herself in Dark Winds.
The AMC series highlights three Navajo Tribal Police officers in the American Southwest during the 1970s. Based largely on two different books, Listening Woman and People of Darkness, these police officers follow a series of seemingly unrelated crimes before they expose something terrifying from the past.
Coming from McAlester, Oklahoma, up-and-comer Elva Guerra is part of the core cast of actors in all 12 episodes released thus far.
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Elva Guerra Used to Get Mistaken for Being Asian
Growing up in Oklahoma, Guerra would often be mistaken for being Asian, as she discussed in an interview with Native Hustle.
In their youth, they were "one of the only Native/Mexican kids" at their school, and other kids automatically assumed they were Asian without asking them about their background:
"Even growing up…I grew up in McAlester, Oklahoma, which, at the time, it was like a small city town. But I was one of the only Native/Mexican kids at my school, and they automatically just assumed I was Asian and didn’t even listen to me when I was like, 'I’m Native, Mexican…'"
However, in recent years, they've seen Native people "getting recognized as Native people rather than anything other than that" more than in her past. They feel people are becoming "more educated on how Native people live" and are more willing to learn about people of their same background:
"I really do think that Native people are getting recognized as Native people rather than anything other than that or if they’re just recognized as Mexican only, or like, it’s not possible for Native people to be mixed. I feel like people are getting more educated on how Native people live. Indigenous people as a whole, we’re not all the same, we don’t have all the same traditions and things that we do. We all are different. Ponca people are not the same as Navajo people in traditions, stuff like that."
Elva is Two-Spirit
Guerra expresses pride in identifying as two-spirit, a term in the Indigenous community that refers to a person identifying as having both a masculine and feminine spirit. It also ties back to her identifying as non-binary and using "they/them" pronouns.
The Dark Winds star explained how being two-spirit was just part of their nature, not wanting to make it complicated with too much terminology (per Native News Online):
"Two-spirit means to me that I’m just me. At the end of the day, I’m just here, and I’m just Elva, and I like that. I don’t make it that complicated because it can be very easy to dive into this world and get lost and confused because there’s so much you can talk about: being queer, non-binary, two-spirit.
To them, the term means "being protected and valid in [their] identity," feeling qualities of both men and women that have related to them for a long time:
"Being two-spirit to me just means being protected and valid in my identity. I’m neither a man nor a woman, but I feel a lot of qualities in both that I relate to and have always related to since I was very young. It’s definitely very affirming, to me, the word two-spirit."
They also admitted how tough it can be identifying as two-spirit and how talking to others like them have helped them feel more secure in that identity:
"I do. It’s been a tough kind of journey identifying with two-spirit. Still, I’ve gotten a lot of comments, and I’ve talked with a lot of other two-spirit people, and I think that they helped me identify with that word way more and know what it means to me and what it means to be two-spirit specifically."
The actress loves how two-spirit is something specifically for "queer Indigenous people," praising the community that they and others like them have built:
"I think it’s beautiful that we can reclaim that as queer Indigenous people. It’s a specific word just for us, and I love that. It’s definitely been a journey and kind of a tough time figuring out who and what I am, but I think that one thing that makes me solidify my identity is the word two-spirit and hanging out with other two-spirits and talking to them about that. It’s just a very nice community to have."
Elva Thought She Was Auditioning as a Background Actor on Reservation Dogs
Guerra first became a figure on TV through their role on Reservation Dogs, which started in 2020 when they were cast as Jackie.
Speaking with Casting Networks, they looked back on how they "had never acted before" auditioning for Reservation Dogs. They had seen "a casting search that was looking for Native teens" for an upcoming show, and they were surprised to see the team had lines for them to try when they got to the audition:
"I was 16 when it all started back in 2020 and had never acted before. I saw on somebody’s Instagram story a casting search that was looking for Native teens to be in an upcoming TV show. I initially thought they were looking for background actors so when I showed up at the casting location, I was surprised to learn they had lines for me to read."
The Jackie character did not exist yet, meaning Guerra had to read for another part using what they'd learned "through a school film class." Being the only one there with dyed hair, the show team had the actress keep her hair like that after liking it so much in the audition as well:
"I was actually auditioning for Elora because the character of Jackie didn’t exist yet. I gave the best read I could using what I’d learned through a school film class, as well as what I could gather about the character. When I walked out of the audition room, I saw the hallway just filled with Native kids, and I was the only one there with dyed hair. I had the same style at the time that Jackie has in 'Reservation Dogs:' because Sterlin ended up liking it so much that he had me do it for the show."
Elva's Co-Star Helped Her Get Cast in Dark Winds
Guerra worked on Reservation Dogs with leading actor Zahn McClarnon, who fans also know from the MCU's Hawkeye and Echo.
Speaking with Casting Networks, they shared that McClarnon recommended her to be on Dark Winds before they ended up playing one of the show's leading characters, Sally Growing Thunder:
"It paved the way for me to do an episode of 'Rutherford Falls,' which I actually booked after 'Reservation Dogs,' even though it came out first. And a fellow cast member from 'Reservation Dogs,' Zahn McClarnon, recommended me for an upcoming AMC show called 'Dark Winds.' I ended up booking a series regular role on it, playing a character named Sally Growing Thunder. 'Dark Winds' is coming out this year — we already filmed it — and playing Sally was such a contrast to Jackie.
This role helped them realize they had "the versatility as an actor" to play different kinds of roles while realizing they could make a career out of acting:
"The characters are drastically different, and it was encouraging to see that I had the versatility as an actor to be capable of both roles. It led to this moment where I started believing I could really make this into a career. 'Reservation Dogs' made that possible."
Sally is the daughter of Ada Growing Thunder, a mysterious woman who is acquainted with multiple members of the Buffalo Society. Sally also got pregnant as a teenager as the series dives into her challenges with being a parent.
How to Follow Elva Guerra Online
Those looking to follow Elva Guerra online can do so via their Instagram page (@elvaquerra).
Dark Winds is streaming on AMC+, Netflix, and The Roku Channel.
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