Mar Bonelly Achieves a Dream with «Tierra de amor y coraje»: «Dreams Do Come True»
Posted on 09/26/26 at 12:56
- Mar Bonelly brings Adela to life
- Mexico transformed her career as an actress
- Rejections strengthened her professional path.
Mar Bonelly is living one of those moments that allow her to look back and understand why the sacrifices were worth it. The Dominican actress plays Adela in Tierra de amor y coraje, a character loaded with love, resentment, and desires for revenge.
In an interview with Alonso Bañuelas for MundoNow, Bonelly talked about this new professional challenge, but also opened the door to much more personal episodes: from leaving the Dominican Republic at 18 to facing rejections, eating problems, and starting from scratch in Mexico.
Adela, a woman divided between love and revenge
Mar Bonelly doesn’t try to present Adela simply as the villain of the story. For her, understanding the character requires looking at what happened with Jerónimo, played by Brandon Peniche, and a relationship that Adela never managed to overcome.
«You’re missing the description that she’s a totally scorned woman,» she replied with laughter when Alonso Bañuelas mentioned some of the character’s characteristics. For Adela, she explained, Jerónimo was the man with whom she imagined growing old and forming a family.
That future didn’t happen, and the breakup left the character trapped between two emotions. «She has the two strongest feelings, which for me are love and hate,» Bonelly explained about the conflict that drives Adela.
Although her actions could provoke rejection among the audience, the actress hopes that viewers will also manage to understand where she’s coming from. «I think we’re going to hate her and justify her at the same time,» she assured.
Mar Bonelly reveals what it was like working with Brandon Peniche
The project also represented an opportunity for Bonelly to share scenes with a new cast. As she recounted, she did her casting alongside Sofía Castro and Brandon Peniche, an experience that from the beginning felt natural and relaxed.
The actress had affectionate words for Peniche, with whom she shared a significant part of her work. She described him as an actor from whom she could learn, but also highlighted his behavior behind the cameras and his generosity as a partner.
Bonelly took the opportunity to talk about a change she perceives within productions. «I already feel that being a diva, being arrogant, treating people badly, is no longer in style, because everything is known,» she stated.
For her, talent is no longer enough: a production also needs people capable of coexisting for months. «Apart from obviously being a good actor,» she said, it’s valued «that you’re a good partner.»
From watching telenovelas to working with «El Güero» Castro
One of the most emotional moments of the conversation came when Bañuelas reminded her that the little girl who grew up watching telenovelas now forms part of a production by José Alberto «El Güero» Castro.
Bonelly’s connection to telenovelas comes from her name. During the interview, she revealed that she’s named María del Mar after Marimar, a fact that surprised the interviewer himself and which she presented as a scoop.
When talking about what it means to reach this professional moment, the actress became emotional. «I feel that dreams do come true,» she confessed before recalling that, when she was studying at the CEA, working with a producer like Castro was one of her great aspirations.
Bonelly defined acting as a career of «persistence and resistance.» The «no’s,» she pointed out, are an inevitable part of the profession and don’t necessarily mean a lack of talent, but rather that a particular opportunity may not correspond to that moment in life.
The rejection that began in a beauty pageant
That way of understanding failure also has roots in her youth. At 18, she participated in Miss Dominican Republic and didn’t win the crown, despite the expectations surrounding that experience.
Over time, her interpretation of that result changed. «Sometimes the outcome doesn’t have to do with how much you did to reach the goal, it’s just that sometimes it’s not your turn,» she reflected.
The actress assures that accumulating negatives also taught her to value opportunities differently. When a «yes» finally arrives, she explained, the response is one of gratitude and trying to be fully present to enjoy it.
Mar Bonelly: Left the Dominican Republic at 18 to pursue her dream
Bonelly made a decisive decision at a very young age: to leave the Dominican Republic and move to Mexico. Her objective was clear since she was a girl, when she watched telenovelas like Rosalinda, Rubí, and productions starring Thalía, in addition to the RBD phenomenon.
In the commercial breaks, she saw promotions for Televisa’s CEA and thought: «I want to be there, I want to do novels.» At 18, she sent in her casting, was accepted, and began a new stage of her life in Mexico.
Contrary to what might be expected when emigrating so young, she assured that she never had the impulse to return due to feeling lonely. «Mexico is a country that hugs you,» she said, recalling how she found friendships and a community that accompanied her from her early years.
The adaptation also had a professional component. Bonelly worked to neutralize her Dominican accent, something she considers necessary to interpret certain characters within Mexican television.
Mar Bonelly: An eating problem that ended up becoming a purpose
The conversation also addressed a more delicate stage. Bonelly confirmed that she did face eating-related problems and recalled as fundamental the accompaniment of her mother, who sought professional help to teach her to eat in a balanced way.
«Something dark can become a purpose,» she reflected. From that personal process, De Fit Store, her healthy food business, would eventually be born, and according to her, it’s the only venture she currently maintains.
Her experience in beauty pageants, she clarified, wasn’t something she considers negative. Although she would have liked to win and make it to Miss Universe, she used that platform to become known in the Dominican Republic and later work in television and radio.
Mar Bonelly: Faith, love, and plans that are still to be fulfilled
Faith occupies another important place in her life. Bonelly cited biblical passages during the conversation to which she resorts in complicated moments and shared a phrase that she keeps close while working: «I can do all things in Christ who strengthens me.»
She also clarified a rumor about her relationship with Daniel. Although many people interpreted a trip through Europe as a sign of engagement, she explained that there’s still no ring, although both know they want to build that future together.
Professionally, Bonelly wants to continue opening paths in both film and television. She didn’t mention a specific director as a goal: her priority, she said, is to continue growing and finding new opportunities in Mexico.
For now, Adela concentrates a good part of that illusion. When inviting the public to watch Tierra de amor y coraje, Bonelly assured that she gave her all to the character and trusted that it’s enough to see the first episode to enter the story.
The actress who once observed Televisa from the Dominican Republic is now inside the screen she dreamed of reaching. And her journey, marked by moves, rejections, and new opportunities, seems to be summed up in one of the ideas she repeated during the interview: not giving up when a «no» arrives.