María Fernanda Ríos – Wikipedia

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Ecuadorian actor

María Fernanda Ríos
María Fernanda Ríos en 2014.jpg
Born

María Fernanda Ríos Villalta

(1982-02-20) February 20, 1982 (age 41)
Occupation(s) Actress, singer, model, fashion designer
Spouse

Miguel Ángel Álvarez

​

​

(m. 2019; div. 2020)​

María Fernanda Ríos Villalta (born February 20, 1982), also known as Mafer Ríos, is an Ecuadorian actress, singer, model, and fashion designer. She is known for performing in the tecnocumbia groups Leche y Chocolate and Kandela & Son, for acting in TV series such as El Combo Amarillo and Los Hijos de Don Juan, and for being a juror on Ecuador’s Got Talent [es]. In 2018, she played entertainer Sharon la Hechicera in an eponymous telenovela [es].

Beginnings and music[edit]

María Fernanda Ríos was born in Guayaquil on February 20, 1982.[1] She studied ballet and attended the Danzas Jazz academy.[2]

She studied medicine for three years at the Universidad Católica de Santiago de Guayaquil, after which she left to dedicate herself to the arts.[3]

She began as a singer and dancer in technocumbia groups such as Leche y Chocolate (created by Sharon la Hechicera), Las Musas, and most famously Kandela & Son, which she joined with Jasú Montero, Jordana Doylet, Malena Fernández-Madrid, Carla Ramírez, and Diana Guerrero.[2] She stayed with the group for a year, leaving after appearing on the program A todo dar [es].

Television[edit]

After retiring from music, Ríos tried her luck on television, on the RTU [es] youth program El Callejón. Shortly afterward, she moved to Gamavisión as presenter of the show business program Rojo Rosa.[2]

She played Mariana on the TC Televisión telenovela Jocelito, starring Fernando Villarroel [es], along with Roberto Manrique, who played her boyfriend.[2]

Returning to Gamavisión, she appeared in Infiltrados, Buenos Muchachos, and the dancing competition Bailando por un sueño, where she finished second.[2][4][5]

She also appeared on Teleamazonas shows such as Historias Personales, Súper Espías, Vivos [es], and La pareja feliz [es].[2]

She moved to Ecuavisa in 2010, playing the character Selva Monina in the telenovela La taxista [es], starring Claudia Camposano [es]. After its success, Ecuavisa created the spin-off comic series El Combo Amarillo, which Ríos remained with until its conclusion in 2016.[6] She was also a juror for the second, third, and fourth seasons of Ecuador’s Got Talent [es].[2]

She was nominated for ITV Awards [es] for Best Comedy Actress in 2013, 2014, and 2015.[7][8][9]

She played Juana Francisca Silva on the TC Televisión comedy series Los Hijos de Don Juan.[10]

From 2018 to 2019, she starred in the biographical telenovela Sharon la Hechicera [es], playing the late singer in her adulthood until her death.[11] In real life, Ríos had been very close to Hechicera since her time in the group Leche y Chocolate, recalling “I worked with Sharon. And then she was my boss and I learned things with her. Then I belonged to another group, then we were friends, and now I am the one who is playing her.”[12]

In 2021, she was a juror on the fifth season of Soy el mejor.[13]

Fashion designer[edit]

Ríos made her debut as a fashion designer at Salinas Fashion Week 2014.[3] She has a line of clothing sold under the brand MFR.[14]

Controversies[edit]

As a juror on the fourth season of Ecuador’s Got Talent in 2015, Ríos rebuked a 16-year-old contestant for being an atheist, advising that she would never be successful if she did not believe in God. The criticisms that emerged from various atheist associations had wide repercussions in the domestic and international press.[15][16][17] Following comments made toward her via social networks, she answered her critics directly, which the program’s producers considered to be inappropriate. She was dismissed from the jury, leaving her companions Wendy Vera, Paola Farías, and Fernando Villarroel to judge the semifinals.[18][19]

Personal life[edit]

María Fernanda Ríos had a romantic relationship with Jonathan Estrada Becerra [es], her coworker at El Combo Amarillo,[20] and later with the comic actor David Reinoso [es].[21]

In July 2019, through her official Instagram account, she announced that she had married Colombian model Miguel Ángel Álvarez.[22] However, approximately four months later she announced their separation.[14] In December 2020, she confirmed on social media that their divorce was final.[23]

Filmography[edit]

TV series and telenovelas[edit]

TV programs[edit]

Year Title Role
2005 El Callejón
2005 Infiltrados Presenter
2005 Rosa Roja Presenter
2006 Buenos Muchachos Presenter
2007 Bailando por un sueño Contestant (semifinalist)
2013-2015 Ecuador’s Got Talent [es] Juror
2020 En contacto [es] Guest presenter
2021 Soy el mejor Juror

References[edit]

  1. ^ “Mafer Ríos está de cumpleaños, ¿Será que invitó a Jasú Montero a su celebración?” [It’s Mafer Ríos’s Birthday. Might she Invite Jasú Montero to Her Celebration?] (in Spanish). TC Televisión. February 19, 2016. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved August 4, 2021. Video archived at informaciona.com
  2. ^ a b c d e f g “María Fernanda Ríos regresa 3 veces más fashion” [María Fernanda Ríos Returns to Fashion 3 More Times] (in Spanish). Ecuavisa. July 17, 2014. Retrieved August 4, 2021.
  3. ^ a b “María Fernanda Ríos incursiona en la moda nacional sin descuidar la actuación” [María Fernanda Ríos Ventures Into National Fashion Without Neglecting Acting]. El Telégrafo (in Spanish). April 28, 2015. Archived from the original on September 26, 2015. Retrieved August 4, 2021.
  4. ^ “Nuevos cambios en Canal Uno” [New Changes at Canal Uno]. El Universo (in Spanish). January 28, 2009. Retrieved August 4, 2021.
  5. ^ “Hermanos ganaron ‘reality’ de canto y baile de GamaTV” [Siblings Win Song and Dance Reality Show on GamaTV]. El Universo (in Spanish). April 21, 2009. Retrieved August 4, 2021.
  6. ^ “Selva Monina visitó En Contacto” (in Spanish). Ecuavisa. April 24, 2014. Retrieved August 4, 2021.
  7. ^ “Hoy se entregan los Premios ITV” [The ITV Awards Presented Today]. El Tiempo (in Spanish). November 18, 2013. Archived from the original on September 26, 2015. Retrieved August 4, 2021.
  8. ^ “Talentos de Ecuavisa nominados en 14 categorías para premios ITV 2013” [Ecuavisa Talents Nominated in 14 Categories for 2013 ITV Awards] (in Spanish). Ecuavisa. October 29, 2013. Retrieved August 4, 2021.
  9. ^ “Premios ITV 2015” (in Spanish). ITV Awards. Archived from the original on September 25, 2015. Retrieved August 4, 2021.
  10. ^ “Juana Francisca, el nuevo papel de Mafer Ríos en TV” [Juana Francisca, the New Role for Mafer Ríos on TV]. El Universo (in Spanish). January 11, 2016. Retrieved August 4, 2021.
  11. ^ “María Fernanda Ríos y Samantha Grey darán vida a Sharon, en telenovela” [María Fernanda Ríos and Samantha Grey Give Life to Sharon, in Telenovela]. El Universo (in Spanish). December 15, 2017. Retrieved August 4, 2021.
  12. ^ “La conexión entre María Fernanda Ríos y ‘Sharon, la hechicera’“ [The Connection Between María Fernanda Ríos and ‘Sharon, the Sorceress’]. Metro Ecuador (in Spanish). September 24, 2018. Retrieved August 4, 2021.
  13. ^ “‘Soy el mejor’: Mafer Ríos decepcionó con su tecnocumbia de tributo a Sharon” [‘Soy el mejor’: Mafer Ríos Disappoints With Her Tecnocumbia Tribute to Sharon]. El Universo (in Spanish). May 28, 2021. Retrieved August 4, 2021.
  14. ^ a b Enriquez, Melany (January 3, 2020). “El mensaje de Mafer Ríos, que habla sobre su separación y el paso del 2019” [The Message of Mafer Ríos, Which Talks About Her Separation and What Happened in 2019]. Nueva Mujer (in Spanish). Retrieved August 4, 2021.
  15. ^ Sims, Alexandra (September 24, 2015). “Ecuador’s Got Talent contestant Carolina Peña told she will never be successful without God”. The Independent. Retrieved August 4, 2021.
  16. ^ “Asociación de Ateos de Ecuador critica a ‘Ecuador tiene talento’ por discriminación a joven” [Atheist Association of Ecuador Criticizes ‘Ecuador’s Got Talent’ for Discrimination Against Youth]. El Universo (in Spanish). September 23, 2015. Retrieved August 4, 2021.
  17. ^ Di Santo, Raffaele (September 24, 2015). “Ecuador Got Talent: Concorrente Atea Discriminata” [Ecuador’s Got Talent: Discriminating Against Atheist Competitor]. Telvisionando (in Italian). Retrieved August 4, 2021.
  18. ^ “María Fernanda Ríos no estará en las semifinales de ETT4” [María Fernanda Ríos Will Not be on the Semifinals of ETT4] (in Spanish). Ecuavisa. November 5, 2015. Retrieved August 4, 2021.
  19. ^ “María Fernanda Ríos ya no estará en Ecuador Tiene Talento” [María Fernanda Ríos Will No Longer be on Ecuador’s Got Talent]. El Universo (in Spanish). November 5, 2015. Retrieved August 4, 2021.
  20. ^ “Jonathan Estrada está enamorado de una reina de belleza” [Jonathan Estrada is in Love With a Beauty Queen]. El Diario (in Spanish). Guayaquil. May 11, 2015. Retrieved August 4, 2021.
  21. ^ “David Reinoso, de romance con otra rubia” [David Reinoso, in Love With Another Blonde]. El Universo (in Spanish). June 17, 2015. Retrieved August 4, 2021.
  22. ^ “María Fernanda Ríos revela que se casó hace un mes” [María Fernanda Ríos Reveals That She Got Married a Month Ago]. El Universo (in Spanish). July 16, 2019. Retrieved August 4, 2021.
  23. ^ “María Fernanda Ríos, ¡legalmente divorciada!” [María Fernanda Ríos, Legally Divorced!] (in Spanish). Radio La Otra FM. December 16, 2020. Retrieved August 4, 2021.

External links[edit]