‘Jane The Virgin’ Star Gina Rodriguez Gushes About Marie Claire Feature

“Jane the Virgin” star Gina Rodriguez is beyond thrilled to grace the cover of Marie Claire magazine, which will hit newsstands on January 2017.

In the photo, the actress has short hair and wears minimal makeup that highlights her gorgeous freckles. She has on a bright yellow tank, and Rodriguez can be seen flashing her trademark smile. Rodriguez even shared a first look of the cover on her Instagram account and gushed about the opportunity given to her to “honor and uplift women.”

In the interview for the magazine, Rodriguez talked about her childhood and her decision to join the entertainment industry. “My path wasn't laid out for me in my family or my culture, because there are so few of us in the industry,” she said. “That's how my whole career happened. Your eyes are open; you don't know what the next answer is going to be, but you're open. And you take every opportunity that comes your way.”

But despite being open, Rodriguez is certain of one thing — she is only going to choose roles that would elevate the image of Latinos and Latinas in America. “I decided I was going to take roles that progressed the image of Latinos in the industry, and I was going to choose those roles over money,” she said. “I wanted to make sure I was contributing positively and not allowing limitations to dampen my experiences and my journey.”

She certainly hit a home run with her role as Jane Gloriana Villanueva in “Jane the Virgin.” In Season 3, a lot of changes are in store for her character. She got married, lost her virginity and moved out of her grandmother’s house. She’s trying to hone her craft as a writer as well, all while caring for her baby, Mateo.

Rodriguez told Yahoo! Style that she’s quite happy with the journey Jane has taken. “The show is about this girl going through life, and that just happens to be a really fun aspect of what made it interesting and a little different, and it made her holding on to her convictions such a powerful thing as a woman on television. So it’s nice that she also then moved into another chapter. I was desiring that myself for Jane,” she said.

“Jane the Virgin” Season 3 airs every Monday at 9 p.m. EST on The CW.