Spoilers are ahead for Episode 2 of Like Water for Chocolate Season 2.
Like Water For Chocolate returned to TV in the 2026 TV schedule with the latest and final season. In Episode 2, called “Ox-Tail Soup,” the Spanish-language HBO romance series, which is produced by Salma Hayek, saw a huge turn of events when the cold and harsh Mama Elena died of an overdose after being bedridden with a serious injury that had the doctor saying she’d never walk again. CinemaBlend had a chat with the actress behind the role to discuss what happened.
When we talked to Mama Elena actress Irena Azuela, she not only told us about one gross scene from the novel that was cut from the series. Azuela also shared her thoughts about Mama Elena’s character arc throughout the show. In her words:
From the beginning the director and I talked a lot and we wanted to have very clear what were the reasons for Mama Elena to behave the way she does. And I think Mama Elena, she, also felt a big fire and a big passion inside her. But because she couldn't have the experience of having that love develop, I think she kind of got really sour inside her. And, in a way that's why she loves Gertrudis so much because she's the consequence of that big love. And, in a way that's a reason why she rejects Tita so much because she was obliged to get married to a man she didn't love. So, that makes her a very complex character and a very complex mother.
As Azuela points out in our interview, there are complex reasons from her past as to why Mama Elena is so mean to her daughter. As we learned in the first season, when Elena was younger, she fell in love with a man while she was married and had already given birth to Rosaura. They planned to run away together once she got pregnant with Gertrudis, but her husband found out and killed her lover. He then raped her, which seems to have led to how she got pregnant with Tita.
Season 1’s flashback episode certainly allowed us to understand Elena better, and why she gives special treatment to her middle child. She’s the only one of her kids actually born from love. When it comes to Mama Elena’s death, she grew paranoid of Tita trying to kill her (which the doctor said could be a symptom of her injuries) and her children never got to see the softer side of her. When I asked Azuela if there’s anything she wishes she got to say to her kids before the character’s death, she said this:
I think Mama Elena didn't really have the time to realize what she has done or she has not. I think she felt really lonely the last month of her life. I think she felt warm when the three of them were with her. But I don't think she regrets not saying more things. I don't think was that conscious.
It’s a good point. While it would have been nice to see some sort of closure between herself and her kids, as the actress pointed out, she probably wasn’t aware of how much she was affecting her kids, and thought she was treating them right. But she does think the character felt “warm” in her final moments by having her three daughters next to her, and must have gotten some peace from that.
Following the major Like Water For Chocolate twist, we’re looking forward to what happens next on the series as new episodes drop on HBO Max every Sunday. It’s definitely one of the best HBO Max shows to get into right now, especially for all the drama!
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