Spanning generations, heartbreak, and political upheaval, The House of the Spirits has long stood as one of the great literary portraits of love and legacy under pressure. Now, in its latest screen adaptation, that sweeping saga is reimagined with an intimate focus – anchoring its revolution not just in history, but within the fragile, shifting bonds of family.
To coincide with the show’s release on Prime Video, our Peter Gray spoke with stars Nicole Wallace and Alfonso Herrera to talk about stepping into this emotionally rich world – where passion and pain are inherited in equal measure, and where the line between destiny and choice is constantly being rewritten. From Clara’s quiet resilience to Esteban Trueba’s turbulent contradictions, their conversation explored how love, grief, and generational healing shape not just these characters, but the legacy they leave behind.
I only knew about this story through the film in the 90s, so it was really exciting to see this different take. The story blends the intimate with this political upheaval. How did you keep the family story at the center of something so epic?
Nicole Wallace: I think it’s so beautifully written that you don’t really have to do anything. When you have such amazing content, it kind of just paves the way through. For me, at least. I have the most familiar part in Clara, where she’s with her kids when they’re young, and she starts school. That, for me, was very easy to be centered in creating that family for her.
Also, I feel like Clara goes through so much grief and so much loss. I think creating family was so important for her. I think it was a very easy thing to do because that’s Clara’s objective throughout the whole series.
This is a story where love and violence almost feel inherited. Did you think of your characters as being shaped by choice or by legacy?
Alfonso Herrera: I think when we talk about Esteban Trueba, there are so many layers. When you’re talking about love, he cannot put that aside. At the same time, when he loves someone, he needs to obtain something from that person. Talking about The House of the Spirits, we talk about what happens from the Rio Bravo all the way to Patagonia. We share so many things. We share so many joyful things, our roots, our culture, and at the same time, so many painful things.
Isabel Allende (author), we spoke about magic realism, but at the same time we talk about the tragic realism. We share so many things that were painful in that specific area. It’s interesting how those things were painful in a very specific period of time and in a very similar period of time. It’s a beautiful part of this story.
Going back to Esteban Trueba, when we talk about love, he needs to possess the things that he loves. This story talks about love, about pain, about grief. I’m going from Spanish to English, (so) I’m a little bit rusty, but it’s about healing. A generational healing, which is one of the most important things in this story.
Nicole Wallace: What you asked about love and being led by legacy or destiny…I think that’s such a big part of Clara’s story. Through the journey, I think for her it’s all the same. I think her choosing to accept her destiny and her legacy, and what she is meant to do in this lifetime, is freedom and love. Every choice she makes comes from an acceptance of life. And life comes with love. And love comes with pain and tragedy and loss. I think that’s the beautiful thing of this show, that it shows you the only way that you can feel loss because you’ve loved. And that is a beautiful thing. I think what Clara has that I loved the most is that she just accepts it, and chooses to live with it as best she can.
That’s a beautiful way to end our chat. I don’t think anything’s going to get better than that. I loved the episodes I’ve seen, and I’m excited to see where the story goes. Thank you both so much for taking the time out today.
Nicole Wallace: Thank you very much.
Alfonso Herrera: Have a lovely night.
The House of the Spirits will premiere on Prime Video on April 29th, 2026.
