John Quiñones hosts "Latinos in Hollywood: Owning Our Destiny," where he speaks with Eva Longoria, John Leguizamo, Rita Moreno, Eugenio Derbez, Gina Torres, Ramon Rodriguez and so many more about their struggles and successes in the industry.
"I think people need to watch this hour because it's so inspiring," Quiñones told On The Red Carpet. "You get to see how virtually all of these Latino actors and actresses started with nothing but a dream."
Making those dreams come true hasn't been easy and a USC study shows why. The study looked at 1600 films over 16 years and showed that 5% of all speaking characters are Hispanic or Latino and only 4% feature a Hispanic or Latino lead or co-lead role.
"What surprised me more than anything was the data. It doesn't lie," Quiñones said.
Another stat showed that Hollywood could generate up to $18 billion dollars if Latino representation improved.
Latino entertainers have long lobbied for such improvements and it was a point Quiñones and the stars talked about in the special.
"They're directing their own films and TV shows, they're creating their own production companies. They are, literally, these new Latino celebrities and actors are owning their own destiny," he explained.
"Latinos in Hollywood: Owning Our Destiny" airs Friday at 8pm EST/ 7pm PST on ABC and streams the next day on Hulu.
The Walt Disney Company is the parent company of Hulu and this ABC station.