Gael García Bernal and Diego Luna have been friends for decades, since they were child actors together. They both grew up in the theater and got their big Hollywood break doing the movie, Y Tu Mamá También. They’ve since worked together on several other projects, including Will Ferrell’s Spanish-language comedy, Casa di Mi Padre. In 2017, they co-created a fund for the victims of an earthquake in Mexico. They’re so close that they’re not only besties, but they consider themselves to be “brothers.”

Diego and Gael’s next project is Hulu’s first-ever Spanish-language series, La Máquina, which is streaming now. La Máquina tells the story of an aging boxer (Gael) and his obsessive manager (Diego). Eiza González also co-stars as the boxer’s ex-wife. Gael and Diego recently sat down with People to talk about their new limited series, boxing in general, and their close friendship.

Bernal, 45, stars as Esteban, or the titular “La Máquina,” a longtime boxing champion, and Luna portrays his ambitious appearance-obsessed manager. A good chunk of the six-episode limited series takes place in the boxing ring, portraying the punishing back-and-forth physicality of the sport. The show also tackles various themes, including brotherhood and the existential quandary some experience towards the end of an illustrious career.

“Boxing in itself is also very universal because it is a sport of where you win, you lose, and there’s always that interesting, very curious dichotomy that exists between sport and life,” Bernal explains. “People that are very good at sports think that life is the same as the sport they play, and it isn’t.”

“It’s more complicated. It’s not about winning or losing,” he continues. “It is not a search for victory or for success. It’s actually the contrary. It’s the trap of success, the trap of victory, the trap of the capitalist machine sort of forcing people to take or make some decisions that are against their freedom. And we wanted to explore how by losing, you can win.”

Luna acknowledges the two actors have put in the work to keep their bond strong given the demands of their careers and raising children. Luna shares two children with ex Camila Sodi — Jeronimo, 16, and Fiona, 14 — while Bernal has three children — Lázaro, 15, and daughter Libertad, 13 — with ex Dolores Fonzi and a 2 year old daughter with Fernanda Aragonés.

“We’ve done a lot to cultivate this friendship, and we’ve asked each other many times in life, ‘You’ve got to wake up here. We have to take care of this.’ Sometimes him, sometimes me, sometimes someone else comes and says like, ‘Guys, are you sure you’re doing what you have to be doing?’” Luna explains. “But there is something bigger that keeps us together.”

Bernal explains that being deeply curious, wide-ranging artists also plays a role in keeping their friendship alive.

“We grew up in the theater … and maybe this goes for everybody as well, as an actor you have the ability of playing other lives,” Bernal explains. “There’s a poetic sublimation of the desires and the experience that any artist would love, which is to live many lives within one life. And we get a chance to experience that.”

“Some actors really nurture on that. Some actors don’t nurture from that,” he adds. “But the fact that we’ve nurtured that allows us to also experience the transcendence of what we do. But the deep aspects of it, the insignificance, the fun, we can share all of that.”

[From People]

It’s so sweet how they talk about their friendship and how they work to maintain it. It reminds me of the #goals that Hugh Jackman and Ryan Reynolds are always trying to portray. (I love their friendship, too!) They are a wonderful example of that tonic masculinity that we love to see nowadays. We need more of these kinds of examples to be spotlighted, I love it. Gael and Diego work together so well, too. Has anyone watched La Máquina yet? It seems very award-baity, but it’s gotten fairly good reviews, particularly about how strong the cast is.

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