''El privilegio de amar'' (Literal English translation: ''The Privilege to Love'', International English title: ''The Right to Love'') is a Mexican

telenovela A telenovela is a type of a television serial drama or soap opera produced primarily in Latin America. The word combines ''tele'' (for "television") and ''novela'' (meaning "novel"). Similar Drama (film and television), drama genres around the w ...

produced by

Carla Estrada Carla Estrada (born Carla Patricia Estrada Guitrón; March 11, 1956, in Mexico City, D.F., Mexico) is a Mexican television producer, one of the foremost telenovela producers of Latin America. Biography In 2005, the Mexican government decided t ...

for

Televisa Grupo Televisa, S.A.B., simply known as Televisa, is a Mexican telecommunications and broadcasting company. A major Latin American mass media corporation, it often presents itself as the largest producer of Spanish-language content. In April ...

. It aired on Canal de las Estrellas from July 27, 1998 to February 26, 1999. ''El privilegio de amar'' is a remake of the 1985

Venezuela Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many Federal Dependencies of Venezuela, islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea. It com ...

n telenovela '' Cristal''. ''El privilegio de amar'' is the highest-rated television program in Mexico to date; it registered an average of 34.8 percent of TV audience. The telenovela received the

TVyNovelas Award The Premios TVyNovelas are presented annually by Televisa and the magazine TVyNovelas to honor the best Mexican television productions, including telenovelas. Instituted in 1983, the award ceremony rotates between Mexico City and Acapulco. The ce ...

for Best Telenovela in

1999 1999 was designated as the International Year of Older Persons. Events January * January 1 – The euro currency is established and the European Central Bank assumes its full powers. * January 3 – The Mars Polar Lander is launc ...

. The telenovela tells the story of Luciana, a fashion designer who begins searching for the daughter she abandoned years earlier, unaware that the girl is none other than Cristina, a model in Luciana's fashion house who has fallen in love with her stepson. It stars

Adela Noriega Adela Amalia Noriega Méndez (; born 24 October 1969) is a retired Mexican actress. She came to prominence after starring in teen-oriented coming-of-age telenovelas in the 1980s, ''Quinceañera'' (1987–1988) and ''Dulce desafío'' (1988–1989 ...

Helena Rojo María Elena Enríquez Ruiz (18 August 1944 – 3 February 2024), known as Helena Rojo, was a Mexican actress and model. Biography Born in Mexico City, Mexico, she began her career as a model in 1961. Toward the end of the decade, she studied ...

Andrés García Andrés García García (24 May 1941 – 4 April 2023) was a Dominican-born Mexican actor. He served as a scuba diving instructor in Acapulco. At the time of his death, he was one of the last surviving stars from the Golden Age of Mexican cine ...

Enrique Rocha Enrique Rocha (January 5, 1940 – November 7, 2021) was a Mexican actor. He made his debut in the film industry in the film Guadalajara en Verano directed by Julio Bracho in the last decade of the Golden Age of Mexican cinema. Filmography ...

René Strickler René Strickler (born October 20, 1962) is an Argentine actor. Telenovelas Show hosting * '' TVyNovelas Awards'' 2005 (2005) * '' Oye Awards'' 2004 (2004) (TV) External links * Biográfía de René Strickler(en esmas.com) Biografía de Re ...

Cynthia Klitbo Cynthia Klitbo (; born March 11, 1967) is a Mexican actress of telenovelas, theater and Cinema of Mexico, Mexican cinema. She is best known for her roles as Laura in Televisa's telenovela La Dueña (1995 Mexican TV series), ''La Dueña'' (Mexico) ...

Nuria Bages Nuria Bages ( born Nuria Bages Romo on December 23, 1950) is a Mexican actress better known for her work in television and the stage. Active in Mexican television since the early 1980s, Bages became a household name after winning the role of S ...

and

César Évora César Évora Díaz (; born November 4, 1959) is a Cuban- Mexican actor. Biography Évora started his career in Cuba appearing in more than ten movies before moving to Mexico in the early 1990s. He became known for playing minor roles in the ...

Plot

The young seminarian Juan de la Cruz (Andrés Gutiérrez) arrives for a visit at the home of his mother, Ana Joaquina (

Diana Bracho Diana Bracho (born Diana Guadalupe Bracho y Bordes Mangel; 12 December 1944) is a Mexican actress. Early life Diana Bracho is the daughter of actor/director Julio Bracho, the niece of actress Andrea Palma and the aunt of actor Julio Bracho (n ...

), a religious fanatic who has always imposed her will upon her son and pushed him to serve God. Working in Ana Joaquina's house is the young Luciana (

Edith Márquez Edith Márquez Landa (; born 27 January 1973) is a Mexican singer and actress. Life She is a dramatic mezzo-soprano. She started her professional career by winning the television musical contests "Juguemos a cantar" (1978) and "Canta, Canta ...

), a naive and dreamy girl who falls in love with Juan de la Cruz. One night, carried away by youthful passion, they tenderly and innocently give in to their desires. Upon discovering that Luciana is pregnant, Ana Joaquina demands to know the identity of the child's father; when Luciana admits that it is Juan de la Cruz, Ana Joaquina fires Luciana, leaving her destitute. After giving birth to a daughter, Luciana leaves her baby on the doorstep of a wealthy house with the hope that the little girl will be raised there, but she is instead taken to an orphanage. In order to survive, Luciana becomes involved with many undesirable men, including Pedro Trujillo (Pedro Weber "Chatanuga"), a terrible man who beats and abuses her. Twenty years later, Cristina (

), Luciana's daughter, has grown up happily in the orphanage, although she has always been curious to know who her mother was; meanwhile, Luciana (

) is the owner of a popular fashion house and the wife of the well-known actor Andrés Duval (

), with whom she has two children, Lizbeth (

Adriana Nieto Adriana Nieto (born Adriana Nieto Villanueva on March 13, 1978) is a Mexican actress. Filmography References External links * 1978 births Living people Mexican telenovela actresses Mexican television actresses Mexican stage actress ...

) and Víctor Manuel (

). Lizbeth, who is Luciana and Andrés' daughter, is whimsical and spoiled because she is accustomed to always having what she wants, while Víctor Manuel, who is Andrés' son from his first marriage, is like a son to Luciana and works at her fashion house. Her happy and caring family makes Luciana begin searching for the daughter she abandoned many years ago; however, her family knows nothing about Cristina because Luciana has never revealed a single detail about her past out of fear of her husband's reaction. Cristina, upon leaving the orphanage, rents a small apartment along with Lorenza (

Sabine Moussier Diana Sabine Moussier (; born on July 12, 1968) is a Mexican actress who is best known for her villainous roles in Televisa's telenovelas, such as ''María Isabel'', '' El privilegio de amar'', '' Entre el amor y el odio'', '' La madrastra'', ''Am ...

) and Maclovia (Isadora González). Lorenza is a beautiful young woman, provocative and very self-confident, whereas Maclovia is reserved, timid and intelligent. Lorenza meets Andrés and they become lovers as Andrés comes to desire the passion and love that Luciana never gave him; meanwhile, thanks to Lorenza, Cristina obtains a job as a model in Luciana's fashion house. Cristina and Víctor Manuel fall in love and begin to date, but when Luciana learns about their relationship, she fires Cristina and tries to convince her son that he should marry Tamara (

), who traps him with the lie that she is expecting a baby of his when, in fact, that baby is from Nicolás Obregón (

), a friend of Andrés. Cristina finds out that she is pregnant by Víctor Manuel but decides to remain silent out of respect for the family that he has formed. At this point, Alonso (

Toño Mauri Toño Mauri (born July 29, 1964) is a Mexican singer and actor. He has performed in a number of telenovelas since 1985. In 2020 he survived a double lung transplant after contracting COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a cont ...

) comes into Cristina's life, offering her a name for her daughter and love for her; however, Cristina cannot reciprocate his feelings because she does not love him. Over time, Cristina begins to fight for her daughter and becomes a very successful woman. The status that she little by little gains as a model unites her again with Víctor Manuel who, living a hellish life with Tamara, plans to leave her in order to be happy with Cristina and thus be able to enjoy together ''The Right to Love''.

Cast

Main

as Cristina Miranda *

as Luciana Hernández de Duval **

as Young Luciana Hernández *

as Andrés Duval *

as Nicolás Obregón *

as Víctor Manuel Duval *

as Tamara de la Colina *

as Miriam Arango *

as Father Juan de la Cruz Velarde ** Andrés Gutiérrez as Young Juan de la Cruz Velarde

Also main

* Mauricio Herrera as Franco *

Claudio Báez Claudio Báez (23 March 1948 – 19 November 2017) was a Mexican television actor. He is best known for his work in Televisa telenovelas Grupo Televisa, S.A.B., simply known as Televisa, is a Mexican telecommunications and broadcasting comp ...

as Cristóbal * Ramón Abascal as José María "Chema" López Ramos *

as Lorenza Torres * Isadora González as Maclovia *

as Lizbeth Duval * Pedro Weber "Chatanuga" as Pedro Trujillo *

Marga López Catalina Margarita López Ramos (; June 21, 1924 – July 4, 2005), known professionally as Marga López, was an Argentine-born Mexican actress. Biography Born Catalina Margarita López Ramos on June 21, 1924, in San Miguel de Tucumán, Argenti ...

as Ana Joaquina Velarde **

as Young Ana Joaquina Velarde

Recurring and guest stars

* Octavio Acosta as Doctor * Guillermo Aguilar as Walter Gruber * Ana María Aguirre as Sister Regina *

Beatriz Aguirre Beatriz Ofelia Aguirre Valdes (March 21, 1926 – September 29, 2019) was a Mexican film A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, ...

as herself * Sheriff Alarcón as himself *

María Luisa Alcalá María Luisa Alcalá (26 March 1943 – 21 February 2016), was a Mexican actress and director. Life She became known for playing Malicha in ''El Chavo del Ocho''. Alcalá has made outstanding performances in telenovelas like '' Esmeralda'', ...

as Remedios Ramos * Alfredo Alfonso as Doctor * Aurora Alonso as Imelda Salazar * Carlos Amador Jr. as Fidencio *

Yolanda Andrade Yolanda Josefina Andrade Gómez (born 28 December 1970) is a Mexican actress and television presenter born in Culiacán, Sinaloa. She started her career at the telenovela ''Yo no creo en los hombres'' (1991), along with Gabriela Roel and Alfr ...

as herself * Roberto Antúnez as Father Marcelo *

Lilia Aragón Lilia Aragón (born Lilia Isabel Aragón del Rivero, 22 September 1938 – 2 August 2021) was a Mexican film, television, and stage actress and politician. She was the Secretary of the National Association of Actors. She also served as Deputy ...

as herself *

Marta Aura Marta Aura (4 September 1942 – 8 July 2022) was a Mexican actress. Life and career Aura was born in Mexico City on 4 September 1942, the daughter of Olimpo Aura Pineda and Ema Palacios Ordorica. Her parents did not accept the fact that she wa ...

as Josefina "Chepa" Pérez *

Socorro Avelar Socorro Avelar (1925 in Cuernavaca, Mexico – 11 February 2003) was a Mexican actress. Life Avelar studied at the Faculty of Philosophy and Literature of the National Autonomous University of Mexico. In 1946, she debuted as a director for ...

as Rosa Hernández * Francisco Avendaño as Dr. Jaime Dávila * Manuel Ávila as Doctor * Ángeles Balvanera as Petrona * Katie Barberi as Paula * Estela Barona as Gladiola *

Kuno Becker Eduardo Kuno Becker Paz (born January 14, 1978) professionally known as Kuno Becker, is a Mexican actor and film director who has worked in telenovelas, Mexican and American cinema. He is best known for his portrayal of Ruben Berrizabal in ''So ...

as himself *

Miguel Ángel Biaggio Miguel Ángel Olivares Biaggio (born September 3, 1976, in San Luis Potosí, San Luis Potosí), also known as Miguel Angel Biagio, Mike Biagio, Mike Biaggio, is a Mexican actor. Life Biaggio made his acting debut in the 1996 telenovela '' El vu ...

as Pancho * José Ramón Blanch as Guard * Óscar Βonfiglio as Fernando Bernal * Raúl Buenfil as El Fresco * Abril Campillo as La Güera *

Yadhira Carrillo Yadhira Carrillo Villalobos (born May 12, 1973) is a Mexican actress, model and beauty queen. Early career Yadhira Carrillo was chosen Nuestra Belleza Aguascalientes in 1994, the state qualifier for the national Nuestra Belleza México, to det ...

as María José *

René Casados René Casados Morales is a Mexican actor best known for his roles in telenovelas. Biography Casados began working as an actor in the 1970s, appearing in films, television, and theatre, as well as working as a co-host of the program '' XE-TU'' ...

as himself * Mario Casillas as Miguel Beltrán * César Castro as Doctor * Chela Castro as herself *

Verónika con K Verónika con K (born Nicanora Verónica Hernández Ávila on February 14, 1950) is a Mexican actress, singer and TV hostess. Verónika con K was born in Santo Domingo, Oaxaca, Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a c ...

as Caridad *

Miguel Córcega Miguel Córcega (, October 29, 1929 in Mexico City – September 29, 2008 in Mexico City) was a Mexican telenovela actor and director. Córcega started his career in acting and directing during the 1940s. Biography Film In the 1960s, Córcega ...

as himself * Gabriel de Cervantes as Ramiro García * Gustavo del Castillo as Commander *

Marisol del Olmo Marisol is a Spanish language, Spanish name. It is a shortened form of ''María de la Soledad'' (literally "Mary of the solitude"), a title given to the Virgin Mary, corresponding to English "Our Lady of Solitude". Coincidentally, Marisol sounds ...

as Antonia "Toña" Fonseca * Jorge de Marín as Doctor * Ricardo de Pascual as Dr. Heriberto Sevilla * Rosa Elena Díaz as Luciana's lawyer *

Consuelo Duval María del Consuelo Dussauge Calzada (born 11 January 1969), more commonly known by her stage name Consuelo Duval, is a Mexican comedian and actress of film, television, theatre, and voice-over. She is known for her various comic characters suc ...

as María Rosenda Sánchez *

Jean Duverger Jean Duverger (born 5 April 1973) is a Mexican actor and entertainer. Life and career He is of French-Haitian ancestry. From 1981 to 1983, he studied at the Centro de Educacion Artística. Between 1988 and 1991, he was a backup dancer for the ...

as Exposímetro *

as herself * José Antonio Ferral as Police officer * Paola Flores as Juanita * Esteban Franco as Police officer * Virgilio García as Negro *

Susana González Susana González (; born Susana Alejandra González del Río on October 2, 1973, in Calera de Víctor Rosales, Zacatecas, Mexico) is a Mexican actress and model. Biography She is the daughter of Refugio González and Elvira del Río, and ha ...

as herself *

Maribel Guardia Maribel Guardia (; born Maribel Del Rocío Fernández García on May 29, 1959) is a Costa Rica and Mexican actress and beauty pageant titleholder. She was the winner of Miss Costa Rica 1978 and a contestant in Miss Universe 1978. Miss Univers ...

as herself *

Lucía Guilmáin Lucía Gutiérrez Puerta, known by her stage name Lucía Guilmáin (January 5, 1938 – February 15, 2021), was a Mexican actress. Biography Her career was between 1965 and 2016 She worked in theater, movies, and television. Guilmáin was k ...

as Prisoner * Arturo Guízar as Lawyer Guízar *

Tito Guízar Federico Arturo Guízar Tolentino (; 8 April 1908 – 24 December 1999), known professionally as Tito Guízar, was a Mexican singer and actor. Along with Dolores del Río, Ramón Novarro and Lupe Vélez, as well as José Mojica, Guízar was am ...

as Agustín Gómez *

Virginia Gutiérrez Virginia Gutiérrez (born 27 November 1928) is a Mexican actress. She was married to actor Luis Gimeno until his death in 2017. She is one of the last surviving stars from the Golden Age of Mexican cinema. Selected filmography *'' Abismos de amor ...

as Sister Bernardina * Ángel Heredia as Clerk * Nelly Horsman as Cata *

Maty Huitrón Maty Huitrón (30 January 193614 January 2019), known artistically as Martina Güitrón Porto, was a Mexican actress. She worked with the most important figures of the time, such as Cantinflas, Joaquín Pardavé and Fernando Soler. Career Huitr� ...

as Bárbara Rivera * Gustavo Adolfo Infante as himself * Benjamín Islas as Raúl * Martha Itzel as Dulce * Ismael Larumbre as Doctor * Néstor Leoncio as Dr. Ávila * Mario Limantour as Sebas * Eduardo Liñán as Dr. Valladares *

Saúl Lisazo Saúl Gustavo Lisazo Oscoidi (; born June 1, 1956, in Los Toldos, province of Buenos Aires in Argentina) is an Argentine actor and ex-footballer. Biography Saúl Gustavo Lisazo Oscoidi is one of 6 siblings: Maria, Fernanda, Araceli, Alejandro, ...

as himself * Eduardo López Rojas as Shaman * Arturo Lorca as Don Isaís * Rebeca Mankita as herself *

Silvia Manríquez Silvia Manríquez (born January 27, 1953, in Mexico City, Mexico) is a Mexicans, Mexican actress. She is known for her roles in telenovelas. Professional life Manriquez began her career in 1974, after she was named "El Rostro del Heraldo" by a ...

as Luz María * Beatriz Martínez as herself *

as Alonso del Ángel * Ramón Menéndez as Erasmo de la Colina *

Rafael Mercadante Rafael Mercadante Mena (born Mexico Federal District, 15 May 1973) is an actor, television host, singer and radio DJ who has worked in both Mexico and the United States. In the 1990s he was cast in soap operas such as '' El Manantial'' and ''E ...

as Mauricio Trujillo *

Felicia Mercado Felicia Mercado (born Felicia Mercado Agud on December 17, 1959) is a Mexican actress, singer, TV host and beauty pageant titleholder, best known for her appearances in telenovelas . She appeared in '' Between Love and Hatred'' and ''Teresa''. H ...

as herself * Ricky Mergold as Tobías "Tobi" *

Manuel Mijares José Manuel Mijares Morán (born 7 February 1958 in Mexico City) is an adult-contemporary pop singer who is billed as Manuel Mijares () or simply as Mijares. He began his career at age 23 and achieved high popularity from the mid-80s to mid 90s ...

as himself * Mitzy as himself *

Pilar Montenegro Pilar Montenegro (; born María del Pilar Montenegro López on May 31, 1972, in Mexico City, Mexico) is a Mexican Latin pop singer and actress. Biography When Montenegro was 10 years old she landed her first acting part in the TV series ''Juguem ...

as herself * Julio Monterde as Father Celorio * Beatriz Moreno as Doña Charo * Fernando Morín as Priest *

Bertha Moss Bertha Moss (August 7, 1919 – February 4, 2008), born Juana Bertha Moscovish Holm, was an Argentine actress of stage, television and film, famous for appearing in many Mexican telenovelas. Life She was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina. She die ...

as herself *

Lourdes Munguía Lourdes Munguía (born Lourdes María Guadalupe Munguía Gasque; December 12, 1960 in Mexico City, D.F., Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, ...

as Ofelia Ruvalcaba *

José María Napoleón José María Napoleón Ruiz Narváez (born August 18, 1948) is a Mexican singer and composer. Life He arrived from Aguascalientes to Mexico City in 1966. He competed in the national Méxican OTI Festival, the National final to select the Mexi ...

as Silverio Jiménez *

Patricia Navidad Ana Patricia "Paty" Navidad Lara (; born May 20, 1973) is a Mexican actress and singer. Biography Navidad developed an interest in music before acting, mainly influenced by her father, Jesús. She once was quoted as saying that his voice has ...

as herself * María Dolores Oliva as Woman in park * Juan José Origel as himself *

Héctor Ortega Héctor Ortega Gómez (12 January 1939 — 3 June 2020) was a Mexican film, television, and theater actor. He was also a screenwriter and a director. Early life In 1967 Ortega and María Asunción Stoupignan had a son, Damián Ortega, an art ...

as Valentín Fonseca * Baltazar Oviedo as El Fresco's friend * Arlette Pacheco as Begoña * Alfredo Palacios as himself * Héctor Parra as Lawyer Sandoval * Arturo Paulet as Vigorito * Genoveva Pérez as Chole *

Silvia Pinal Silvia Pinal Hidalgo (12September 193128November 2024) was a Mexican actress. She began her career in theatre before venturing into cinema in 1949. She became one of the greatest female stars of the Golden Age of Mexican cinema and, with her p ...

as herself * Dalilah Polanco as Casilda * Polly as Hair salon owner * Roberto Porter as Employee * Anaís Salazar as Gisela * Dolores Salomón as Woman in boutique *

Marisol Santacruz Marisol Santacruz Bañuelos (born 16 February 1970 in Mexico City, Federal District) is an actress, comedian, hostess, model, and a former winner of Rostro de El Heraldo, a beauty contest for the Mexican newspaper ''El Heraldo de México, El Her ...

as herself * Yamil Sesín as Client * Claudia Silva as Lourdes Galindo *

María Sorté María Sorté (born María Harfuch Hidalgo

as Vivian del Ángel *

Héctor Suárez Héctor Suárez Hernández (; 21 October 19382 June 2020) was a Mexican actor, comedian, director and also CTO of Hatch. He appeared in about a hundred films and television shows in a career that spanned 60 years. He was noted for satirizing tho ...

as himself * Andrea Torre as Alejandra * Gastón Tuset as Alfonso * Luis Uribe as Raymundo Velarde * Arturo Vázquez as Macario Jiménez *

Lorena Velázquez Lorena Velázquez (; 15 December 1937 – 11 April 2024) was a Mexican actress and beauty pageant titleholder. At the time of her death she was one of the last surviving stars from the Golden Age of Mexican Cinema. Biography Born María de la C ...

as Rebeca de la Colina * Ricardo Vera as Doctor * Rodrigo Vidal as Artemio Salazar *

Mayrín Villanueva Mayrín Villanueva Ulloa (born 8 October 1970) is a Mexican actress and model. She starred as the protagonist of several telenovelas, including the 2013 telenovela '' Mentir para vivir''. Filmography Awards and nominations Notes In la ...

as herself *

Jacqueline Voltaire Jacqueline Voltaire (6 November 1948 – 8 April 2008) was a British-born Mexican actress, model and singer, known for her successful career in telenovelas, especially on Televisa. Voltaire also appeared in Mexican and international films, incl ...

as Jacqueline *

Maxine Woodside Maxine Woodside (born 22 August 1948) is a Mexican radio and television host, known as the 'Queen of the Radio' and the main host of the radio show ''Todo para la Mujer'', which has been transmitted through Radio Formula since October 16, 1989, a ...

as herself * Luis Xavier as Alberto Souza * Rocío Yaber as Judge * Sergio Zaldívar as Doctor * Gustavo Zárate as Doctor

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Privilegio de Amar 1998 telenovelas 1998 Mexican television series debuts 1999 Mexican television series endings Television shows set in Mexico City Televisa telenovelas Mexican television series based on Venezuelan television series Spanish-language telenovelas