The Cuban actor and comedian Yaniel Castillo revealed in a video posted on Instagram the reason why he has stopped doing his popular impersonation of the host Alexander Otaola, and that is because his young daughter, Anette, cries every time she sees him portrayed as the influential Cuban host.
The post generated a wave of reactions among Cuban artists who, for the most part, have a history of conflicts or criticism with Otaola himself. They interpreted the girl’s reaction as a sign that the energy represented by the character is not positive.
The actor, writer, and comedian Alexis Valdés was one of the first to react: "Neither children nor drunk people lie, they say. Pure naturalness." Valdés has a well-known history of tensions with Otaola. In November 2025, he went so far as to call him a "psychopath without empathy or soul" and "one of the worst beings that Cuba has produced in recent times."
The musician Emilio Frías, director of El Niño y la Verdad, left the longest comment: "Children feel, see, and are sensitive to energies that adults do not perceive; until the age of seven, their connection to the spiritual world is very strong. I enjoy you in the character because it suits you very well, but the little girl knows that this energy is not good, not even for you. I'm sending you a hug and kisses to the little princess."
Frías was involved in a heated public dispute with Otaola in October 2023 when the host accused him of hypocrisy. The musician then responded that Otaola had only "profited from the suffering of Cubans".
The musician Alain Pérez also commented: "Incredible how the girl feels when she doesn't come from good energy." The actress and comedian Aly Sánchez was more direct: "Don't make her cry, how beautiful."
Anette was born on August 31, 2023. Castillo then described her as “the most beautiful experience” of his life when announcing her arrival on social media.
The relationship between Castillo and Otaola was not always peaceful. In March 2023, during the World Baseball Classic, Otaola announced a lawsuit against the impersonator for using his image to promote businesses with which he had canceled contracts for supporting the Cuban team. "That's the stampede of elephants on top of him, leaving him crushed in the middle of the legal field," Otaola stated on his program.
The conflict was resolved days later. Castillo committed to no longer making commercial promotions using the presenter’s image, but he was able to continue with humorous imitations. “From above, you know who told me to say that I couldn’t promote businesses or services, and I respected that,” Castillo said at that moment, dressed precisely as Otaola.
Now, three years after that agreement, it is Castillo's own daughter who seems to have put a definitive end to the character, at least for the time being.
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