Maria Celeste Arrarás Create ‘Red Hot’ Ratings @ NBC’s Passions.

Telemundo announced that “Al Rojo Vivo” star María Celeste Arrarás’ cameo on the two episodes of “Passions,” was a success, growing in households and key demos for the NBC’s daytime drama.

Award-winning journalist Arrarás played herself, portraying a longtime friend of Pilar López-Fitzgerald (Eva Tamargo Lemus) who visited her home and joined the family’s Latin-version of Thanksgiving. The episodes were aired on Friday, November 29th and Monday, December 2nd on the NBC network.

“Through María Celeste’s appearance, Hispanic fans discovered that “Passions” is just as entertaining and fun to watch as the best telenovelas,” said Sheraton Kalouria, SVP, Daytime Programs, NBC. “Even though she’s not an actress, she did a great performance and we – at NBC – are very happy for her contribution.”

“Al Rojo Vivo con María Celeste,” Telemundo’s one-hour news magazine, airs Monday-Friday (5 p.m. ET / PT), featuring the hottest news stories on Spanish-language television.

“I’m so thrilled that my appearance in such a highly rated soap opera helped bring more viewers, said Arrarás. “It was a great challenge because it involved acting, something different from my journalism work on Al Rojo Vivo.”