Cortés became a sensation in the Mexican film industry during the 1950s, when she appeared in 1958's Misterios de Ultratumba ("Mysteries of the Afterlife", aka The Black Pit of Dr.

[5] Cortés then starred or played important roles in a number of films, following her uncle and aunt's footsteps by becoming a celebrity on her own in Mexico.

While she was doing films, another celebrity, Chilean singer Lucho Gatica, fell in love with her and the two began a romance that would lead to a marriage on May 21, 1960.

[8] After marrying Lucho Gatica, Mapita Cortés semi-retired from the world of show business, becoming a housewife instead and attending to her children.

In 1989, she participated alongside Verónica Castro in Televisa's Mi pequeña Soledad,[2] which became a major hit across Mexico, the United States and even Europe, giving Mapita Cortés a degree of celebrity in countries like Russia and others.