Bryhana jumps right in and asks how the actor prepared for this role. “A lot of research, a lot of respect..you know. Just because I’m Mexican; I was born in Mexico city, i can’t say that my experience speaks for every Mexican experience. So all I knew, was that I could bring in was the similarities, the historical background of our people, but then understand that neighborhood which was a neighborhood I grew up adjacent to, that I always knew was there, but I wasn’t part of it. At least not actively part of it.”
He also discusses of course the more obvious things that go into prepping for any role. He had to put on a pretty good amount of weight, change his attitude, etc. He also makes sure to note, that for Spooky, he didn’t want to just think badass or hard. The role does of course encompass that demeanor, but its so much more than just that the actor explains.
Besides pulling from his personal experience and talking to locals from the area, Julio talks what acting technique he used to truly become his character. People may describe his technique as method acting, he says, but he actually disagrees. “I would say that when they would yell cut, I wouldn’t just immediately jump back to being Julio, but I wouldn’t walk around like spooky. I kept a certain amount of centered groundness as I walked around between takes…the technique I used was all of them and none of them in a way.”
When Bryhana asks what favorite episode between the two seasons isn he gives a favorite scene instead. “The one where Ruby gets to rap.” There were other scenes from that episode that didn’t make the final cut, he adds, “it was a fun day to shoot.” Hmmm for those of you’ve who’ve been keeping up with the show, what is your favorite episode so far? If you haven’t watched yet…you better get to it because season 3 is coming y’all! *screams internally in Spanish*
Watch Bryhana and Julio’s full interview below:
