It’s five o’clock on a Friday afternoon. Not exactly the moment you want to start an interview. As a writer you want your subject as comfortable as possible, so I fear the timing may not be ideal. Yet, at five sharp the phone rings and on the other side is a voice that is upbeat, energized and more like one of your boy’s peeping Friday night plans, rather than an actor who appears on one of the hottest shows on television.
J.R. Ramirez is currently a part of the cast of Power airing on the Starz Network. Executive produced by Curtis ’50 Cent’ Jackson, the show tells the story of James ‘Ghost’ St. Patrick, a wealthy New York City nightclub owner leading a double life as the kingpin of a lucrative drug network in New York. Ramirez plays Julio, a trusted lieutenant in Ghost’s organization. The show has been a runaway hit. J.R. chatted with ‘LLERO on everything from what we can expect on the season finale, working with Tyler Perry and 50 Cent, to diversity in show biz and the Hollywood grind.
‘LL: Congratulations on the success of the show. What’s it been like to be on one of the hottest shows on television? Which has been renewed for two additional seasons.
J.R.: It’s been great, truly a blessing for sure. And, yes, that’s correct we’ve been renewed for two more.
‘LL: So two more years of work for you?
J.R.: [Laughing] Maybe, maybe, I don’t know, I certainly hope so.
‘LL: It appears that the writers have been developing your character this season. Where would you like to see Julio go?
J.R.: They are definitely slowly fleshing him out. He definitely has an end game, a plan for everything. I think that he just wants a seat at the table at the end of it all…and it’s a possibility that it could be in the works.
‘LL: We know you’ve probably been sworn to secrecy, but what can we expect from the finale?
J.R.: You can say that again. Every time we do an interview there’s so much you want to say, but only so much you can say.
‘LL: What can you share without getting in trouble?
J.R.: Everybody dies [laughs]. Seriously, I think folks will be surprised, a few folks are taken out…I don’t think folks will see it coming. The cast, as actors we were shocked when we saw the script, we had no idea things would go down the way they do.
‘LL: It’s such a heavy and dark show as far as subject matter. What’s the environment like on set? Do you guys look to lighten the mood?
J.R.: We definitely try to find any bit of comedic light, because it is dark and heavy at times, especially on my end dealing with subject matter of drugs. So anytime we can find a way to lighten it we do. Working with 50, he’s there every day and that dude can crack jokes all day long.
‘LL: Speaking of 50, he wears two hats on the show, he’s not only an actor, but also an executive producer. What’s it like working with him?
J.R.: I find him to be really engaging. He’s been doing it for a little bit now, but it’s not his first thing, so the guy doesn’t walk in with any cocky head, you better follow my lead [attitude]. He walks in early, asks questions, is completely engaged, wanting to rehearse, wanting to dig deep and do the work. That’s something I take my hat off to, which I’ve told him several times. It’s refreshing, because as executive producer, being the person who he is, having the power (no pun intended) he could, but he doesn’t. He’s the total opposite. It only elevates all of our games, to work together and bring out the best possible product we can.
J.R.’s thoughts on the diversity of the cast, working with Tyler Perry and Julio’s fate, after the jump.
‘LL: An additional unique element to this show is the diversity of the cast. It seems as if every minority group is represented by way of the various crews from Latinos, to Asians to Russians. Could you speak to that?
J.R: To be honest with you, that’s my favorite thing about the show. It is something that is relevant and needed. You walk around the streets of New York and you see all different kinds of colors. I feel like television is doing more of that nowadays, the diversity in the last few years has improved. I’ve been the game for over a decade and when I first started there were the same “cholo” Latino roles, and now you have these roles for Latinos that are more complex and have all these layers. That’s the way it should be and Power has definitely opened a lot of doors in that aspect. Credit to our showrunner who has done an amazing job of creating that world. I love just being a part of that.
‘LL: You’ve also been a part of another world. Specifically, the DCEU on Arrow as Wildcat. Any chance we might see Wildcat return to Arrow or Earth 2 on The Flash?
J.R: Anything is possible. I like to think that door is still open. I hear about it all the time. Fans definitely took a liking to that character. It’s just difficult in terms of scheduling because both shows shoot at the same time and there in completely different places. So it’s a little tricky because of that, but it’s a possibility. I had a blast doing the show.
‘LL: You’ve been in the game for over 10 years. What drew you to acting?
J.R.: I caught the bug. I started modeling in my early 20’s, doing commercial work, and I caught the bug. Put myself in classes, started local theatre in Florida. From there on I knew it was what I wanted to do. So I picked up my stuff and moved to L.A. without knowing anybody about 12 years ago and here we are.
‘LL: Any actors on your wish list that you’d like to work with or projects you’d like to do?
J.R.: My cousin is actually developing a baseball project, which I am part of along with Amaury Nolasco. They are working on it now. As far as actors there are so many, Ben Foster is always someone I’ve wanted to work with. For me he’s one of the best actors of my generation.
‘LL: You also worked with Tyler Perry on House of Pain back in the day. What was it like working with him?
J.R.: He directed everything I worked on. He was very hands on. I don’t know how he split himself in so many pieces, he was literally doing three shows at once, writing a film and he directed every episode I was in. It’s crazy how much work he puts behind everything he has. That’s something that was very inspiring to see starting out.
‘LL: Speaking of starting out. You were born in Cuba but emigrated at a young age. What do you think of the current change occurring in Cuba?
J.R.: I left at three months old. My cousins remind me I’m the gringo of the family [laughing]. I think it’s good that things are starting to open up, but I think it will take some time. I joke with friends that they should go now before there are 15 McDonald’s all over Havana. I think it’s a slow process, I just hope more than anything that the actual people of Cuba are the ones that profit from the change.
‘LL: We have to press one more, time, anything more you can share about the final episode? Does Julio make it to Season 4?
J.R.: [Laughing] I don’t know man; you have to tune into find out.
‘LL: Given that were on #TeamJulio, we certainly hope so.
