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Jacob Vargas

Actor, ProducerBorn August 18, 1971 (53 years)
Jacob Vargas (born August 18, 1971) is a Mexican-American actor. He began his acting career when he was discovered breakdancing in a schoolyard at age 12. His introduction to acting came with a bit part as a breakdancer on the hit TV show Diff'rent Strokes (1978).

His first movie role was in the TV movie The Children of Times Square (1986). He started to appear in more films including Last Resort (1986), Ernest Goes to Camp (1987), The Principal (1987), Little Nikita (1988), American Me (1992), and Gas Food Lodging (1992). In 1995, he won the very first ALMA Award (for Emerging Artist of the Year) for his work in both Allison Anders' Mi Vida Loca (1993) and Gregory Nava's My Family (1995).

He next starred in films including Crimson Tide (1995), Get Shorty (1995), Selena (1997), Romy and Michele's High School Reunion (1997), and the cult favorite Next Friday (2000) as Ice Cube's nemesis, Joker.

His next role was Tijuana cop Manolo, 'Benicio del Toro"s partner in Steven Soderbergh's Academy Award- winning film Traffic (2000), which earned him a Screen Actors Guild Award and another ALMA Award.

In 2001, he executive produced and starred in the independent film Road Dogz (2002). He wrote, directed and acted in EDNY (2003). He also co-produced and starred in the stage play "Latinologues", which ran on Broadway in 2005 and is available on DVD.

He voiced for Pepito in Dr. Dolittle 2 (2001). Next, he played Sammi the chef in John Moore's Flight of the Phoenix (2004), Marine sniper Juan Cortez in Academy Award-winning director Sam Mendes' war drama Jarhead (2005), a straight-arrow DEA agent in the action drama The Death and Life of Bobby Z (2006), a politically charged busboy Miguel in Emilio Estevez's historical drama Bobby (2006), and a psychologically tortured drone pilot Rudy Ramirez in Alex Rivera's sci-fi political love story Sleep Dealer (2008).

He had roles in The Hills Have Eyes 2 (2007), Are We Done Yet? (2007), Death Race (2008), Cesar Chavez (2014, Heaven is For Real (2014), The Tell-Tale Heart (2016), Plan B, (2021), and Kimi (2022).

His major TV roles are as Bob on Surfside Girls, Tony Medina on Mr. Iglesias, Horacio on Mosaic, Domingo Colon on Marvel's Luke Cage, Allesandro Montez on Sons of Anarchy and later on Mayans M.C., Guillermo on Moonlight, Ernesto Tiant on Greetings from Tucson, and Dr. Roberto Martinez on Max Steel. He had recurring roles on Colony, Blue, and Six Feet Under.

He has also guest starred on a number of shows including National Treasure: Edge of History, The Mentalist, Burn Notice, Psych, Numb3rs, Medium, CSI: NY, Cold Case, The Pretender, JAG, ER, Full House, and Hunter.

He has voiced for characters on animated series including Solar Opposites, Young Justice, and a recurring role on Tarantula.

Movies & Shows on Plex

  • Moonlight
  • The Wendell Baker Story
  • Hunter
  • Cesar Chavez
  • TV: The Movie
  • Last Resort
  • Princess of the Row
  • The Virgin of Juarez
  • Road Dogz
  • Huck and the King of Hearts
  • Water & Power
  • Journey of a Female Comic

Known For

  • Traffic
  • Devil
  • Death Race
  • The Hills Have Eyes 2
  • Flight of the Phoenix
  • Next Friday
  • Heaven Is for Real
  • Selena
  • The 33
  • Mr. Iglesias
  • Moonlight
  • Sleep Dealer
  • Beyond Skyline
  • The Wendell Baker Story
  • The Principal
  • Ernest Goes to Camp
  • Airborne
  • My Family
  • Cesar Chavez
  • My Crazy Life
  • Gas Food Lodging
  • Bobby Z
  • The Hi-Lo Country
  • The Public

Featured Videos

    Filmography

    2022
    National Treasure: Edge of History (TV Series) · as Rafael
    2022
    Satanic Hispanics · as El Jefe
    2022
    Lopez vs Lopez (TV Series) · as Javier
    2022
    Surfside Girls (TV Series) · as Bob
    2022
    Kimi · as Glasses Thug
    2021
    Plan B · as Pastor Pedro
    2020
    Game On! A Comedy Crossover Event (TV Series) · as Tony Ochoa
    2020
    Solar Opposites (TV Series) · as Cast
    2019
    Mr. Iglesias (TV Series) · as Tony Medina
    2019
    Peel · as Chuck
    2019
    2018
    2018
    Mayans M.C. (TV Series) · as Allesandro Montez
    2018
    Mosaic (TV Series) · as Horacio
    2017
    Tarantula (TV Series) · as Paja
    2017
    Beyond Skyline · as Garcia
    2017
    Philip K. Dick's Electric Dreams (TV Series) · as Mario
    2016
    Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life · as Animation Voice (voice)
    2016
    Marvel's Luke Cage (TV Series) · as Domingo Colon
    2016
    Crossing Point · as Jesus
    2016
    2016
    Colony (TV Series) · as Carlos
    2015
    The 33 · as Edison 'elvis' Peña
    2015
    Complications (TV Series) · as Ramon
    2014
    Hand of God (TV Series) · as Julio Farkas (uncredited)
    2014
    2014
    Heaven Is for Real · as Michael
    2014
    Cesar Chavez · as Richard Chavez
    2014
    Red Sky · as Jorge 'p-Dawg' Vasquez
    2013
    Go for Sisters · as Navajas
    2013
    Water & Power · as Asuncion Garcia
    2013
    Kroll Show (TV Series) · as Cast
    2012
    Blue (TV Series) · as Roy
    2010
    Young Justice (TV Series) · as Sebastian Cardona / Cisco Ramon (voice)
    2010
    Devil · as Ramirez
    2010
    The Good Guys (2010) (TV Series) · as Tico
    2009
    Tom Cool · as Cast
    2008
    Sleep Dealer · as Rudy Ramirez
    2008
    The Mentalist (TV Series) · as Chief Rick Anaya
    2008
    Sons of Anarchy (TV Series) · as Allesandro Montez
    2008
    Death Race · as Gunner
    2008
    Love Lies Bleeding · as Detective Billy Jones
    2007
    Moonlight (TV Series) · as Guillermo
    2007
    Burn Notice (TV Series) · as Omar Hernandez
    2007
    Bobby Z · as Jorge Escobar
    2007
    Are We Done Yet? · as Mike The Plumber
    2007
    2006
    Bobby · as Miguel
    2006
    TV: The Movie · as Tijuana Cop 2 / Announcer / Charlotte
    2006
    Psych (TV Series) · as Juan Lava
    2006
    The Virgin of Juarez · as Detective Lauro
    2005
    Jarhead · as Juan Cortez
    2005
    2005
    Numb3rs (TV Series)
    2005
    Medium (TV Series) · as Eduardo Garcia
    2004
    2004
    CSI: NY (TV Series) · as Luis Torres
    2003
    Cold Case (TV Series) · as Angelo Rivera (2009)
    2003
    Kingpin (TV Series)
    2002
    CSI: Miami (TV Series) · as Felix Medina
    2002
    Greetings From Tucson (TV Series) · as Ernesto Tiant
    2002
    RFK · as Cesar Chavez
    2002
    Road Dogz · as Danny Pacheco
    2002
    Watching Ellie (TV Series) · as Miguel
    2002
    Dragonfly · as Victor
    2002
    Turnaround · as Gonzalez
    2001
    The Proud Family (TV Series) · as Punch Alto (voice)
    2001
    Dr. Dolittle 2 · as Pepito (voice)
    2001
    Six Feet Under (TV Series) · as Manuel 'paco' Bolin
    2001
    2000
    Traffic · as Manolo Sanchez
    2000
    The Brothers Garcia (TV Series) · as Chuy
    2000
    Max Steel (TV Series) · as Dr. Roberto Martinez (voice)
    2000
    Next Friday · as Joker
    1998
    The Hi-Lo Country · as Delfino Mondragon
    1997
    Santa Fe · as Jesus
    1997
    1997
    Selena · as A. B. Quintanilla
    1996
    Clueless (TV Series)
    1996
    The Pretender (US) (TV Series) · as Javi Padillo
    1996
    Malibu Shores (TV Series)
    1995
    Get Shorty · as Yayo Portillo
    1995
    JAG (TV Series) · as Corporal Cortez
    1995
    My Family · as Young Jose
    1995
    Crimson Tide · as Sonarman #2
    1995
    Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales for Every Child (TV Series) · as Prince Luis (voice)
    1994
    ER (TV Series) · as Diablo
    1994
    1993
    My Crazy Life · as Ernesto
    1993
    Fatal Instinct · as Flower Delivery Man
    1993
    Airborne · as Snake
    1992
    Hitz · as Hispanic Boy
    1992
    Gas Food Lodging · as Javier
    1992
    Steel Justice · as Arturo Gomez
    1992
    American Me · as Paulito - Age 15
    1991
    Nurses (TV Series) · as Luis
    1991
    Seeds of Tragedy · as Cholo #2
    1991
    Never Forget · as Student
    1990
    1990
    The New Adam-12 (TV Series) · as Collins
    1989
    Crack House · as Danny
    1989
    Hard Time on Planet Earth (TV Series) · as Billy
    1988
    Little Nikita · as Miguel
    1987
    Full House (TV Series)
    1987
    The Principal · as Arturo Diego
    1987
    Ernest Goes to Camp · as Bubba Vargas
    1987
    The Tracey Ullman Show (TV Series) · as Taco Place Manager
    1986
    The New Gidget (TV Series) · as Enrique
    1986
    1986
    1986
    1984
    Hunter (TV Series) · as Emilio Morales
    1954
    Disneyland (TV Series) · as Student #2

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