BPS 237: Exploring the Actor's Process - Inside His Greatest Roles with Edward James Olmos

Our guest today is 80s star, multiple-awards film, and theater
actor, and activist, Edward James Olmos.

Olmos’s roles in films or TV shows like Stand and
Deliver, Battlestar Galactica, broadway musical and
film Zoot Suit, Blade Runner as detective Gaff,
and many others are some of the most memorable of all time and he’s
still dominating our screens.

While I could not resist talking about his iconic roles over
several decades, we mainly discussed Olmos’ new must-see
film, Chasing Wonders.

The picturesque Australian/British drama was the official selection
at the Adelaide film festival in 2020. The beautiful
cinematography of the film was shot over a five years period to
authentically capture the coming of age story by
screenwriter, Judy Morris. Chasing Wonders is a story of
hope, possibility adventure, and overcoming your past – a
heart-warming story of a young boy, who, encouraged by his
grandfather (Olmos) to live a life of hope and possibility, takes
off on the adventure of a lifetime to find the magical Emu Plains.
His journey through the lush landscapes of Australia and Spain
leads him to the heart of the human condition – learning to
acknowledge the complexity of what comes before us but struggling
not to be defined by the past.

The Hollywood Walk of Famer earned an Academy nomination for Best
Actor in the 1988 drama, Stand and Deliver. He gave a stellar
lead performance as Bolivian- American educator Jaime Alfonso
Escalante Gutiérrez.

Olmos filmography is quite extensive. Literally, the man has stayed
booked and busy since 1974. He’s appeared in over 130 films, TV
shows, and plays.

One of his outstanding roles is perhaps,  Lieutenant
Martin Castillo in the Miami Vice (1984) as a series
regular. A fan-favorite for sure.

But if we do talk about Lieutenant Castillo we must mention Olmos’
role as Detective Gaff in Blade Runner (1982)
and a brief reprise in the sequel Blade Runner
2049 (2017). Gaff is the Los Angeles police officer who
detains and escorts Deckard (Harrison Ford) throughout his mission
as a ‘Blade Runner’ to track down bioengineered humanoids known as
replicants and terminally “retire” them.

Olmos showed the world his versatility in both the Broadway play
and film adaptation of the musical comedy, Zoot Suit. The
story weaves the real-life events of the Sleepy Lagoon murder trial
– resulting in the racially fueled Zoot Suit Riots throughout Los
Angeles. Olmos portrays El Pachuco, an idealized Zoot
Suiter, who functions as narrator throughout the story and serves
as Henry’s conscience in both adaptations.

Honestly, I could go on and on down Olmos’ filmography, but we
can’t spotlight all of his other spectacular films right now. So,
let’s get into this interview, shall we?

Don’t forget to click the links in the show notes to
watch Chasing Wonders.

Enjoy my epic conversation with Edward James Olmos.

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