Edward James Olmos
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Edward James Olmos (born February 24, 1947) is an American actor, director, producer, and activist. He is best known for his roles as Lieutenant Martin "Marty" Castillo in Miami Vice (1984–1989), actor in and director of American Me (1992), William Adama in the re-imagined Battlestar Galactica (2004–2009), teacher Jaime Escalante in Stand and Deliver (1988), and Detective Gaff in Blade Runner (1982), and its sequel Blade Runner 2049 (2017). In 2018, he played the father of two members of an outlaw motorcycle club in the FX series Mayans MC. For his work in Miami Vice, Olmos won the 1985 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series, as well as the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Series, Miniseries or Television Film. For his performance in Stand and Deliver, Olmos was nominated for a Golden Globe Award and the Academy Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role. He is also known for his roles as patriarch Abraham Quintanilla in the film Selena, narrator El Pachuco in both the stage and film versions of Zoot Suit, and the voice of Chicharrón in Coco. Over the course of his career, Olmos has been a pioneer for more diversified roles and images of Hispanics in the U.S. media. His notable direction, production, and starring roles for films, made-for-TV movies, and TV shows include Wolfen, Triumph of the Spirit, Talent for the Game, American Me, The Burning Season, My Family/Mi Familia, Caught, 12 Angry Men, The Disappearance of Garcia Lorca, Walkout, The Wonderful Ice Cream Suit, American Family, and Dexter. Description above from the Wikipedia article Edward James Olmos, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Known for
Credits
Coco (2017)
as Chicharrón (voice)
Blade Runner 2049 (2017)
as Gaff
Blade Runner (1982)
as Gaff
Stand and Deliver (1988)
as Jaime A. Escalante
Office Romance (2026)
as Captain Jack Cruz
The Road to El Dorado (2000)
as Chief (voice)
2 Guns (2013)
as Papi Greco
The Green Hornet (2011)
as Michael Axford
Wolfen (1981)
as Eddie Holt
My Family (1995)
as Paco
Virus (1980)
as Captain Lopez
A Dog's Way Home (2019)
as Axel
12 Angry Men (1997)
as Juror 11
Beverly Hills Chihuahua (2008)
as Diablo (voice)
One Fast Move (2024)
as Abel
I'm Still Here (2010)
as Edward James Olmos
Caught (1996)
as Joe
Battlestar Galactica: Razor (2007)
as Admiral William Adama
Seguin (1982)
as Gen. Santa Anna
Selena (1997)
as Abraham Quintanilla
Splinter (2006)
as Captain garcia
Battlestar Galactica: The Plan (2009)
as Commander William Adama
Mirage (1995)
as Matteo Juarez
American Me (1992)
as Montoya Santana
America (2011)
as Mr. Irving
Selena Remembered (1997)
as Narrator (voice)
Gossip (2000)
as Detective Curtis
Even Cowgirls Get the Blues (1994)
as Musician at Barbecue (uncredited)
Miami Vice: Freefall (1989)
as Lt. Martin Castillo
Blade Runner: Black Out 2022 (2017)
as Gaff (voice)
Americano (2016)
as Gayo (voice)
In the Time of the Butterflies (2001)
as Rafael Leónidas Trujillo
Triumph of the Spirit (1989)
as Gypsy
Beyond the Border: Latino Representation in Hollywood (2026)
as self
The Limbic Region (1996)
as Lucca
La Cerca (2005)
as Narrator / Old Niño
LA 92 (2017)
as Self (archive footage)
American Pachuco: The Legend of Luis Valdez (2026)
as Narrator – El Pachuco (voice)
Unity (2015)
as Narrator (voice)
Recycled Life (2006)
as Self - Narrator (voice)
Dangerous Days: Making Blade Runner (2007)
as Self
Sunset Boulevard - 27 Meilen Amerika (1997)
as Self - Actor, Director, Latino-Activist
The Devil Has a Name (2019)
as Santiago
Bonanno: A Godfather's Story (1999)
as Salvatore Maranzano
The Ballad of Gregorio Cortez (1983)
as Gregorio Cortez
Mami Está Aquí (2026)
as Mr. Jimenez
Aloha Bobby and Rose (1975)
as Chicano #1
Zoot Suit (1981)
as El Pachuco
Talent for the Game (1991)
as Virgil Sweet
Raúl Juliá: The World’s a Stage (2019)
as Self
Maria's Story (1991)
as José Serrano (voice)
Space Songs: Through the Distance (2020)
as Self
The Blade Runner Phenomenon (2021)
as Self - Actor (Gaff)
Imprisoned (2019)
as Hospicio
The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1998)
as Det. Anthony Piscotti
Dead Angle (1979)
Actor
A Million to Juan (1994)
as The Angel
Outlaw Posse (2024)
as Ossie
The Disney Family Singalong - Volume II (2020)
as Self
The Eyes of Martin Castillo (2018)
as Martin Castillo (archive footage)
The Judge (2001)
as Judge Armando Acosta
Saving Grace (1986)
as Ciolino
The Nightingale (1983)
as Prime Minister
Walkout (2006)
as Julian Nava
Exile Nation: The Plastic People (2014)
as Narrator (voice)
Menendez: A Killing in Beverly Hills (1994)
as Jose Menendez
Go for Sisters (2013)
as Freddy Suárez
Manu: Peru's Hidden Rain Forest (1997)
as Narrator
The Earth Day Special (1990)
as Hospital Director
The Princess and the Barrio Boy (2000)
as Nestor Garcia
Hollywood Confidential (1997)
as Stan Navarro, Sr.
The Burning Season (1994)
as Wilson Pinheiro
Carlos Almaraz: Playing with Fire (2019)
as Self
The Wonderful Ice Cream Suit (1998)
as Vamanos
L.A. Burning: The Riots 25 Years Later (2017)
as Self
Death in Granada (1996)
as Roberto Lozano
The Unfinished Journey (1999)
as Narrator (voice)
Prophecies of the Millennium (1997)
as Host
300 Miles for Stephanie (1981)
as Art Vela
Alambrista! (1977)
as 1st Drunk
The Journey of a Female Comic (2014)
Actor
Deck-A-Rep: The True Nature of Rick Deckard (2007)
as Self
Walking with Herb (2021)
as Joe Amable-Amo
The Bronze Screen: 100 Years of the Latino Image in American Cinema (2002)
Actor
The Wall (1998)
as Col. Holst (segment "The Pencil Holder")
Blue Collar & Buddha (—)
Actor
A Bridge Apart (2013)
as (Voice)
A Class Apart: A Mexican American Civil Rights Story (2009)
as Narrator
Filly Brown (2013)
as Leandro
Windows on the World (2019)
as Balthazar
Every Night's a Saturday Night (2018)
as Self
Blue Collar & Buddha (1986)
as Narrator
Monday Nights at Seven (2016)
as Charlie
Zapatista (1999)
as Narrator (voice)
Roosters (1993)
as Gallo Morales
Slave of Dreams (1995)
as Potiphar
Fashion Forward: Wardrobe and Styling (2007)
as Self
Chasing Wonders (2021)
as Luis
Agave is Life (2014)
as Narrator (voice)
Lives in Hazard (1994)
as self
Learning Not to Hurt (1993)
as Self