Vico Ortiz
Vico Ortiz | |
|---|---|
 Ortiz at the 2022 Ren Faire | |
| Born | October 10, 1991 |
| Education | American Academy of Dramatic Arts |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 2011–present |
Vico Ortiz (born October 10, 1991) is a Puerto Rican actor, drag king and activist.[3] They are best known for their role as Jim in the HBO Max television series Our Flag Means Death.[4]
Early life and education
Ortiz born on October 10, 1991,[5] in San Juan, Puerto Rico, where they were raised.[1][2][6] Their mother tongue is Spanish, and they also speak English.[7]
They received their education at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in Los Angeles.[8]
Career
Ortiz started their acting career in 2011 when they starred in the short film Oprah's Audience Moves on. For the following years, they had many small roles in others shorts and TV shows.[9]
Around 2017–2018, Ortiz told their agent that they wanted to go for roles of all genders, whether non-binary (like them) or not. When they were hired for non-queer roles, they started suggesting to the writers that their characters could be non-binary, and some shows accepted to make the change.[10]
In 2018, they starred in the queer web series Recon, about a group of teenagers attending a secret spy school, as Ren St. Claire, one of the main characters.[9] Later that year they starred in two episodes of the TV show Vida.
In 2019, they starred in another queer web series titled These Thems, where they played Vero, a non-binary character befriending a 30 years old woman who just came out.[9] Ortiz also wrote the Spanish subtitles for the show.[10]
In 2021, they had recurring roles in both The Sex Lives of College Girls and S.O.Z. Soldados o Zombies.[9]
In 2022, they had their first main role in a television show, Our Flag Means Death.[9] Ortiz plays a non-binary pirate in this queer comedy about the romantic relationship between Blackbeard and Stede Bonnet which quickly became a hit.[11] Ortiz says that their interactions with fans has changed their life, and that they felt allowed to get top surgery after seeing many fan arts of their character Jim getting the gender-affirming surgery from the show's cook and de facto surgeon Roach (played by Samba Schutte).[12]
Personal life
Ortiz is non-binary and uses they/them pronouns in English[13][14][15] and elle/le/e in Spanish.[3][16] In an episode of the podcast Gender Reveal, they identified as genderfluid as well as non-binary, comparing their gender to a waterbed, "constantly moving, but in a fun way".[10]
They are a drag king going by "Vico Suave".[3] Their character takes inspiration from both their Hispanic/Caribbean and American culture,[8] as well as "men who are comfortable with their femininity", such as Ricky Martin, Marc Anthony and Bad Bunny.[17] They have another drag king persona named AJ when performing with their boy band the Backstreet Butches.[10] Ortiz's drag king career started when a friend convinced them to participate in a show before they even knew what drag was.[17]
Ortiz is an activist in subjects such as Puerto Rican federal voting rights, anti-racism and gender neutrality in the Spanish language.[3]
Filmography
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Transparent (TV series) | Cindy | 1 episode |
| 2015 | The Fosters (American TV series) | Cole's buddy | 1 episode |
| 2018 | Vida (TV series) | Tasha | 2 episodes |
| 2019 | American Horror Story | Rudy | 1 episode |
| 2020 | Everything's Gonna Be Okay | Lyndsey | 2 episodes |
| 2021 | The Sex Lives of College Girls | Tova | Recurring role |
| 2021 | S.O.Z. Soldados o Zombies | Sgt. Vicky Valencia | Recurring role |
| 2022 | Our Flag Means Death | Jim Jimenez | Main role |
Web series
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Recon | Ren St. Claire | Main role |
| 2019 | These Thems | Vero | Main role |
References
- ^ a b Del Rosario, Alexandra (April 13, 2022). "'Our Flag Means Death,' 'Vida' Actor Vico Ortiz Inks With Paradigm". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved April 27, 2022.
- ^ a b Kelleher, Patrick (March 17, 2022). "HBO's new swashbuckling, non-binary pirate is 'reclaiming our stories', actor Vico Ortiz says". PinkNews. Retrieved March 20, 2022.
- ^ a b c d "Politics & Pride: Getting To Know Vico Ortiz". Ladygunn. June 25, 2020. Retrieved May 10, 2022.
- ^ "Vico Ortiz". LezWatch.TV. Retrieved March 21, 2022.
- ^ @V_Vico_Ortiz (April 19, 2022). "Been getting a lot of lovely congratulations but just wanted to say that it is not my birthday tomorrow. Not sure how that happened… but I was born 10/10/91 at 10:10am 🖤✨ hahahaha 😅 I'm a confused millennial in their 30s ✌🏽" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ @V_Vico_Ortiz (April 19, 2022). "For the girlies doing my chart I was born in San Juan, Puerto Rico 💅🏽💁🏽♂️✨" (Tweet). Retrieved May 11, 2022 – via Twitter.
- ^ "Vico Ortiz Talks 'Our Flag Means Death,' Being a Non-Binary Actor & Working with Taika Waititi". Remezcla. April 26, 2022. Retrieved May 11, 2022.
- ^ a b "Vico Ortiz Bio". IMDb. Retrieved May 10, 2022.
- ^ a b c d e "Vico Ortiz". IMDb. Retrieved May 10, 2022.
- ^ a b c d "Gender Reveal: Episode 72: Vico Ortiz". gender.libsyn.com. Retrieved May 12, 2022.
- ^ "All of "Our Flag Means Death's" Impressive Rankings". The Geekiary. April 13, 2022. Retrieved May 10, 2022.
- ^ "'OFMD's Vico Ortiz Says Fan Art Encouraged Them to Get Top Surgery". Out.com. April 29, 2022. Retrieved May 11, 2022.
- ^ Dawson, Lamar (September 17, 2021). "Latinx actor Vico Ortiz talks coming out non-binary, breaking down gendered barriers". Today.com. Retrieved March 20, 2022.
- ^ Rude, Mey (March 17, 2022). "Vico Ortiz Talks Playing a Nonbinary Pirate in Our Flag Means Death". Out. Retrieved March 20, 2022.
- ^ Spielberger, Daniel (March 3, 2022). "Vico Ortiz Plays A Pirate Grappling with Gender on "Our Flag Means Death"". them. Retrieved March 21, 2022.
- ^ "Vico Ortiz". Twitter. Retrieved May 10, 2022.
- ^ a b "Vico Ortiz Takes on the Binary and Zombie Apocalypse". Advocate.com. September 27, 2021. Retrieved May 10, 2022.
External links
- Vico Ortiz at IMDb