One of cinema’s most beloved stoner-turned-dealers is keeping his status up with a new role on Showtime’s dark comedy Weeds (Mondays, 10pm EST). Yet despite his role as tough dealer Guillermo, actor Guillermo Diaz could be considered the opposite of gangster.
The Urban Daily sits down with the amiable Diaz to talk about his new gig, getting noticed, and having the awesome reputation as one of this generation’s Tommy Chongs.
The Urban Daily: What’s your character like on Weeds?
Guillermo Diaz: I play Guillermo, ironically enough, but that was a total coincidence. My character comes in and takes over as her drug supplier. I’m supposed to be this dangerous guy, but me and Nancy (Mary Louise Parker) kind of take a liking to each other and I ask her to be my partner. I’m getting to interact with a lot of different characters on the show that I haven’t interacted with before, so it gets very interesting. A lot of stuff is going to happen this season!
TUD: After playing a pusher in Weeds and Scarface in Half Baked, are you ever afraid of being type-casted with all these druggie and thug roles?
Guillermo Diaz: Not at all. You know, I don’t really even think about it; I’m just happy to be working, and Weeds is such a great show, and the writers are so amazing, and I’m just lucky to be on it. I don’t care if they have me playing a freakin’ shoe shiner on the show. I love playing bad guys, actually.
TUD: What’s so great about being the bad guy?
Guillermo Diaz: It’s easier to get lost in the character, have fun with it, and just sort of go for it and do these things that I would never do in real life. I don’t know why I find that easier than playing like a regular nice guy, but it’s more fun ‘cause you get to do all this crazy shit [you wouldn’t normally do].
TUD: How do the bad guys and potheads compare to your real-life personality?
Guillermo Diaz: I think I’m shyer than most of the characters I play. They all very outgoing and have bigger personalities than I have, so in that sense I’m not like my characters at all, Guillermo especially. He’s the boss; he commands the room and everybody’s listening to him. I just like to blend into the background and listen to people, and I’ll follow. I’ll never be the guy who’ll [completely take charge], so I guess [those characters] are fun to play because it’s not me at all.
TUD: How does an introvert get into theater?
Guillermo Diaz: I was picked on a lot in high school and [performed] in a talent show my friends were doing. Once I was up on stage, the people who didn’t really like me before were excited and clapping, and in my head I thought, “wow, this is what I want to do.” It’s kind of sad that that’s what drove me to it, but I fell in love with the art, and now I just love to act.
TUD: Does it ever annoy you to be recognized on the street?
Guillermo Diaz: I think almost every day someone will come up to me and yell out “wrap it up, B!” [from Chappelle’s Show] or “they killed Killer, B!” [from Half Baked]. It’s pretty cool, and it’s fun to think back to the movie; we did it so long ago, but people are still really into it.
TUD: What’s up next?
Guillermo Diaz: I did a horror film called Evilution about a year ago, and it’s doing the festival circuit right now. I love horror movies – in this one, I get to fight off these really fast-moving zombies that are eating people. It was grueling though; I was covered in blood for pretty much the whole movie. I also did a movie called The Bachelor with Eric Roberts, but Weeds is the main thing; I start shooting for my tenth episode on the show on Tuesday.
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