July 9, 2025 • 7 mins
Actor John Leguizamo talks season 2 of his MSNBC show 'Leguizamo Does America', new Apple TV+ show 'Smoke' and more!
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Pure on with Mario Lopez.
Speaker 2 (00:02):
So Ro Mario Lopez joining me right now on Zoom
actor in comic My man, John Leguizamo. How you been John?
Speaker 1 (00:09):
What's help? Was help us up? How you doing, Mario?
How's everything going?
Speaker 2 (00:12):
It's going really well, brother, blessed fee feel really good.
I haven't seen you since your last show, which was
here was it the mark tape or form? We were
here in La or I was Comenson, That's what it was.
Excellent show, so much fun. Congratulations on the second season
of the docu series like Ozombo Does America. I know
it just premiere on NSNBC for those who may not
be familiar. Tell us about it.
Speaker 1 (00:34):
Yeah, well, basically what I do in this show and
it's the first of its time, which is insane that
it's the first show on Latin culture because the first
language spoken in America was not English, was Spanish. We've
been here since fourteen ninety two and way before you know,
most of the country has a Spanish name. So this
(00:57):
is the first show on our culture and it was
number one on MSNBC, so we got a second season.
And basically what I do. I go around the country
looking for Latin exceptionalism, Latin genius, Latin ingenuity, and and
I celebrated, and I and I shine a light on it,
and and I find that Latin joy all over the place.
Speaker 2 (01:17):
I love it. And that's one of the things I
loved about the show that I caught it the amen sin.
I love history. It's always been my favorite subject, so
getting to know about that and the culture was very cool.
And in the first episode of season two, I know
you're in Philly and you hit it. You hit a
boxing gym, right.
Speaker 1 (01:31):
Oh yeah, yeah, I hit up a boxing gym. This
incredible uh boxing coach and in a poor neighborhood in
Philly that's being gentrified severely. And you know, I always
knew gentrification and urban renewal and all these terms were bad.
I didn't just understand how evil it was. You know,
I always thought, oh, you get a couple of Starbucks
(01:53):
and people start to leave. But no, what happens is
this did fun schools, hospit those important resources supermarket. So people,
you know, are basically starved out of their neighborhoods, so
they have to yell uncle himself for nothing. So this
coach won't give up. He stays in town. He has
(02:14):
his boxing gym, all these kids and uh, you know,
I get beat up by that five year old in
the first episode.
Speaker 2 (02:23):
That's great, man, that's great. I know you've been all
kinds of different cities like Denver and New Orlands, San Antonio, Phoenix.
Do you have a favorite that you've had the most fun.
Speaker 1 (02:32):
I mean, it's hard to say which is a fair
because everybody, each one had really interesting people. But I
got to say my I mean Nola's I love Noah,
but I think San Antonio was my favorite. I didn't
think it would be.
Speaker 2 (02:45):
But that's an underrated city. I like San Antonio too
charming with he was saying so.
Speaker 1 (02:49):
Charming and I didn't know it was the sixth largest
city in America either, it's it's massive. Yah. Food scene
is next level chef's. I mean, the incredible produce, the
ingredients is so fresh, the tied the tie two. Mexican
(03:09):
culture is so close that the food is really authentic tasting.
Speaker 2 (03:14):
Yeah. No, I love going there. I've got a nephew
in college there at the moment right now. You're also
John in this new crime drama Smoke Over an Apple TV,
along with tarn Edgerton and Jeriusmillett, and this was all
about the serial arsonists terrorizing the Pacific Northwest, right, that
must be very cool, fascinating.
Speaker 1 (03:32):
Oh yeah, No, it's a sick story. It's a true
crime story.
Speaker 2 (03:37):
Oh true. I love that.
Speaker 1 (03:40):
Criminal. I guess that's the appropriate word. In the nineties,
this guy John Orr was the pre eminent expert in
arson and it turned out that he was an expert
only because he was setting the fires himself all the work.
Dozens of people burned down millions and billions of dollars
(04:03):
with the property and wouldn't have been stopped, you want
to stopped unless somebody found them out. And that's what
this series is a fictional version of this guy and
I play, you know, the guy's best friend who gets
too close to him and starts to figure out that
something is fishy. So he has me my career destroyed
and sets me up as a fall guy, and my
(04:25):
career collapses. So I become a point director, because that's
what everybody who's in the fire department, who's in the
career does.
Speaker 2 (04:32):
That seems like a natural transition, right, I didn't see
that coming. You threw me off on that one.
Speaker 1 (04:39):
I went met it. I studied a lot of porn.
Speaker 2 (04:41):
Good for you research. You got to do the research.
Not to get too much away, but I'm just curious
what these guys who do these do this. Is there
some sort of objective financially or is it? Are they
just kind of sick in the head and they want
to see people suffer?
Speaker 1 (04:56):
Or you know, they're financial reward. Obviously, if he's he's
a preeminent arts and investigator, he's.
Speaker 2 (05:03):
Going to be hired for Oh, I guess that's right,
because all oh, but that's awful. Oh my gosh, that's
like how many murderers and then you're you're the detective. Yeah,
here trying to try to selve the case. That's awful.
Oh that should be good, man, that should be good.
This was cool, and I just it's a fun fact.
I don't think I've ever asked you, but one of
your very first roles I remember was on Miami Vice
back in the eighties, almost forty years ago. What do
(05:25):
you remember about that particular time and audition?
Speaker 1 (05:27):
Oh my god, that was crazy. I mean I was
I was like nineteen or twenty years old. I was
still in college. I went up for this audition for
the I guess the guest villain of the week. Yeah,
and duckily I was really ill. I had like this fever,
(05:48):
so my voice was overy here. My voice was so low, right,
I think but helped me get the job. But then
when I went to work, my voice was back to normal.
So I sound like a peachweek.
Speaker 2 (05:59):
That's hilarious, guy. And last question, John, I wanted to
ask you this Selena Gomez' fiance. I don't know if
you've ever met him or he you have met him.
Speaker 1 (06:10):
I met him at the New York Knicks VIP.
Speaker 2 (06:14):
Section, and so how did that conversation go. Was he
a huge fan of Carlito's Way obviously called himself Benny Blanco.
I'm curious about that inner interaction, Like, tell me about Yeah.
Speaker 1 (06:22):
I was like, oh, Benny Blanco, I mean, obviously you
love Carlito's Way. Yeah, and he was, yeah, yeah, I'm
I'm a big fan, you know. So yeah, you know school.
I mean I don't own the name, no, but like.
Speaker 2 (06:33):
Your soil scenautous. I thought that's a big compliment to you, right,
because I was.
Speaker 1 (06:36):
Like, yeah, a badge of honor that he named himself
after Benny Blanco. There was other A lot of other
stuff was named Benny Blanco through the years, Yes, which dude, honor,
which was you know heron started being called Benny Blanco
after the show came out because of you know Blanco white, right, Yeah?
And I was, I guess I played a drug dealer.
(06:59):
You know, I turned that road down three times?
Speaker 2 (07:01):
Is that right?
Speaker 1 (07:02):
Yeah, because I didn't want to play a drug dealer again.
And I was like, I don't want to demonize my people.
It's ridiculous. But then when they said they were going
to give it to Benicio char I said, okay, I'll.
Speaker 2 (07:10):
Take it right right. Hey, you're playing offosite Pacinto and
Sean fat I mean you can't go on?
Speaker 1 (07:15):
Oh yeah, how bad? It was a pretty great start.
Speaker 2 (07:17):
Oh it's the fast. Oh that's cool that you met, right,
Thanks for sharing that. Well. Listen everyone, Please be sure
catch John new episodes of Smoke on Apple TV every
Friday and in his docu series like Guzamo Does America
Sunday nights on MSNBC and available for streaming on Hulu.
Thanks for checking in, brother, Good to see you.
Speaker 1 (07:35):
You're always faked to see you man.
Speaker 2 (07:36):
Much love you too, brother. Take care of You with
Mario Lopez
Pure on with Mario Lopez.
Speaker 2 (00:02):
So Ro Mario Lopez joining me right now on Zoom
actor in comic My man, John Leguizamo. How you been John?
Speaker 1 (00:09):
What's help? Was help us up? How you doing, Mario?
How's everything going?
Speaker 2 (00:12):
It's going really well, brother, blessed fee feel really good.
I haven't seen you since your last show, which was
here was it the mark tape or form? We were
here in La or I was Comenson, That's what it was.
Excellent show, so much fun. Congratulations on the second season
of the docu series like Ozombo Does America. I know
it just premiere on NSNBC for those who may not
be familiar. Tell us about it.
Speaker 1 (00:34):
Yeah, well, basically what I do in this show and
it's the first of its time, which is insane that
it's the first show on Latin culture because the first
language spoken in America was not English, was Spanish. We've
been here since fourteen ninety two and way before you know,
most of the country has a Spanish name. So this
(00:57):
is the first show on our culture and it was
number one on MSNBC, so we got a second season.
And basically what I do. I go around the country
looking for Latin exceptionalism, Latin genius, Latin ingenuity, and and
I celebrated, and I and I shine a light on it,
and and I find that Latin joy all over the place.
Speaker 2 (01:17):
I love it. And that's one of the things I
loved about the show that I caught it the amen sin.
I love history. It's always been my favorite subject, so
getting to know about that and the culture was very cool.
And in the first episode of season two, I know
you're in Philly and you hit it. You hit a
boxing gym, right.
Speaker 1 (01:31):
Oh yeah, yeah, I hit up a boxing gym. This
incredible uh boxing coach and in a poor neighborhood in
Philly that's being gentrified severely. And you know, I always
knew gentrification and urban renewal and all these terms were bad.
I didn't just understand how evil it was. You know,
I always thought, oh, you get a couple of Starbucks
(01:53):
and people start to leave. But no, what happens is
this did fun schools, hospit those important resources supermarket. So people,
you know, are basically starved out of their neighborhoods, so
they have to yell uncle himself for nothing. So this
coach won't give up. He stays in town. He has
(02:14):
his boxing gym, all these kids and uh, you know,
I get beat up by that five year old in
the first episode.
Speaker 2 (02:23):
That's great, man, that's great. I know you've been all
kinds of different cities like Denver and New Orlands, San Antonio, Phoenix.
Do you have a favorite that you've had the most fun.
Speaker 1 (02:32):
I mean, it's hard to say which is a fair
because everybody, each one had really interesting people. But I
got to say my I mean Nola's I love Noah,
but I think San Antonio was my favorite. I didn't
think it would be.
Speaker 2 (02:45):
But that's an underrated city. I like San Antonio too
charming with he was saying so.
Speaker 1 (02:49):
Charming and I didn't know it was the sixth largest
city in America either, it's it's massive. Yah. Food scene
is next level chef's. I mean, the incredible produce, the
ingredients is so fresh, the tied the tie two. Mexican
(03:09):
culture is so close that the food is really authentic tasting.
Speaker 2 (03:14):
Yeah. No, I love going there. I've got a nephew
in college there at the moment right now. You're also
John in this new crime drama Smoke Over an Apple TV,
along with tarn Edgerton and Jeriusmillett, and this was all
about the serial arsonists terrorizing the Pacific Northwest, right, that
must be very cool, fascinating.
Speaker 1 (03:32):
Oh yeah, No, it's a sick story. It's a true
crime story.
Speaker 2 (03:37):
Oh true. I love that.
Speaker 1 (03:40):
Criminal. I guess that's the appropriate word. In the nineties,
this guy John Orr was the pre eminent expert in
arson and it turned out that he was an expert
only because he was setting the fires himself all the work.
Dozens of people burned down millions and billions of dollars
(04:03):
with the property and wouldn't have been stopped, you want
to stopped unless somebody found them out. And that's what
this series is a fictional version of this guy and
I play, you know, the guy's best friend who gets
too close to him and starts to figure out that
something is fishy. So he has me my career destroyed
and sets me up as a fall guy, and my
(04:25):
career collapses. So I become a point director, because that's
what everybody who's in the fire department, who's in the
career does.
Speaker 2 (04:32):
That seems like a natural transition, right, I didn't see
that coming. You threw me off on that one.
Speaker 1 (04:39):
I went met it. I studied a lot of porn.
Speaker 2 (04:41):
Good for you research. You got to do the research.
Not to get too much away, but I'm just curious
what these guys who do these do this. Is there
some sort of objective financially or is it? Are they
just kind of sick in the head and they want
to see people suffer?
Speaker 1 (04:56):
Or you know, they're financial reward. Obviously, if he's he's
a preeminent arts and investigator, he's.
Speaker 2 (05:03):
Going to be hired for Oh, I guess that's right,
because all oh, but that's awful. Oh my gosh, that's
like how many murderers and then you're you're the detective. Yeah,
here trying to try to selve the case. That's awful.
Oh that should be good, man, that should be good.
This was cool, and I just it's a fun fact.
I don't think I've ever asked you, but one of
your very first roles I remember was on Miami Vice
back in the eighties, almost forty years ago. What do
(05:25):
you remember about that particular time and audition?
Speaker 1 (05:27):
Oh my god, that was crazy. I mean I was
I was like nineteen or twenty years old. I was
still in college. I went up for this audition for
the I guess the guest villain of the week. Yeah,
and duckily I was really ill. I had like this fever,
(05:48):
so my voice was overy here. My voice was so low, right,
I think but helped me get the job. But then
when I went to work, my voice was back to normal.
So I sound like a peachweek.
Speaker 2 (05:59):
That's hilarious, guy. And last question, John, I wanted to
ask you this Selena Gomez' fiance. I don't know if
you've ever met him or he you have met him.
Speaker 1 (06:10):
I met him at the New York Knicks VIP.
Speaker 2 (06:14):
Section, and so how did that conversation go. Was he
a huge fan of Carlito's Way obviously called himself Benny Blanco.
I'm curious about that inner interaction, Like, tell me about Yeah.
Speaker 1 (06:22):
I was like, oh, Benny Blanco, I mean, obviously you
love Carlito's Way. Yeah, and he was, yeah, yeah, I'm
I'm a big fan, you know. So yeah, you know school.
I mean I don't own the name, no, but like.
Speaker 2 (06:33):
Your soil scenautous. I thought that's a big compliment to you, right,
because I was.
Speaker 1 (06:36):
Like, yeah, a badge of honor that he named himself
after Benny Blanco. There was other A lot of other
stuff was named Benny Blanco through the years, Yes, which dude, honor,
which was you know heron started being called Benny Blanco
after the show came out because of you know Blanco white, right, Yeah?
And I was, I guess I played a drug dealer.
(06:59):
You know, I turned that road down three times?
Speaker 2 (07:01):
Is that right?
Speaker 1 (07:02):
Yeah, because I didn't want to play a drug dealer again.
And I was like, I don't want to demonize my people.
It's ridiculous. But then when they said they were going
to give it to Benicio char I said, okay, I'll.
Speaker 2 (07:10):
Take it right right. Hey, you're playing offosite Pacinto and
Sean fat I mean you can't go on?
Speaker 1 (07:15):
Oh yeah, how bad? It was a pretty great start.
Speaker 2 (07:17):
Oh it's the fast. Oh that's cool that you met, right,
Thanks for sharing that. Well. Listen everyone, Please be sure
catch John new episodes of Smoke on Apple TV every
Friday and in his docu series like Guzamo Does America
Sunday nights on MSNBC and available for streaming on Hulu.
Thanks for checking in, brother, Good to see you.
Speaker 1 (07:35):
You're always faked to see you man.
Speaker 2 (07:36):
Much love you too, brother. Take care of You with
Mario Lopez
Host
Mario Lopez
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