Esai Morales is an American actor of Puerto Rican descent who was born in New York on October 1, 1962. He started his acting career in the theatres of New York and he also has some small television parts in his early career. The television series he is best known for are playing Joseph Adama in the science-fiction series ‘Caprica’ and the role of LL Tony Rodriguez on ‘NYPD Blue. Other television series he has appeared in include ‘American Family, a PBS drama, and a Showtime series called ‘Resurrection Blvd.’. In addition to his television work, Esai Morales has had roles in many movies and here are five of the best of these.
1. Bad Boys
Released in 1983, Bad Boys was Morales’ first movie and also one of his best. Morales played Paco Moreno in a cast that also included Sean Penn, Ally Sheedy, Reni Santoni, and Eric Gurry. This crime drama film was set in a juvenile detention center and has a coming-of-age theme to the storyline. The movie was written by Richard Di Lello and directed by Rick Rosenthal.
2. La Bamba
This biographical movie was released in 1987 and was written and directed by Luis Valdez. The story is about a teenage boy called Richard Steven Valenzuela who becomes a rock ‘n’ roll star. Morales plays his half-brother Bob who is jealous of this success.Other people starring in this movie include Danielle von Zerneck, Rosanna DeSoto, Elizabeth Pena, Joe Pantoliano, and Lou Diamond Phillips. The film was a box office success as it cost just $6.5 million to make but made in excess of $54 million.
3. Gun Hill Road
In this 2011 drama movie, Esai Morales plays an ex-con called Enrique. When he leaves prison, he finds his wife has had an affair and his son is transitioning to become a woman. This leaves him in turmoil and he faces some big decisions about the future of his family. Judy Reyes and Isiah Whitlock Jr. also starred in this movie. ‘Gun Hill Road’ was written and directed by Rashaad Ernesto Green.
4. My Family
‘My Family’ is an independent American drama film that was released in 1995. It was written by Nava and Anna Thomas and was directed by Gregory Nava. It is about three generations of a Mexican American family who have settled in Los Angeles after emigrating from Mexico. In addition to its release in the United States and the UK, this film was also shown as part of many film festivals, including the Donostia-San Sebastian International Film Festival in Spain. It received great critical acclaim and won several awards. Esai Morales played Jesus ‘Chucho’ Sanchez in the movie.
5. Rapa-Nui
Directed by Kevin Reynolds and co-produced by Kevin Costner, Rapa-Nui is a 1994 movie based on the legends of Easter Island, Chile. In this movie, Esai Morales plays a character called make. The movie also stars Jason Scott Lee, Sandrine Holt, Eru Potaka-Dewes and Gordon Hatfield. This film was generally well-received. However, there were some criticisms regarding the historical accuracy.
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