Jimmy Smits | |
|---|---|
 Smits at the 2016San Diego Comic-Con | |
| Born | Jimmy L. Smits (1955-07-09)July 9, 1955 (age 70) New York City, U.S. |
| Education | |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1984–present |
| Known for | |
| Spouse | |
| Partner | Wanda De Jesus (1986–present) |
| Children | 2 |
Jimmy L. Smits (born July 9, 1955) is an American actor. He is best known for playing attorney Victor Sifuentes on the legal dramaL.A. Law,NYPD DetectiveBobby Simone on the police dramaNYPD Blue, andMatt Santos on the political dramaThe West Wing. He appeared inSwitch (1991),My Family (1995),The Jane Austen Book Club (2007), andIn the Heights (2021). He also appeared asBail Organa in theStar Wars franchise and as ADAMiguel Prado inDexter. From 2012 to 2014, he was a member of the main cast ofSons of Anarchy, in the role ofNero Padilla. Smits also portrayed Elijah Strait in theNBC drama seriesBluff City Law.
Smits was born inBrooklyn, New York. Smits's father, Cornelis Leendert Smits (1929–2015), was fromParamaribo,Suriname, and was ofDutch descent.[1][2][3] Smits's mother, Emilina (née Pola; 1930–2015), wasPuerto Rican, born inPeñuelas.[4][5] He and his two sisters, Yvonne and Diana, grew up in a working-class neighborhood.[6][7] When he was ten years old, he moved to Puerto Rico for a couple of years. Until then he did not speak Spanish. He described attending a Spanish-only school as "jarring" and "traumatic".[8]
Smits was raised in a strict, devoutRoman Catholic family. He identifies as Puerto Rican[6][7][9] and frequently visits Puerto Rico.
Smits was an athlete in his youth. He graduated fromThomas Jefferson High School and earned abachelor's degree fromBrooklyn College in 1980 and anMFA fromCornell University in 1982.[10]
One of Smits's early roles was playingSonny Crockett's original partner on the first episode ofMiami Vice in 1984. In the first five minutes of the episode he falls victim to acar bomb.
Beginning in 1986, Smits played Victor Sifuentes in the first five seasons of the NBC televisionSteven Bochco legal dramaL.A. Law,[11] for which he was nominated for sixPrimetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series, winning in1990.[12]
Also in 1986, Smits made his feature film debut as drug dealer Julio Gonzalez in the comedy/action cop filmRunning Scared starringBilly Crystal andGregory Hines. In 1989, Smits had a leading role in the romantic adventureOld Gringo asJane Fonda's love interest.
Additionally, Smits played a repairman onPee-wee's Playhouse, and he starred in the multigenerational story of aChicano family in the filmMy Family (1995), alongsideEdward James Olmos andJennifer Lopez.
One of Smits's most acclaimed roles was that of DetectiveBobby Simone on theABC television programNYPD Blue, in which he starred from 1994 to 1998. He received several Emmy nominations for his performance on the series and was reunited with his former co-starDennis Franz at the 2016Emmy Awards presentation. He won the ALMA award twice.
.jpg)
Smits was scheduled to host the 2001 Latin Grammy Awards broadcast on September 11, 2001. It was canceled due to continuous news coverage and out of respect for the victims of theterrorist attacks earlier that day. He did host a non-televised press conference to announce the winners.
Smits appeared asSenator Bail Organa ofAlderaan inGeorge Lucas'sStar Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones (2002) andStar Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith (2005), in which the character becomesPrincess Leia's adoptive father. He reappeared as Bail Organa in the gameStar Wars: The Force Unleashed (2008) and the spinoff Disney era movieRogue One (2016). He later reprised the role forObi-Wan Kenobi (2022).
Smits played the role ofCongressmanMatt Santos ofHouston, Texas, in the final two seasons of the NBC television dramaThe West Wing,[13] joining fellowL.A. Law alumnusJohn Spencer. His character eventually ran for and won the U.S. presidency.
InDexter season 3, Smits played the role of Miguel Prado, an assistant district attorney who befriends the title character.[14] Smits was nominated for anEmmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series for the role. He subsequently reprised the role in the 2025Dexter: Resurrection premiereA Beating Heart....
Additionally, Smits portrayed the character Alex Vega in the CBS TV seriesCane, which aired from September 25, 2007, to December 18, 2007, and was subsequently canceled by the network due to the 2007 Screen Writer's Guild strike.
Smits joined theSons of Anarchy cast inseason 5 asNero Padilla, a high-level pimp who refers to himself as a "companionator". He builds a relationship withGemma Teller Morrow (Katey Sagal) and forms an alliance and mentorship with Gemma's son, the central characterJax Teller (Charlie Hunnam).[15]
Smits starred inThe Get Down, a musical drama television series which debuted in 2016 onNetflix.[16]
On February 25, 2019, news outlets reported that Smits was cast as Elijah Strait in NBC drama seriesBluff City Law[17] and it was picked up to series on May 6, 2019.[18]Bluff City Law brings Smits back to TV courtrooms on a steady basis for the first time in over a quarter century since his role inL.A. Law.[19]
In 2021, Smits played Kevin Rosario in the musical filmIn the Heights.[20]
In the mid-1980s, Smits acted in numerous performances at the Hangar Theatre inIthaca, New York, Cornell's summer repertory program. In 1982 at the Hangar his roles included Max inCabaret, Paul inLoose Ends, and the lead inPudd'nhead Wilson. Smits has participated in thePublic Theater's New York Shakespeare Festival, playing the role of Duke Orsino inTwelfth Night in 2002 and Benedick inMuch Ado about Nothing in 2004. In 2003, Smits starred in the Broadway production of the Pulitzer Prize-winning play,Anna in the Tropics, by Nilo Cruz, performed at the Royale Theatre. From November 2009 to February 2010, he appeared oppositeChristine Lahti,Annie Potts, andKen Stott in the critically lauded Broadway playGod of Carnage, replacingJeff Daniels. In December 2012 through March 2013, he appeared in Chicago inThe Motherfucker with the Hat, atSteppenwolf Theatre Company.
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | Running Scared | Julio Gonzales | |
| 1987 | Hotshot | Stars Team Member | |
| The Believers | Tom Lopez | ||
| 1989 | Old Gringo | Gen. Tomas Arroyo | |
| 1990 | Vital Signs | Dr. David Redding | |
| 1991 | Switch | Walter Stone | |
| Fires Within | Nestor | ||
| 1993 | Gross Misconduct | Justin Thorne | |
| 1995 | My Family | Jimmy Sanchez | |
| The Last Word | Actor (Martin) | ||
| 1996 | Marshal Law | U.S. Marshal Jack Coleman | |
| 1997 | Murder in Mind | Peter Walker | |
| Lesser Prophets | Mike | ||
| 2000 | Adventures in Wild California | Narrator | |
| The Million Dollar Hotel | Geronimo | ||
| Price of Glory | Arturo Ortega | ||
| Bless the Child | Agent John Travis | ||
| 2002 | Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones | Senator Bail Organa | |
| 2005 | Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith | ||
| 2007 | The Jane Austen Book Club | Daniel Avila | |
| 2009 | Backyard | Mickey Santos | Also known asEl Traspatio |
| 2010 | Mother and Child | Paco | |
| 2016 | Rogue One: A Star Wars Story | Senator Bail Organa | |
| 2017 | Who We Are Now | Carl | |
| 2020 | The Tax Collector | Wizard | |
| 2021 | In the Heights | Kevin Rosario |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 | Miami Vice | Eddie Rivera | Episode: "Brother's Keeper" |
| 1986 | Rockabye | 2nd Policeman | Television film |
| 1986–92 | L.A. Law | Victor Sifuentes | Main role; 105 episodes |
| 1986 | Spenser: For Hire | Hector Valdes | Episode: "In a Safe Place" |
| 1987 | The Highwayman | Bo Ziker | Television film |
| Stamp of a Killer | Richard Braden | ||
| 1988 | Mickey's 60th Birthday | Victor Sifuentes | Television special |
| Glitz | Vincent Marra | Television film | |
| 1989 | Pee-wee's Playhouse | Johnny Wilson | Episode: "Conky's Breakdown" |
| 1990 | Cop Rock | Victor Sifuentes(uncredited) | Episode: "Potts Don't Fail Me Now" |
| 1992 | The Broken Cord | David Norwell | Television film |
| 1993 | The Tommyknockers | Jim 'Gard' Gardner | 2 episodes |
| 1994 | The Cisco Kid | Cisco Kid | Television film |
| 1994–98, 2004 | NYPD Blue | Detective Bobby Simone | Main role; 90 episodes |
| 1995 | Solomon & Sheba | King Solomon | Television film |
| 1995–97 | Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales for Every Child | Prince Felipe, Old King Cole | Voice; 2 episodes |
| 2004–06 | The West Wing | Matt Santos | Main role; 35 episodes |
| 2005 | Lackawanna Blues | Ruben Santiago, Sr. | Television film |
| 2007 | Cane | Alex Vega | 13 episodes |
| 2008 | Dexter | Miguel Prado | 12 episodes |
| 2010 | Outlaw | Cyrus Garza | Main role; 8 episodes |
| 2012–14 | Sons of Anarchy | Neron 'Nero' Padilla | 38 episodes |
| 2016–17 | The Get Down | Francisco "Papa Fuerte" Cruz | 11 episodes |
| Brooklyn Nine-Nine | Victor Santiago | 2 episodes | |
| 2017 | 24: Legacy | John Donovan | 12 episodes |
| 2017–18 | How to Get Away with Murder | Dr. Isaac Roa | 13 episodes |
| 2018 | America's Untold Story | Narrator | Television film |
| 2019 | Bluff City Law | Elijah Strait | Main role; 10 episodes; Also producer |
| 2022 | Obi-Wan Kenobi | Senator Bail Organa | 3 episodes |
| 2022–23 | East New York | Assistant Chief John Suarez | Main role; 21 episodes |
| 2025 | Dexter: Resurrection | Miguel Prado | Episode: "A Beating Heart..." |
| Year | Title | Voice role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Star Wars: The Force Unleashed | Senator Bail Organa | |
| 2016 | Gears of War 4 | Oscar Diaz |
Smits has received multiple nominations and awards for his work in film and television. He is the recipient of oneGolden Globe Award for his role onNYPD Blue as well as onePrimetime Emmy Award forL.A. Law.[21] Throughout his career on television, he has garnered elevenScreen Actors Guild Awards nominations, winning once in theOutstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series in 1995 forNYPD Blue. He starred onThe West Wing from 2004 to 2006 and won anALMA Award for his role. And in 2008, guest starred onDexter, for which he was nominated for his twelfthPrimetime Emmy Award and winning aSaturn Award for Best Guest Starring Role on Television.[22]
In 1999, Smits received the HOLA Award for Excellence from theHispanic Organization of Latin Actors (HOLA). He also received the Ackerman Leadership Award for his work "championing bilingual and bicultural mental health and social services for Latino families."[23] On June 4, 2021, he was awarded the 2,696th star on theHollywood Walk of Fame.[24]
Smits was previously married to Barbara Smits. They have two children.[citation needed]
He has been in a relationship with actressWanda De Jesus since 1986. They live together inLos Angeles.[10] In 1987, Smits pled guilty to disturbing the peace following an altercation with police at his residence where he was charged with battery and resisting arrest.[25][26]
Smits helped found the National Hispanic Foundation for the Arts[27][28] to advance the presence of Latinos in the media, telecommunications, and entertainment industries. He is also an advocate for diagnostic colorectal screening and has appeared in a public service commercial.[29] In 2010, he filmed a PSA for Detroit Non-ProfitCass Community Social Services[30] and also served as the Honorary Chair of their 6th Annual "Catch the Fireworks With Cass" event.[31]
