Yul Vazquez
Vázquez atAmerican Gangster NYC premiere on October 19, 2007
Born	(1965-03-18)March 18, 1965 (age 60) Cuba
Occupation(s)	Actor, musician
Years active	1981–present
Spouse	Linda Larkin ​ (m. 2002)​

Yul Vazquez (born March 18, 1965) is a Cuban-American actor and musician. He has appeared inRunaway Bride (1999),Bad Boys II (2003),War of the Worlds (2005),American Gangster (2007),The A-Team (2010),Captain Phillips (2013),The Infiltrator (2016),Midnight, Texas (2017–2018),Russian Doll (2019),Severance (2022), andHotel Cocaine (2024). Vazquez used to be the leadguitarist for melodic rock bandsUrgent andDiving for Pearls.

Vazquez was born inCuba on March 18, 1965^[1] andcame to the United States with his family in 1971.^[2] He was named after Russian actorYul Brynner.^[3] He grew up inMiami in a studio apartment with his mother, grandmother and older sister, being the youngest as well as the only boy in the household. His mother encouraged him in the arts, often taking him to the theater where she worked, and she bought him his first drum set and camera.^[2]

Vazquez started his acting career with filler parts in his mother's plays, which led to discovery by an agent who encouraged him to go to acting school. In the 80s, he was lead guitarist for twoBillboard-charted rock bands. His musical skills led him to land the part of Flaco in the 1992 filmThe Mambo Kings.^[2]

Vazquez went on to numerous film and television projects. With over 40 film credits, other highlights include roles in six time Oscar nomineeCaptain Phillips (2013),The A-Team (2010) withLiam Neeson,John Sayles'sAmigo,Steven Soderbergh’s two-part epicChe (2008),The Take (2008),American Gangster,Music Within (2007),War of the Worlds (2005),Bad Boys II (2003),Traffic andRunaway Bride (1999).^[4] He has also been inKill the Messenger starringJeremy Renner and directed by Michael Cuesta;Anesthesia; andThe Cobbler, oppositeAdam Sandler,Dustin Hoffman andSteve Buscemi.

In television, he has had many guest and recurring roles. InLifetime's seriesThe Lottery he starred as President Thomas Westwood and as The Reverend Emilio Sheehan in the NBC seriesMidnight, Texas. He was a regular for both seasons of theStarz dramaMagic City, where he portrayed Victor Lazaro, general manager of the Miramar Playa. Additionally, he has recurred in other television series, as Pedro inFX'sLouie, as Christian inCBS'sThe Good Wife and as Det. Anthony Nikolich on theHBO television seriesTreme. In the streaming world, he has had recurring roles in several hit shows includingNetflix'sRussian Doll, andApple TV+'sSeverance.

Vazquez is a founding member of the LAByrinth Theater Company and served two terms as co-artistic director withStephen Adly Guirgis andMimi O'Donnell inNew York City. Vazquez starred onBroadway in the Tony nominatedThe Motherfucker with the Hat oppositeChris Rock. For his portrayal of the eccentric Cousin Julio, he received nominations for aDrama Desk Award, anOuter Critics Circle Award and aTony Award forBest Featured Actor in a Play.^[5] Additional theater credits includeThe Last Days of Judas Iscariot (The Public Theater) oppositeSam Rockwell, directed byPhilip Seymour Hoffman,^[6]Terrence McNally'sStendhal Syndrome,^[7]Primary Stages withIsabella Rossellini and Richard Thomas, andThe Floating Island Plays (Mark Taper Forum).

Prior to starting his acting career, Vazquez was the lead guitar player forEast CoastAlbum-oriented rock (AOR) bandsUrgent andDiving For Pearls.^[8] Urgent landed a minor hit with their single "Running Back" which reached #79 on theBillboard Hot 100. A second single from theirCast The First Stone debut album, "Love Can Make You Cry", was re-recorded for theIron Eagle soundtrack. Urgent broke up in 1987 after the lackluster success of their sophomore album,Thinking Out Loud.

Following the demise of Urgent, Vazquez joinedDiving for Pearls, whose eponymous debut album was issued by Epic/Sony Music in 1989. The group was dropped by the label before a second album could be completed due to the musical climate changing in the early 1990s as melodic hard rock fell out of favor in the U.S.^[4]

In 2009, Vazquez played acoustic guitar withIan Astbury ofThe Cult under the name The Soft Revolt appearing at the Bowery Electric inNew York City on the opening night of John Patrick Shanley's playSavage in Limbo, which Astbury was producing. They performed songs by The Cult and Astbury solo material as well as covers by the Rolling Stones, Black Sabbath, Radiohead, among others.^[9]

In the 2022 showSeverance, Vazquez sings and plays a cover ofMetallica's "Enter Sandman" in the fourth episode.^[2]

Vazquez has been married to actressLinda Larkin, the voice ofPrincess Jasmine in the 1992 filmAladdin, since May 18, 2002.^[10][11]

• Urgent –Cast the First Stone (EMI-Manhattan, 1985)
• Various –Iron Eagle OST (Capitol, 1986)
• Urgent –Thinking Out Loud (EMI-Manhattan, 1987)
• Diving For Pearls –Diving for Pearls (Epic/Sony, 1989)
• Diving For Pearls – Texas (2006)

Wikimedia Commons has media related toYul Vazquez.

• Official website
• Yul Vazquez atIMDb
• Yul Vazquez at theInternet Broadway Database
• Yul Vazquez at theInternet Off-Broadway Database
• LAByrinth Theater Company

• Living people
• 1965 births
• American male film actors
• American male television actors
• American male voice actors
• Cuban emigrants to the United States
• Hispanic and Latino American actors
• American entertainers of Cuban descent
• Cuban male film actors
• 20th-century American male actors
• 21st-century American male actors
• American rock guitarists

• Articles with short description
• Short description is different from Wikidata
• Use mdy dates from July 2024
• Articles with hCards
• Commons category link from Wikidata
• Internet Broadway Database person ID same as Wikidata
• Internet Off-Broadway Database person ID same as Wikidata