Drama Filthy Rich Where Wealth, Power, Religion and Family Collide, Premieres Sept. 21st (9/8c)
Guatemalan-born Benjamin Levy Aguilar has certainly hit the ground running since his arrival in Hollywood. With only two music videos to his credit, he landed his first television drama series, FOX’s Filthy Rich, starring Kim Cattrall and Gerald McRaney. It is the story of a Southern Gothic family, wherein wealth, power, religion and familial impropriety collide. The ten-episode series premieres September 21 (9/8c). “This is my first television job ever,” Aguilar exclaims. It was my first screen test. It’s my first pilot season. It’s been after eight years of study, but everything has been moving quickly since I booked this.”
Filthy Rich spotlights the Monreauxes, a mega-rich Southern family, led by television network crusader Margaret (Cattrall) and her wheeler-dealer husband Eugene (McRaney), who handles the business end. When Eugene allegedly dies in a plane crash, we learn that he fathered three illegitimate children, all of whom are provided for in his will.
“I play one of the three children, Antonio Rivera,” Aguilar tells us.” He is training to become a fighter but he doesn’t exude a fighter’s persona. He is definitely soft spoken and sensitive. He wears his heart on his sleeve, even though he has had such a tough life, being a young single father who grew up without a father. But he has this amazing polar opposite personality that comes out in the ring.”
This may be his first series but not Aguilar’s first time in the spotlight. “I was a soccer star,” he laughs. “I’ve been playing soccer since I can remember. It got me through my toughest times as a child, my father passing away and a lot of other negative things. I am thankful to soccer for saving my life. It kept me sane. And I was really very good at it. When I was 12, I was recruited by AC Milan and I played in Italy for two years, but unfortunately, I broke my femur the second year. I just couldn’t face being alone in Italy without my mother. I guess it wasn’t meant to be and I’ve made peace with that. But playing soccer in Italy hold some of the most beautiful memories of my life.”
It was while recovering from his injury that Aguilar found a new path to follow. “I was in a cast from my hip to my toes for about ten months, followed by rehab. I had forgotten how to walk. But I got through that all right and when I was fourteen, I found a new passion, martial arts. I put all my energy into learning how to master this new dream.”
Aguilar’s “new dream” was unknowingly set in motion by his father who passed away when he was ten. “He was a Brooklyn-born Jewish businessman who owned a very exotic restaurant in Guatemala. My mom went to his restaurant when she won the title of Miss Guatemala. They met, fell in love and when they married, my mother, who was Catholic, converted to Judaism.
“So many of my friends in Guatemala were from Israel. Through them I discovered Krav Maga, which is an Israeli-based style of martial arts. Living in such a dangerous country as Guatemala, I thought it was necessary for me to learn this discipline, to defend myself and my family. And that turned into a whole career that I thought I was going to pursue. Krav Maga is not a sport. It is self-defense. The goal of Krav Maga is to eliminate the threat as quickly as possible, with the least amount of risk. There are no rules. It is very aggressive. A street fight will last 30 to 60 seconds. There are no rounds.” Aguilar actually became advanced enough in the discipline to find work at Guatemala’s largest security firm. After learning skills such as tactical shooting and defensive driving, he worked in security during the 2011 Presidential Election.
Aguilar recalls, “I thought that was going to be my life’s work but I think I got burnt out, training and working so hard. I even considered moving to Israel. I was going to sign my papers and prepare to move out of the country. One day I was with my mom at the DMV, renewing my license. I told her, ‘I’m unhappy. I don’t know what to do with my life.’ Well, at that moment at the DMV, there was a screen and it was showing a movie. We had never thought of movies as a possibility for me. A big dream in Guatemala would be to become a soccer star. It is big but it is obtainable. My mom looked at that screen and said, ‘Wait, what about acting?’ And I said, ’How do you do that’? She said, “I guess you move to Hollywood.’ I said, ‘OK, let’s do it.’ I literally bought the ticket that day. I moved to Los Angeles the next week by myself.”
Aguilar was fortunate to book two music videos soon after arriving in Hollywood. “Those were the first acting experiences I did when I came to L.A. That’s how I paid my bills. It was great being front of a camera and have the experience of relating to people. I would always take it seriously and try to find that chemistry and realness.” And the training hasn’t stopped now that he is working in a series. “I am always in class, studying at Anthony Gilardi Acting Studio, also Lesly Kahn and others. You never stop learning. I think the most beautiful acting boot camp I could experience is this first season of Filthy Rich with all these great actors. I was forced to grow as an actor at a fast pace because there is no turning back.”