In the Heights star Jimmy Smits may be on cloud nine these days. The seasoned actor co-stars in the highly anticipated musical film based on a Broadway hit and recently got a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
In In the Heights, Smits plays Kevin Rosario, the overprotective father of Nina, a struggling Stanford University student. The son of farmworkers, Kevin tries to avoid the same mistake his father did and owns a taxi cab company.
Directed by Jon M. Chu, of Crazy Rich Asians, the film is based on Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Broadway musical hit, with music and lyrics by Miranda and a book by Quiara Alegría Hudes. The story takes place in New York’s largely Dominican neighborhood of Washington Heights.
Not a professional dancer nor singer, Brooklyn-born Smits had extra help in his performance for the film. In an interview on ABC’s Live with Kelly and Ryan, with Kelly Ripa and Ryan Seacrest, Smits self-deprecatingly revealed he had “four vocal coaches for seven lines” in a musical number and laughed about it.
The unveiling of Smits’ Star on the Walk of Fame came just days before the world premiere In the Heights, playing theatres nationwide starting June 11.
With a show business career spanning over three decades, the Latino thespian is an accomplished film, TV and theatre performer.
Smits’ star is near the one of Gregory Peck, an Oscar-winning legend with whom the Latino actor co-starred in the film 1989 Old Gringo and whom he considers a “kind of a mentor” that helped him stay on the right path in his career. “That means a whole lot (to me),” he said in the same TV interview with Kelly and Ryan.
“The Hollywood Chamber of Commerce is thrilled to be honoring one of the hardest working actors in show business,” said Ana Martinez, producer of the Hollywood Walk of Fame. “The fact that we placed his star near the star of his favorite actor and co-star Gregory Peck makes this ceremony even sweeter. We are proud to add Jimmy Smits to our Walk of Fame family.” The star is located at 6100 Hollywood Blvd. near the Pantages Theater.
The Golden Globe and Primetime Emmy-winning actor has appeared in over 20 feature films like Old Gringo and Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones and about 30 television projects such as L.A. Law and NYPD Blue. He is also a consummate stage performer whose credits include the Broadway production of the Pulitzer Prize-winning play Anna in the Tropics as well some Shakespearian works.
In a long, prolific career, Smits has earned more than 40 award nominations and critical acclaim and worked with renowned directors and Hollywood stars. His early filmography includes Peter Hyams’ Running Scared with Gregory Hines and Billy Crystal, John Schlesinger’s The Believers, Blake Edwards’ comedy Switch; and the critically acclaimed My Family/Mi Familia, directed by Gregory Nava, for which he received an IFP Spirit Award nomination.
Smits’ later works include Carlos Ávila’s Price of Glory, George Lucas’ Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith and Star Wars: Rogue One and Robin Swicord’s The Jane Austen Book Club. Other credits include El Traspatio (Backyard) by director Carlos Carrera and Who We Are Now, written and directed by Matthew Newton.
Smits, however, may be best known for his television work. He received six consecutive Emmy nominations, winning in 1990, for his role as Victor Sifuentes on the multi-award-winning drama L.A. Law. He received a Golden Globe Award and five consecutive Emmy nominations for his role as Bobby Simone on the critically acclaimed, Emmy-winning drama, NYPD Blue, and earned an Emmy nomination for his guest star arc in season three of Showtime’s hit series Dexter.
Additionally, he received an ALMA Award and an Imagen Award for Best Actor in The West Wing, has four Golden Globe nominations and eleven SAG Award nominations, receiving the honor in 1995 for NYPD Blue. His highly-touted departure from New York police drama also won the Humanitas Award.
Smits last starred in the NBC-TV series Bluff City Law as a civil rights lawyer in Memphis and appeared in a season-long guest arc opposite Viola Davis on How To Get Away With Murder. Before that he co-starred in 24: Legacy, opposite Corey Hawkins and Miranda Otto, as a powerful and ambitious U.S. Senator. He also co-starred in Baz Luhrmann’s music-driven drama for Netflix The Get Down, a mythic saga of how New York at the brink of bankruptcy gave birth to hip-hop, punk and disco. He also portrayed Neron “Nero” Padilla in the final three seasons of the lauded FX show Sons of Anarchy and takes a comedic turn in NBC’s Brooklyn Nine-Nine.
In 2009, he finished a guest-starring stint in season three of Showtime’s hit series Dexter, for which he was recognized with his 12th Emmy nomination. In 2008, Smits’ El Sendero Productions company co-executive produced the CBS series Cane, which he also starred in. The show was critically acclaimed for its cutting edge and dramatic reflection of the family dynamic within a modern-day Cuban-American family. In 2006 Smits completed his role in the long-running and critically-acclaimed NBC series The West Wing. As President Matthew Santos, Smits brought to the show his infusion of energy and added even more depth to the well-written and politically relevant plotline.
Smits has involved himself in various charitable organizations over the years, such as Stand Up 2 Cancer, the Saban Community Clinic, Homeboys, St. Jude’s Hospital for Children among others. He has consistently been a strong advocate for education and co-founded the National Hispanic Foundation for the Arts (NHFA) in 1997 along with actors Esai Morales and Sonia Braga and Washington attorney Felix Sanchez, to promote Hispanic talent in the performing arts. The organization offers graduate scholarships and cash grants at prominent colleges and universities to expand career opportunities and increase access for Hispanic artists and professionals while fostering the emergence of new Hispanic talent.
Featured Photo: In the Heights (Credit: Warner Bros.)
