Oscar Isaac: "We Latin American actors don't just know how to play villains"

By Anna Buj

Oscar Isaac continues to break away from Hollywood stereotypes of the Latino actor and, following the success of "Inside Llewyn Davis" by the Coen brothers, is again a critics' favorite with "A Most Violent Year," a tense drama in which he teams up with former classmate Jessica Chastain.

"We Latin American actors don't just know how to play gangbangers and villains. I've had the luck to play characters from all over the world, and that for me is very important," the Guatemalan-born Isaac said in an interview with Efe.

"A Most Violent Year" finds Isaac at the height of his career, since he will also appear in "X-Men:
"Apocalypse," the last of the "Star Wars" saga, and in the science fiction thriller "Ex Machina."

Though "A Most Violent Year" debuts this Friday in U.S. commercial theaters, the film has already earned him the Best Actor award from the National Board of Review (tied with Michael Keaton for "Birdman") and a nomination for the Gotham Independent Film Awards.

"I want to help Latin American actors see themselves as real actors, that we're really very good. It's hard but it's possible," the actor said, adding that his Latino origins are present in every part he plays.

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