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By Suzanne

Interview with Raymond Cruz of "Major Crimes" on TNT 6/12/15

I enjoyed speaking with Raymond! He was very nice on the phone. We only had about 10 minutes to chat. I hope you enjoy it. Sounds like Monday's episode is going to be amazing!!

Here is the audio of our interview, transcribed by Karl. I hope you enjoy it!

If the audio is not streaming well, please right-click on this link and save it to your computer. It should work better that way!

Suzanne: So it’s great to have the show back. Are you excited about season 4?

Raymond Cruz: Oh, my gosh. I am so excited, and Monday’s episode is going to shock you, I guarantee you, you are going to be left in tears.

Suzanne: Uh Oh, so what can you tell us about what Julio is going through right now?

Raymond Cruz: well you know Monday night’s episode, any audience member who has any question about what’s bothering Julio will be answered on Monday night when you find out about what really happened to his wife.

Suzanne: Ah yeah, I was wondering because my next question was going to be why does Julio have so much anger, but if you look at his history, he has a lot of reasons

Raymond Cruz: Right right, you know it’s… everything will come together and you will completely understand the character once you watch Monday night’s episode. It’s heart-wrenching.

Suzanne: Well that’s good, and I’m sure you’ll be giving it 110% because you always do.

Raymond Cruz: oh yes, ma’am.

Suzanne: It’s nice because they don’t even have to write that much dialogue for you, Julio is such a quiet guy who doesn’t say much, but you say so much with your face.

Raymond Cruz: Right, it’s the subtext. I don’t have to say anything and you can understand exactly what I’m thinking.

Suzanne: That’s great, that’s really good. Not every actor can do that, that’s to your credit.

Raymond Cruz: Oh thank you, I appreciate that. It makes such a difference when you can read what’s going on with someone just by looking at them. What we do is so visual, it enhances every moment

Suzanne: I was annoyed last season watching Julio go more and more off the rails. I like cop shows but I don’t like it when they show cops abusing their power doing bad things

Raymond Cruz: Well you know, I don’t think anyone does, you have to understand when you have people who deal with the worst element of society every single day, you’re dealing with them at their worst moments and you have to process that. Some people do it differently, and for Julio, given his history, what you’ll find out is that it’s not as easy for him as other people, so he has a short fuse. He’s not a bad guy, he always tries to do the right thing, but sometimes a guy has to get up and try to do something, like when the guy tried to escape and wa shooting at cops.

Suzanne: Yeah, I was really relieved when they actually showed him getting in trouble eventually because it was like, alright good, finally.

Raymond Cruz: Right, for his actions because there was consequence, and you saw in the first episode, he’s come back after a long suspension without pay and he had to go to counselling, and it’s great because it’s not solved in one episode, like he comes back and he’s completely different. It’s like real life, you really have someone who’s struggling to correct himself and to fix what’s wrong with him, and to have to deal with coming back and finding the courage to turn and try to do what’s right.

Suzanne: Yeah, and I like how they show other people’s reactions, like “well I’m not sure if I want to work with him now, but”, that kind of thing. They rarely show that on tv, in any show, but especially police shows.

Raymond Cruz: Right, they come back and it’s a completely different life, it’s a different person, it’s like woah woah, what just happened? This guy’s been covered in one episode?

Suzanne: If they ever show them getting in trouble, which usually it like, well no.

Raymond Cruz: Right, we try to portray realistic Los Angeles police department the way they operate and how they process things, and the way they treat crime scenes and suspects. It’s really right on the money. Again, it’s like the chemistry that we have with all the actors on the show and how there’s a certain chain of command and how we have to deal with things with the public and the law and deal with the district attorney, so people who watch the show are getting a real education.

Suzanne: Yeah, I enjoy that aspect about it. Even when it was just the Closer, it was such a good show, I liked the way they were just able to pick up and make it a whole new show but with the same characters that we liked already so that’s amazing.

Raymond Cruz: It’s the same show but different. Yeah that’s great, when does that ever happen on television?

Suzanne: Not too often, but that’s another thing to your guys’ credit and the writers, that they were able to already have such interesting characters and then they were able to delve more into them.

Raymond Cruz: Yeah it’s been amazing that we’ve been on the air with those characters for so long, over an eleven year period, and you get to really become familiar with the whole cast and the police department which is great. We always try to portray the LAPD in a good light because they are the first line of defence against the criminal element and we really want to represent that.

Suzanne: So will there be other episodes about how Julio got treatment?

Raymond Cruz: You know, I think you will see him carry it through the entire season and how he deals with it, just like how you did towards the end of the last season. Again, like they say, there is no magic cure. You go through a process where you realize what you’ve done and you try to handle it better. Monday night’s episode is amazing because you really get at the heart of the issue.

Suzanne: So is there anything else you can tell us about what happens this season?

Raymond Cruz: This season, right now everyone is going to be confronted by certain things and they’ll have see how each character stands up and deals with it, so you’ll get a glimpse of the backbone of every character on the show.

Suzanne: Anything else?

Raymond Cruz: I’m telling you, you will not be disappointed. Every episode, there will be something that will just keep you on the edge of your seat. Watch Monday night’s episode and you will see what I mean.

Suzanne: Oh I never miss it, it’s good. I watch every episode. I didn’t start out watching The Closer when it came out, I caught up later, but I haven’t missed an episode of either since.

Raymond Cruz: I guarantee you, this Monday night, you will be left in tears.

Suzanne: Do they tell you things about Julio’s backstory or do you just learn it as it comes along?

Raymond Cruz: I was given some information ahead of time, the direction of the character and what we would be doing. What’s amazing about the show is that it doesn’t hit you in the face with everything, you find subtle things that are underneath the character that come out in strange ways, like when he’s just talking to someone of when he’s relating to someone, so it’s layer upon layer. So it’s very complicated, these are complicated characters that we are exposing the public to which is great, it’s not just, you know, one dimensional.

Suzanne: Are you one of those actors that tries to work out a whole backstory to their character or just sort of let it come as it comes?

Raymond Cruz: I do a tremendous amount of work before I set one foot on the set.

Suzanne: will you be returning to season 2 of Better Call Saul?

Raymond Cruz: You know, if I was, I couldn’t tell you. How’s that for an answer?

Suzanne: You’re the second actor this month to tell me that.

Raymond Cruz: What’s so great about the first season was that nobody knew.

Suzanne: Well I look forward to this season of Major Crimes, I’m sure it will be really good.

Raymond Cruz: Oh thank you, thank you so much.

MORE INFORMATION:

Raymond Cruz (Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul) of TNT’s Major Crimes is in a powerful upcoming episode that is important to both Raymond and show creator James Duff. Sanchez returns to the Major Crimes unit after being placed on suspension over a questionable use of force, but struggles to rebuild relationships and trust with his fellow officers.

He talks about this exciting episode and what is in store for him this season this Friday June 12^th from 10amPT to 11amPT-ish.

Here is what we can look forward to next week:

"Sorry I Missed You" – Monday, June 15, at 9 p.m. (ET/PT)

When a dead body pops out of the trunk at the end of a car chase, the squad must untangle connections between a superstar chef; a middle-aged pediatric psychiatrist and his second, much younger wife; and a bankruptcy lawyer (Paul Schultze) whose problematic representation threatens to derail the investigation. Rusty continues his attempt to identify the murder victim who called herself Alice Herrera, inadvertently threatening the case against her murderer. Kathe Mazur, Ransford Doherty, Jessie Schram, Brandon Barash, Garrett Coffey, and Victoria Platt guest star.

Written by Kendall Sherwood

Directed by Sheelin Choksey

Created by James Duff

Raymond Cruz

@RealRaymondCruz

Detective Julio Sanchez

In addition to playing Detective Julio Sanchez on TNT's hit series The Closer and Major Crimes, Raymond Cruz has appeared in more than 30 feature films and has vast experience in television, playing a wide range of characters.

His work in film includes roles in Havoc, with Anne Hathaway; Training Day, with Denzel Washington; Collateral Damage, with Arnold Schwarzenegger; Alien 4: Resurrection, with Sigourney Weaver; and Clear and Present Danger, with Harrison Ford. Other notable films include The Last Marshal, The Rock, The Substitute, Out for Justice and Under Siege.

On television, Cruz has had recurring roles on Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul, My Name is Earl, Day Break, The Division, 24 and Nip/Tuck. He has also guest starred on numerous hit shows, including CSI, CSI: Miami, NYPD Blue, The Practice, Star Trek, Boomtown and The X-Files. He recently won an Imagen Award for Best Supporting Actor for his work  in The Closer.

Cruz also has an extensive stage background and is a recipient of the Drama Critics award.

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