Digital Social Hour - How Twitch Transformed My Life After Breaking Bad | Luis Moncada DSH #1362

Episode Date: May 4, 2025

🎥 From the gritty world of *Breaking Bad* to the dynamic realm of *Twitch*, this episode of the **Digital Social Hour with Sean Kelly** takes you on an unforgettable journey! 🌟 Tune in now as Sean sits down with **Luis Moncada**, the iconic actor from *Breaking Bad* and *Better Call Saul*, to uncover how his life transformed through streaming, acting, and personal growth.📺 Luis shares incredible behind-the-scenes stories from his time on two of the most legendary TV shows ever, reflects on the challenges of being typecast, and reveals how *Twitch* opened the door to a whole new connection with fans. From his early struggles to his rise in Hollywood and his passion for gaming, this conversation is packed with valuable insights, raw moments, and inspiring lessons about resilience and change. 💪🔥 Don’t miss out on this powerful episode filled with exclusive stories, heartfelt advice, and a glimpse into the future of streaming and acting. Join the conversation and watch now! Hit that subscribe button and stay tuned for more insider secrets on the Digital Social Hour with Sean Kelly! 🚀CHAPTERS:00:00 - How Did We Grow Up So Messed Up00:30 - Breaking Bad & Better Call Saul Experience02:02 - Relationship with the Cast04:55 - Lessons from Bryan Cranston12:06 - Future Prequel Possibilities13:18 - Favorite Season Insights15:39 - Emmys Experience16:40 - Audition Journey17:45 - From Prison to Bodyguarding20:59 - Honduras Experience23:46 - Favorite Filming Locations in Breaking Bad26:00 - Current Projects and Endeavors27:05 - AI and Its Impact on the Industry29:46 - Personal Life: Your Wife36:01 - Social Connections: Cutting Off Friends37:19 - Enjoying School and Education39:58 - Last Conversations with Friends40:40 - Importance of Sports for Children41:06 - Tragic Loss of Hamzah APPLY TO BE ON THE PODCAST: https://www.digitalsocialhour.com/application BUSINESS INQUIRIES/SPONSORS: [e-mail] GUEST: Luis Moncada https://www.instagram.com/luis_moncada SPONSORS: THERASAGE: https://therasage.com/ LISTEN ON: Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/digital-social-hour/id1676846015 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5Jn7LXarRlI8Hc0GtTn759 Sean Kelly Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/seanmikekelly/ The views and opinions expressed by guests on Digital Social Hour are solely those of the individuals appearing on the podcast and do not necessarily reflect the views or opinions of the host, Sean Kelly, or the Digital Social Hour team. While we encourage open and honest conversations, Sean Kelly is not legally responsible for any statements, claims, or opinions made by guests during the show. Listeners are encouraged to form their own opinions and consult professionals for advice where appropriate. Content on this podcast is for entertainment and informational purposes only and should not be considered legal, medical, financial, or professional advice.#aiimpacthollywood #breakingbad #bettercallsaul #artificialintelligence #vincegilligan

How did we grow up so messed up the way we are? Tuco, man, part of the cartel was Tuco, Lalo, Tio Hector, myself. How did Gus get involved in the cartel? Because Gus is a complete different, you know, he could actually be a real business man for the Pollo's hermanos chain, right? He could have succeeded doing good, but he chose to go on the cartel, Robin, start doing bad stuff. All right, guys, Luis here. One of my favorite shows of all time, man.

It's an honor. Thanks for coming on today. Thank you for having me, my friend. Yeah, you were part of history, man. A lot of people got Breaking Bad in their top 10 all time. 100%. I'm blessed and honored, my friend. I was part of the biggest show ever, Breaking Bad, right?

And then four years later to be part of Better Called Saul, it's a blessing. It's a blessing. And it's rare to have not only one show, but two hit shows. To tell you the truth, I was scared when they announced that they were going to film Better Called Saul, because you know how it says Breaking Bad ended perfect. Top-rated show ever.

It was the greatest show ever, people consider it, most people. And I was happy, I'm great, I was proud of it. And they announced Better Call Son, I'm thinking, oh no. You know how they make that prequel or sequel and it ruins the show? It never goes well. I was nervous.

It never goes well. I can't think of one time where the sequel was as good or better. Yeah, no. And I saw the first few episodes, and I'm thinking, okay, this is great. You know, and even happier when they, I did not work first season.

I worked on second season, but I called Saul. And I was just so happy, really. He called me, included me. It ended up being better for me as an actor than Breaking Bad, because they gave me more episodes, more love, they gave me more screen time, it was just great. And I knew half of the crew was the same crew

from Breaking Bad, so when I went to film in New Mexico, I felt like I was going home. I was going to see all my family. Oh, it takes me 20 minutes before I get to say, because I have to say hi to everybody. They're all my friends, good people. That's so cool. How close were you with the cast off camera?

I'm really close to some and some kind of like, you know, we don't talk like, I don't talk to Brian, but every time I see him, he's a gentleman. He's a busy man. Aaron is the same. I've done a couple of things with Aaron. After Breaking Bad, we did like a giveaway. I met up at his house, did a thing,

but we don't stay in touch like that. Now with Dean, I'm closer with Dean. I was really close to Mark Margolis. Tuco, Red McCruce, I did the video game with him. And I worked with him before, but yeah, with him I'm closer. And then good friends, RJ, he's a good friend. Max Arcianaga, Crazy 8, Victor, the guy that played Victor, those guys, you know, I kept in touch with a lot of people. And behind the, you know, behind the camera, I have more friends, I think.

I love them. You know, the producers and just, you know, PAs, DAs, assistant directors. I made so many good people like that, and I've stayed in touch with a lot of them, even the transportation. Really? They're good friends, good friends.

They're good people, bro. I'll tell you, you know it's a good show and you're still talking years later. Yeah, we've stayed in touch with all of them. Get texts from them. Hey man, when you come, ba-ba-ba-ba-ba, or they come, hey, we're here. Great people, man.

It was just a blessing. That show was really a blessing. At the same time, it kind of occurs to me on the acting world, a lot of people don't see me beyond Breaking Bad. A lot of, not to mention a show, I wanted to get on the show as a serious regular, and my agent requested an audition for the show.

The producer said, oh no, we can't see Luis. Why, why can't you see? He's too Breaking Bad. And I was like, what does that mean? What, am I, what is too Breaking Bad? You know, he, you know, two, like the Breaking Bad character to the assassin, the meme guy, the, oh, two Breaking Bad. I was like, wow, it's okay.

At the same time, they gave me a lot of good opportunities. I'm here, the video game, a lot of other opportunities. So I'm thankful. You see that with certain shows and movies, like with Harry Potter, it was hard for him to get acting roles after Harry Potter, the main actor. Yeah, true, true. I wonder what happens with certain shows and movies, like with Harry Potter, it was hard for him to get acting roles after Harry Potter, the main actor. Yeah, sure, sure. I wonder what happens with certain movies and shows.

People just identify you as that one person. Yeah, I think for Breaking Bad characters, you have to think of this, right? Bryan Cranston. Bryan Cranston is an amazing actor. He was on Malcolm in the Middle of the Four. He did X-Files a couple of episodes, and he's done The Judge and a lot of movies.

But everybody, if you ask them, hey, who is that guy? That's Heisenberg from Breaking Bad. They're not gonna see that's the guy from Godzilla or Your Honor, that's Heisenberg or Walter White from Breaking Bad. Even he gets, but he of course has a lot of other stuff going, you know, it's like John Carlos Posito is the same. He's on Mandalorian and a bunch of other movies after

Bette Carlisle and Breaking Bad. But everybody knows him as Gus Fring. You know, they get that. The best lawyer in town. Yeah, you know, it's crazy. It's crazy. What did you learn from Bryan Cranston? What was the biggest takeaway you picked up from him?

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and adds red light to supercharge it. It's sleek, portable and honestly, I don't go anywhere without it. His acting, I was blessed to, so it wasn't my brother's first job, I just a little bit of that. He was nervous when we were on set, and I remember one time specifically,

we were done filming our stuff with my brother, and Brian and Aaron came to do a scene. And I told my brother, hey, let's stay here. Watch what they do. This is gonna be a master class in acting. Brother, we stay there, we watch. And just what they were doing, the chemistry they were doing,

and how prepared, how professional they were, it was beautiful. After that, Brian came and told my brother this. He knows Brian directed our first episode, so he kind of knew my brother was never worked before. And what I learned as I took it with my brother was Brian told them, look, what you need to do, Daniel, you need to go to acting school.

And even after years, he said, I've been acting more over 30 years and I still have a coach. Keep working your mind. You have, it's a muscle. Keep acting and always keep doing it. And even if you're a working actor, you work so much. Always have that coach and always go practice.

Always go do things with your coach to keep this sharp. So I was like, wow, that's amazing. You know, I always do the same. Even if I'm not working, I will do something, memorize some stuff, keep your mind sharp. So taking it from the man, I will do something, memorize some stuff, keep your mind sharp. So taking it from the man, I was like, this is a great advisor.

Always be a student no matter what level you get to. Yes, 100%. Yeah, because he's 30 years in and he still has a coach. That's very impressive mindset. But it shows, there's not a lot of people make it in acting that long, right? No, and look at him, he's still going. Amazing, amazing actor, brother.

So that was a big take for me that month. Keep it going. Always study. Being a student always. And grow open-minded always. You're always going to learn something. Absolutely. Wow. I didn't know that was your brother's first gig. What a first gig to have.

First gig. Crazy. It was great because the characters didn't have a lot of dialogue. That's true. Yeah. And if we had any, it was in Spanish. Even my brother had even less dialogue. But this was an on purpose thing the producers knew. So whatever dialogue, they gave him one little thing

just to test the water. But it was great because of that. No dialogue. He just had to do the facial expression. You convey a lot with your looks and doing. But it's harder to deliver lines and do the same thing with this. So it was a great gig for him. And after that one time that we watched Brian Cranston

do that scene, he would take it up on himself, to here to see how people do other stuff, behind the camera and in front of the camera, because you have to learn both, I think. So it brought us a blessing. Yeah. It did good. Yeah, you guys had to speak a lot with your body language

and your facial expressions. 100%. Not with words. Yeah, yeah. But you even without speaking much verbally, you guys still appeared scary on the show. 100%. You know what I mean?

I feared you guys as a viewer. Yeah. When Vince Gilligan told us about the characters, first we audition, we didn't, we couldn't audition for the characters we played. Because you think about it we didn't say much on the show imagine the audition for the show hey Luis Daniel come and the audition we sit and we start and we just stare yeah so that wouldn't work so what we did it I didn't know at the time we did two scenes from when Bryan Cranston when

Gus met Walter at Pollo's Hermanos for the first time ever. That was a good scene. That was the scene when they were sitting when Gus was standing, how I know I can work with you because you know your partner is a junkie. That scene is the one we auditioned. I was playing Gus. So when I did it the whole time,

I'm thinking I'm gonna be Gus. I didn't know what it was, so I'm thinking I'm gonna be Gus. But once we get to New Mexico, we meet with Vince Gilligan. He goes, Luis, Danny, I asked him, no, that's not, no, you're not playing, you're playing this character. He said, look, you're gonna be the scariest, the meanest.

When you come on screen, Luis, oh man, people are gonna shake, they're gonna be like, oh my God, something bad is gonna happen. And he said, King Kong got nothing on you, and you're not gonna say anything. And I was like, come again, bro. You want me to do all that and not say anything? He was like, yes.

I was like, okay. And bro, it worked. Wow. That dude is a genius, it worked. Me, I was like, okay, you want me to do all that. It worked. You gotta put your ego to the side a little bit, right? I did, I, better call Saul.

There was a scene, I don't know if you, I'm sure everybody's seen it, when I say, muy fácil, like the guy, too easy, right? No, I wanted him alive, I wanted him alive. I said, vivo. I wanted to say, and it was on the script, he said, I want him alive, like I wanted that guy alive, with Nitro, and I did it the first time,

and he said, hmm, he said, that's a lot for your character. Can you make all that into one word? So I made it into, instead of, I wanted my life, I'll just say in Spanish, vivo. And he said, perfect. Less is more. He's huge on that, bro. Less is more.

Wow. Yeah, it's crazy. I just mean, I follow what he says, cause that works. I love that man. What do you think Snacks After Saul, you think there'll be another one? Man, brother.

I'm just gonna say this, brother. There was something that was written, not for Vince Gilligan. Let's just say another actor wrote something. You know, that could be another prequel. Oh, a prequel. But it was not Vince. It was not Vince. It was another actor. And yeah, it could be. But now I think in my opinion, what I would love, and I think I get a lot of feedback from this, people would love to see the background,

how the cartel came to be. How did we grow up so messed up the way we are? Tuco, man, part of the cartel was Tuco, Lalo, Tio Hector, myself. How did Gus get involved in the cartel? Because Gus is a complete different, you know, he could actually be a real businessman for the Pollo Sarmano chain, right? He could have succeeded doing good, but he chose to go on the cartel route and start doing bad stuff. So people would love to see that.

And I always think of the show Narcos. You know, it's a very successful show. People love that side of, you know, things. So I'm like, wow, if Vince could do this, the cartel side of things would be great. It would be interesting. It would be awesome. Hoping and praying to the acting gods.

I'd love to see that, man. What was your favorite season out of both shows, just in terms of having fun and memories? Having fun and memories, I would say season four of Better Call Saul. Oh is that the last one? Yeah the last Better Call Saul, no season four, there's six seasons. But season four it was just I don't know it was just a great experience we had a good time, filming was great with more episodes than any other

season of Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul. I'll say season four of Better Call Saul. But my favorite scene ever was probably the shoot up with Hank. That's legendary scene. Episode 307. I still remember that one. One minute. Yeah, I love that scene.

That was action packed. How many takes did that scene take? Dude, it took a lot of takes. Let me tell you this. We usually don't do this, but they did it because back then the budget for Breaking It was action packed, right? How many takes did that scene take to? Dude, it took a lot of takes. Let me tell you this. We usually don't do this, but they did it because back then, the budget for Breaking Bad was small. Really?

Yeah, season three, they had not won an Emmy yet. It was season two, but so season three won an Emmy after it. But yeah, first and second did not win an Emmy, nothing. Season three came and they won, Brian won Best Actor, the show won Best Show, and all that. The budget went, whew, but when we were working on the show the budget was small, so what they did is we needed to film that sequence. It was at least three days to shoot it. Two a week.

Damn. Just for that one minute scene? For that little scene, the shootout and the whole thing, because it would require a lot of stuff. You know, the shootout shot, I got in four, and I had the whole, the blah. So what they did is they hire the first, the group, you know, they have the regular camp, everything, and then a second unit. So every time we did a scene, like, so let's say I'll do a scene with Hank

when I shoot him, push, shoot him. Cut, okay, Louis, right over here, you're going to do the scene right now. Like there were, once we were doing this, we were doing this scene, and another crew was working on prepping the other scene on the other side. That was the second unit. As soon as I was done here, bro,

I almost had to run to the other one to do the, the getting the ax out of the car, dragging it on the ground. I'm done with that. Okay, cut. Hank is ready. He is ready. Go over there.

Now you're gonna be getting a shoot him. It was like that. The whole day, the whole day. Cool thing. It was running. It shoot him. It was like that. Wow. The whole day the whole day cool thing It was running. It was crazy. It was hard and It got nominated for Best Episode Michelle McLaurin the director got nominated for Best Director as well. It was great It was it was a it was a great episode, but it was chaos behind. I love that man. To work It was great. Emmys must have been crazy. What was that like? That it was crazy. We actually did a little sp, what was that like? That, it was crazy.

We actually did a little spoof with her, you know, because she got nominated for it, so we went, got the suits, and we did just a little make sure I'm like Laura, and then we came from the side with the ax and got on her face, it was cool. That was really cool, dude. It was an experience, I never experienced anything

like that at the side awards, anything like me, I never experienced this thing, but on this show I did and it was amazing. The feeling you get is you're proud of something. It's like you finally made it, right? Yes. Yeah, you spend your whole life learning acting and skills. I got some shows before.

I worked on a lot of stuff. I started acting seven years before Breaking Bad, but nothing like that. When I got Breaking Bad, I didn't even think it I did not think it was gonna be what it was, what it is now. It's amazing. Now it's like, yeah. Dude, I'm thankful, bro. I'm so thankful for that show, for the people,

for everything. Everything that he has given me, I'm so thankful. So thankful. Yeah, who would have known? Nobody, dude. When I got the audition, dude, I didn't even know what Breaking Bad was. You know what I did?

I went to, I got the audition, I didn't even know what Breaking Bad was. You know what I did? I went to, I got the audition and they said, we need two guys that look alike, cartel, you know, the bad boy type. Okay, cool. And at first, I'm Breaking Bad. And I'm like, Breaking Bad, huh? Let me go to Blockbuster. I had a week to start.

I go to Blockbuster at the time and ran that season one and two. So Blockbuster was still open at the time. It was still open. One of my houses was in Studio City. And I ran this and I watched the first two. So Blockbuster was still open at the time. It was still open. The one with my house, I was in Studio City. And I rent this and I watched the first two episodes, dude, I needed to be on this show. I watched those two episodes and I'm like, I always want to be on everything I do.

All the auditions I try to do good, but this was, oh my God, I need to be in this. Yeah, I put extra everything I could, I did, and it worked, it worked. Those first two episodes, that's the one where he's handcuffed to the wall, right? Yeah.

The guy in the basement. Yeah, but he does, Teo Hector too, go and they kidnap him and all that stuff. Yeah, yeah. Yeah, all that stuff. When he meets with Jesse for the first time, I got silence and I'm like, this show is amazing. It's amazing, I have to be in it.

And I was so happy, dude. And prior to acting, you were in a gang and in prison, right? What was that like? Yeah, so I came here in 1991. I'm originally from Honduras, Central America, third world country. I came here in 91, went to school and you know, people, I didn't speak English, bro. People picked on me and they were mean and all that shit. So all this stuff.

And one time I saw a guy, you know, walking in the school and he had so much power and authority that to me being nobody, being in school, I was like the get over there on the side. And I see this guy like King Kong walking the freaking school and like the sea opens, bro. And I'm like, who is that? I followed him, bro. Somehow I hooked like, who is that? I followed him, bro.

Somehow I hooked up with this guy, took me to LA. Next thing you know, I joined a gang. A few months later, prison. Damn. Two years. Back click. Two years, yeah. Got out of prison.

Three weeks later, I was back in prison. Damn. Got out again. Three months later, again prison again. So it was like, you know, the third time I went to prison, I was, I was tired of it. I was in the hole for six months. Geez. And I told myself, you know what, you need to do something, bro, to change it.

I kept calling myself stupid in prison and bro, you know what I did to get out? And this is for everybody that things that, you know, you can't get out. No, you can't, bro. There is a way. You just get away from everything. I used to have a booklet with numbers of all my friends, all the bad friends, right? And in prison, right before I worked out of prison, before I worked out, that little booklet

with all my numbers I ever knew from that world, I dropped it in a trash can inside prison. Once you cross the line to get out to the free, you cannot go back. If you go back, they actually throw you back for one more day. So I left the free, you cannot go back. If you go back, they actually throw you back for one more day. So I left the booklet in the trash can inside. I walked out, never looked back.

I moved from LA to the Valley, never looked back. My life changed, my friend. My life changed after that. I started doing a bodyguarding, which is funny because I was a felon, right? I started doing bodyguarding and security, and that I was a felon, right? Or, you know, I started doing bodyguarding and security and that's how I started acting. Just like that. Yeah.

The acting led into motivational speaking. I learned, you know, the, you know, spoke gangs, the, you know, drugs and all that stuff. You know, I enjoy that very much, but my life changed from that, from the day I moved. I said, I'm leaving the stuff behind, all the bad stuff. You leave it behind, you move somewhere else, and don't look back. Because before that, the other two times that I came,

I said, oh, I'm gonna try to get a job, but I was still at the same place where the bad things were happening. You know, bro, temptation is there. You're gonna do something dumb, and I did. Ended up in prison. If you want, you just move, just do it. Just change your life, man.

Change your life. Now I go anywhere and everywhere and nobody is going to shoot me. Nobody's going to call me anything. Nothing. I'm free. I do everything I want. It's beautiful.

I love everybody. I'm thankful for, from prison to being on the best show ever, brother. It's an amazing thing. It's like, wow. You know, but change is possible. I always say change is possible, my friend. Change your environment, change your life.

100%. And wanting to do it. Absolutely. It's very powerful. Anybody can do it. Have you gone back to Honduras since you blew up? I went back in 95, but it wasn't a good experience because in 95 I was still doing the bad things in life.

So I went to Honduras and I ended up getting stabbed over there. Damn, holy shit. Yeah, I have scars and all this and I actually went in jail there too. Oh my gosh. And I just never went back. I never went back because it was really bad.

Honduras is a different place than here. Like prison here, if you go to prison here, yeah, it's bad. Prison is prison, it's bad. But prison over there, it's like holy mackerel. It's bad, dude. I never went back. Never went back after that.

I don't blame you. Yeah, never went back. If I got stabbed somewhere, I don't think I'm going back. And I got stabbed once. It was actually a machete that hit me in the back. Whoa. I got macheted, dude. So you didn't see it coming?

I saw it coming. Oh, you did? Oh, I saw it. You pissed them off? I think they were pissed off at me. Because at the time, I don't know if you guys know about this. A lot of people were getting deported to countries. Gang members were getting deported.

So it was a lot of the gang war. It was growing so big. I'm coming from LA from a gang myself. So when I get to where I was from Honduras, there was already a gang there where I lived. So you get me, I got thrown into the wolves. They saw me and they're like, oh yeah, we're gonna get this guy.

And me, the mentality of a youngster, dumb, dumb, I didn't know better. Exactly, bro, I go with the mentality. Oh yeah, I'm here, you guys can do... That was not smart. And yeah, they got me and it was my fault. How did they know? Did you have tattoos? Oh yeah, I had tattoos, they knew. And they knew, everybody knows.

Like somebody comes from the United States, oh, people know over there. A lot of people think you have money, you're rich. And then, you know, you're coming from the US, or you're kind of cool over there. But in my case, it was like, oh, this guy's coming from, he's from a gang, oh yeah, everybody knew, the whole town knew.

Damn. Yeah, it was very quick, you know, they were after me, and you know, it was like. Ain't no going back there. I am never going, I've never come back since. Yeah, damn, that's crazy, I didn't know Honduras was like that. Oh, crazy, man. What a shame. I didn't know Honduras was like that. Oh, crazy, buddy. What a shame.

I love traveling. Where do you like to go? Man, dude, I want to go. I've been to places. I say Dubai is beautiful and everything. But the one, almost like a dream, I guess. My wife is obsessed. She wants to go to Germany.

Her roots are there. So she wants to go to Germany. And I have a lot of German friends and fans that I have. I want to go to Germany so bad. Europe. Not even Germany. UK as well. I would love to. Europe's beautiful. Food is great. Hawaii is beautiful. I've been to Hawaii a couple of times and it's beautiful. I got to get out there. Yeah, yeah.

I haven't been yet. But Europe. Europe is the one place that I want to go. Germany, Spain, UK, Switzerland, all those places. Where was your favorite spot on set to film? Do you ever travel to other countries or cities? Yes, I have. No, my favorite place, no. I think my favorite place to film outside of,

not even outside the country, was New Mexico. Okay. Yeah. I went to Louisiana, Texas, New York, Atlanta. Nothing. I've never shot anything overseas, but I have traveled for cons, for comic cons to Ireland, Dubai and things like that. And Dubai was freaking amazing. That place is different. I got to get out there. That place is different, brother. That opened my eyes to other things. I was like, wow, this is crazy. They have this kind of things in the world. It was beautiful. Yeah, but New

Mexico, I'd say, was my favorite is crazy. They have this kind of things in the world. It was beautiful. Yeah, but New Mexico, I would say, was my favorite place to film, just because of the friendships I've made from Breaking Bad. I made that good of friends over there, so I'm like, I love that place. And New Mexico, Breaking Bad in New Mexico is almost, I compare it to a religion, right? It is huge, brother.

Businesses have things that, there's a bar that has a drink called the Heisenberg. There's a donut shop that has the glazed, the blue glazed donut. It's crazy. It's crazy, but the people are so cool, bro. They're so nice. Like just, not even my friends, just regular people.

Everybody is just, everything for help, anything you need. They're just lovely people, bro. I love that. It's amazing. Because the show is filmed entirely out there? Everything. Wow. Even the scenes, there was a scene that we supposedly

came from Mexico. Well, Mexico, on Breaking Mexico, was across the studio. It was like literally just across the street and it was desert. I remember that scene. That was Mexico. All they did was change a filter and it was like an orange filter.

Every time we were in Mexico, it was an orange filter. It was across the street. When we broke for lunch, it was like, hey, lunch! We just crossed the street into the studio and they, let's go back to Mexico. And we just crossed the street and go back to filming. But everything was shot in Albuquerque. That's cool. No wonder they like you guys because you spent six seasons out there, right?

Yeah, it was beautiful. Long time. Yes, you're probably eating at the local restaurants and talking with the locals. Yeah, you go to anything, they just want everything. They want to help come. They treat you like a king. So kind, bro.

It's just cool, dude. People are so welcoming. Yeah. So welcoming. That's awesome, man. Beautiful people. Are you doing any current projects, any auditions, or anything you got your eyes on right now?

We just did. And by the time, we did a thing right now, with Delta Force thing that I did. But the project that I want to say that I've enjoyed doing and just changed my life in different ways is the video game. Video gaming. That's SCUMM, right?

Yes, brother. That has changed my life in a good way to see things because right now from Scum, I started streaming on Twitch. And it's different. It is so beautiful to meet people. Like when you go to cons, you know, you go to Comic-Cons, you take pictures with people and sign autographs and you talk to people.

It's beautiful, but you don't do that every day. When you stream, every time you stream, you talk to people and fans, they can ask you whatever to people. It's beautiful, but you don't do that every day. When you stream, every time you stream, you talk to people and fans, they can ask you whatever they want. I'm very engaged. When I do this, I'm me, it's about the people. I love it. You meet people, oh my God, I can't believe,

you know, I can't believe I'm talking to you. I said, bro, we're just here. Yes, anything you want. I enjoy it very much. It's laid back. Yeah, yeah. So I'm focusing on that streaming thing right now. The gaming, I think, I always think technology is the future, my friend.

Yeah. And this gaming thing is huge. And acting right now in LA is kind of like struggling. It's tough, right? Because of COVID, the strike. And the AI. Yes. But the screen was taken over, right?

The strike was big on the AI. That was the, I think the main problem that we had was AI. Yeah. They couldn't come to an agreement on the AI. That was, I think the main problem that we had was AI. They couldn't come to an agreement with the AI. So right now we have like, what did they say? A three year deal and we're gonna have to touch base in three years with the AI because it's gonna be more advanced. And you know, the example was,

and this made sense for everybody the way they broke it down. He said, imagine if they hire a background actor right now. A background guy, they're gonna pay him $50, $100, hire him and ask him, hey, go do this. Okay, cool, now we're gonna owe you forever and we can make a series just based on that little five second clip, we can do anything.

And we pay you nothing. That we would have to hire an actor to do that job, we're saving money. Why are we gonna hire an actor? So now you think there's not gonna be any actors or one actor for the whole, they're gonna pay you for one episode and do a whole season.

That's like, that's not fair. Yeah. So yeah, that's, we're gonna have to touch that. That's scary, man. Dude, it's scary. And not only the actors, the writers, they're getting, AI's just taking over the writing too. Yes.

Oh, it was huge. They had a longer strike than we did. You know, we just joined their strike, but yeah, it's the same thing. AI, it's a beautiful tool, and yes, progress and everything, but it's also a scary thing. It's a very scary thing. It has to be managed correctly, I believe.

You know, with the right people have to be behind that because it's gonna affect a lot of people, a lot of lives and jobs. And I mean, come on, it's, it's crazy. It's crazy. We're going to end up like a Terminator. Dude. Yeah.

You know? Yeah. I, it's funny, funny that you said that because I thought of the sound like, man, this world one day machines are going to take over computers and then what are we going to do? You know, we're not needed. They're going to be running us. Yes.

They're going to use us as slaves. All those movies that do that. It's like, man, they're not needed. They're gonna be running us. Yes. They're gonna use us as slaves. All those movies that do that, it's like, man, they're onto something with this. There's a lot of truth to movies. A lot of hidden messaging too. Yes, yes. Now you think about it from movies, it's all hidden. I mean, it's coming to fruition, you know what I'm saying?

Like now it's happening. I'm like, I never thought, back when I saw 10, 15 years ago, you see a movie that says, you know, computers and machines are gonna throw, 15 years ago, you see a movie that says, you know, computers and machines are going to throw. You're like, yeah, Terminator in 1984, I think. Dude, it was like, come on.

There's no way. It's a great movie. I love it, but there's no way. Look at now, 2025, and we're like, huh. We had a strike because that was the main topic of it, of the strike. Crazy. Yeah, it's a scary thing, brother.

It's a scary thing. Yeah, I've been wondering what's gonna happen because it seems like everyone's moving towards streaming now too, right? Like Netflix, like movies seem to be hurting. Yeah, Hulu, Amazon. Snow White just flopped, so all these big movies are struggling, they're gonna have to figure out

what's next. Yeah, yeah. It's, I don't know, I know I hate to say it, but it seems to me like it's just going like this. Something has to be done. I don't know. It's crazy. Well it's smart that you're pivoting at least into video games for now. For sure. Yeah. I see the opportunity. I enjoy it a lot. I make my own schedule when I want to stream so I can be on my son's soccer games whenever I want to be and spend time with the wife and I'm cool.

How long you guys been together? My wife, nine years. Nine years. Nine years, married almost three years. I'm getting married this year. Congrats brother, yes. There, eight years. Eight years?

Eight years. Oh, I bet she's giving you all that. It took you eight years to marry me? Sean, what were you thinking? I'm sure you got hit with that around year five. I did. Yeah, it was six years, right? And, oh dude, when I proposed my friend,

oh man, they were like, finally. I was like, well, you know, you gotta get to know and this and make sure you do things together so you make the marriage last, you know? You don't wanna get married when you meet somebody six months later, you really don't know them. Especially someone in your spot at the time, you were peak actor Breaking Bad.

Yeah, yeah. You know what's funny thing? And there's one thing I like about my wife, to this day, she has not watched Breaking Bad. No way. She hasn't watched Breaking Bad. Wow. First of all, I got sure her clips,

but she's just like, too long, I don't wanna watch. There's too many seasons. I'm like, she's the least of, she's not a, you know how you go to events like Red Carpet or this and this, oh, she's not one to go. You know, she's not that person that wants that. You know how you people sometimes, oh yeah, I'm going to get this guy so that I can go to all this.

She's the opposite. She don't want to go to anything. I use that with me. Her whole body. Introvert. I love that. She's Missouri, small town. You get me?

I love that. Family person. I'm a family guy. I don't like to do anything. I want to be home, spending with my wife and my son. That's all I want to do. My adventure, a crazy night for me would be go to the movies and go to dinner.

Oh man, we party today. That's me, that's what I do. I don't drink, I don't do nothing. I love it, I love that about her. We were talking about that earlier. I love that. Have you always had that discipline or did you have a phase when you were younger where you were?

When I was young, I was, I didn't know. When I was in gangs and prison and all that stuff, not discipline at all. I was, I didn't know. When I came, when I was in, you know, gangs and prison, I was not disciplined at all. I thought I was, you know, I could do whatever. I didn't even know where I was going in life. To tell you the truth, and you probably heard this before, and a lot of people say this, but I really mean when I say this, I did not think that I was going to make 221 impossible.

The way things were going, dude, I was already ready. I knew I was going to die. Wow. Like, just for like this, where I grew up, the dude, I was already ready. I knew I was gonna die. Wow. Like, just like this, where I grew up, the neighborhood, I know they said, bro, we were getting shot at every, out of the week, at least three times a week. What?

People come do drive-bys, dude, and you would like feel like you're in the Matrix. Holy crap. Like you see, I'm walking on the street, and next thing you know, somebody pass out, yeah, and you're doing one of these Matrix moves, and they're shooting at you. Dude, I knew I was going to die.

Because one day they're going to catch me off guard. And I knew I was going to die. I was going to end up doing life in prison. I was okay with it. It was, it's a life that you're like, how are you living life like this, dude? You know, it was crazy to me. Damn.

You were always on edge when you were younger. Always on the edge. I couldn't leave, from being on that gang world, you cannot leave your neighborhood without you knowing something bad. It's basically you're confined to a cage. Wow. It was, now that my life the way it is, it was horrible. It was horrible. I did not, I have not, for years I did not see the world. Nothing. I was just there.

And there it got me in trouble, a prison, how many times and everything. And I never, I wasn't doing anything with myself. I was just there, basically just waiting to go to prison or die. And then I left, my life changed, it's beautiful, the world is beautiful, people are beautiful, there's great people in the world.

Not everybody's against you. Wow. I always tell everybody, Sean, everybody, I thought was against me, everybody. Like me, you'll never see me, hey! No, me, dude, I was walking down the street to no matter who it was, it was me like this, bro. I'm just waiting for somebody to say something,

you know what I'm saying? No wonder you did so well on the show now. You already had it in you. I grew up like that. Yeah, I did. I grew up like that. It was natural for you. I was just like that.

Nowadays I do walk serious. I'm serious. I go to the gym. It's funny because I do this at the gym. And people look at me and they're like, and a lot of people look at me. Funny. And then when somebody comes,

I'm so sorry to bother you. They come so nice. I'm so sorry to bother you. They come so nice. I'm so sorry to bother you. I ain't you the guy from Breaking Bad. And I look and I just give them this. And then I go there Sean. Yes, I am. Nice to meet you.

Good eye. And then I changed my, you know, change it. But I'm just serious, just, you know, but I'm super. As soon as they say something to me, but I'm like, hey, how you doing? Thank you. And when we're done, I'm like, you got that switch. Yeah. My wife tells And when we're done, I'm like. You got that switch.

Yeah. My wife tells me, smile. I said, I can't. Except when I stream. You see, you put a camera in front of me, and I'm like, hey, what's going on? I love that. No, I'm just happy and thankful when I do things like that.

They're streaming, talking to people. I'm thankful. I'm in a good place. The opportunities that came to me because of things. I'm thankful for everything, dude. Wow. Everything that comes my way, I'm thankful. People that tuned to watch me on Twitch, I'm thankful for that one person,

for everyone, just because of background. You know, you came from this, you did all this. Now, people are like, you know, you're giving back. I don't know, I feel like, I don't know, I'm just so thankful for everything. I've got it too. people are like, you know, you're giving back. I don't know. I feel like, I don't know. I'm just so thankful for everything. Yeah, yes. For everything, dude.

Everything that comes my way. I'm grateful to you for being here. Like, you know what I'm saying? He was great to me. Yeah, Raps amazing. Charlie was amazing. You know what I'm saying? It was good talking.

I just like, wow, that's just good people. Great people. So I love. You still talk to anyone that you grew up with like back in those days? You cut everyone off? Everyone. I don't talk to anybody from school, anybody from my past, from gang, high school, no friends. Wow.

Nothing. You didn't go to the 10-year high school reunion? No, I did not. Actually, I graduated high school in prison. Oh, wow. Yeah, my last year of prison. I got kicked out of like three high schools, two continuation schools. I ended up going to jail and I finished schooling there.

You know what the funny thing was dude that when I actually was in prison, I found out that I enjoyed school. Really? Oh, I got great grades in prison. The teacher for me to get out, he wrote a very amazing letter, you know, how his and his young man can have a great future if he felt that, that, that, that. And I mean, I was focused on, I liked it. I don't know why I loved it.

It was really cool. But outside in the world, me, I thought everybody was against me and, and, and I did not speak English. That was a big thing. They threw me into a school and everybody's, I mean, yeah, I had ESL, like second language thing, but every other class was English. I'm like, yeah, I'm just said to fail. Yeah, they set you up for failure.

Yeah, so it was one of those. But yeah, in prison, the teacher was great, amazing. And yeah, I did good. I enjoyed school. Yeah, to me now, that's the biggest thing for school for everybody. My son, dude, I lived life how I lived it and I learned. I learned.

Now my son, dude, I'm like a hawk with my son, but he's a great kid. I love it. Amazing. He's really open about stuff. Just last year I told him about prison, but he's now 17. I had to tell him. He's seen things on the internet. You know what I'm saying?

I told him, no, that's actually true, bro. And I explained to him what I did and I told him there was no excuse for what I did. Like it was dumb things, GTA, little nothing, nothing bad enough to go to prison. So I told him the things that happened, this happened because of this. And he said, what happened? It was my fault. It was no one else's fault. It was all me. I did it. I did it because I was dumb. I didn't have guidance and I was just with my friends. So now to me, I tell them, as a young man, I tell them, never, your friends are gonna make your life,

either they're gonna be great friends and push you the right way, call you out when they need to call you out. They're not gonna be the ones that, hey, Joe, I dare you to do this, or let's go do this. Don't ever, don't ever do that. Be your own man, always be strong. Be, hey, if you're here and everybody else is partying,

but you're here, don't, don't go over there just because they're, no, be your own man, be strong. No peer pressure, if you're here and everybody else is partying, but you're, you're here. Don't, don't go over there just because of, no, be your own man. Be strong. No peer pressure, nothing, none of that. Be your own man. You're going to be cool because you're going to be like, man, look at all those dummies. I want to say, and look at that guy. He's just there by himself. Not doing the dumb things, drink, he's smoking, do no, that guy is cool. He is strong. He's his own person. That's it. Be that guy. I love that No, that guy is cool. He is strong. He's his own person. Be that guy. I love that. Be that guy. You know, you're gonna be super cool because I can be like, man, everybody's gonna look up to you. You know, walk proud and conduct yourself as a respectable

young man. You're gonna be the man. And it's working beautiful. That's great advice. Because when you're that young, you're so impressionable and you want to fit in. So it's easy to follow the wrong guidance. 100%, dude. Remember I told you that comes from the time, remember when I was in school, and I told you that I follow that guy that he carries so much power, like so much.

I thought he was King Kong, you know, and I went with him and look what he took me. Gangs, prison, ruin my life. What happened to him? He ended up going to prison a few more times. And then the last time I talked to him, I knew he went to jail for a few years and I never talked to him again.

Dan. Never talked to him again. I never, I just lost everything with people. I just, you know, I just don't need it. I don't need to, you know, I'm not going to lie. The last time I actually talked to one of my actual friends, if you want to call them friends,

was in Mojtai. So when I got out of prison, I started doing the acting, but I started also training and competing in Mojtai. So I was into the Mojtai thing. I was training, I was fighting, I was enjoying it, loving life. I put my whole life, once I left prison, bro, and I left the hood,

I put everything in me into Muay Thai, into the acting. So everything, my whole everything. That's one thing, sports are a great thing for kids. I always believe that if you put your kids in sports and keep them busy, they're going to be walking a straight line because you always meet good people or things like that. Only good people, the parents that care, they take their kids to either gyms or sporting things like baseball, football, basketball. You know, other kids are not going to be on the street.

Parents don't care or they don't have time, whatever it is. But sports, I think is a good thing. So I was focused on the Muay Thai for, I mean, I was just focused, focused and my friend, my best friend when I was focusing on the Muay Thai for, I mean, I was just focused, focused. And my friend, my best friend, when I was doing bad, he got out of prison. And he messaged me. And he was my best friend. I wasn't trying to talk to anybody. And he messaged me and I said, you know what?

I want to try to put him out, try to bring him with me. Because I know he liked the kind of like fighting stuff. So I said, you want to bring him to the gym under a disciplined environment. So I brought him, I brought him to the gym. I trained with him. I showed him some stuff and I told him, hey, I want to fight in two weeks. You're more than welcome to come, brother. I would love to have you there.

Keep coming to the gym. I cover everything. I tell you, if you come to the gym, you don't have to pay anything, bro. Just come. A week later, he was dead. Damn. Bro, he got killed leaving a strip club with his friend. Holy crap.

He got shot like 10 times. And in my mind, dude, just think of it, in my mind, dude, I thought we were best friends. If I was still doing what he was doing, all the bad stuff, hanging out, he was my best friend, I was his best friend. I would have been that guy that, he died with his friend. I would have been that guy that he died with his friend. I would have been that guy, not that guy.

I would have died with him because I would have gone to the club with him. Wow. And I would have died too. You know, so I always think about it because we, when we were, bro, we were like that, we would go everywhere together. It was not as soon as I woke up to his house.