The Checkup with Doctor Mike - How Cristo Fernández' Knee Injury Led Him To Ted Lasso

Episode Date: January 5, 2024

Watch the full video interview here: https://go.doctormikemedia.com/youtube/c2m9 Cristo Fernandez was a start soccer player in Mexico, well on his way to playing for the national team, when a horrific knee injury sidelined him for the rest of his life... or so he thought. The life-altering injury sent Cristo down a new path, eventually taking him the the UK where he studied acting, and eventually landed himself the role of Danny Rojas on the hit Apple+ series, Ted Lasso. Now Cristo is starring in Transformers: Rise of the Beasts, and shows no signs of slowing down, knee injury and all. Follow Cristo here: https://www.instagram.com/cristofernandez.mx/ 00:00 Intro 00:55 Acting vs. Futbol 03:22 Knee Injury 07:31 Life Outside Futbol 10:50 Hardest Acting/Futbol Exercises 15:17 Life Advice 16:39 Transformers 18:26 Relationship with Health 19:36 Mexican Food Executive Producer and Host: Doctor Mike Varshavski Produced by Dan Owens and Sam Bowers Art by Caroline Weigum CONTACT: [e-mail]

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And I become famous in the university because everyone was like, I just called Christo. He acts for free. He likes it and he's good. Say Ola to Christo Fernandez, who you may know as the iconic Danny Rojas from Ted Lassau on Apple TV. Christo's performance in Ted Lassau is quite memorable. Not only because of his iconic catchphrase.

Football is life. But because he did all his own stunts on the pitch. How is he so convincing? Because Christo isn't just an actor, but a former professional soccer player for Mexico. His story is fascinating. From playing pro soccer to losing it all after a devastating knee injury, to selling life insurance, studying acting in the UK, and now voicing wheeljack in the new Transformers' Rise of the Beast. Christo not only has a face for the movies, but a story for them too. Football is life.

But now is acting life? I think both, both forever football. but yeah, acting and filmmaking our life, but also life is life. I feel like being in both worlds, you have a very good sense of knowing how hard it is to become a professional athlete, to work as a professional athlete, have the disappointment of a professional athlete, and now you're having that experience as a professional actor and having this huge amount of success, which obviously congratulations on. what do you think is harder becoming a professional athlete or becoming a professional actor well thank

you but i think like um i mean it's i mean everything in life has challenges sure um i just think that i learn so much from my experience as an athlete yes and and i embracing and using some of those had there and I apply them in my in my new activities that I have now yeah like like what like the hard work the discipline I think somehow the words are similar in that sense and like I remember yet you know like training every day and and and playing football every day and like in my in my things I do now like I also do all of those things like writing I write every day too. So I think that mentality that I had as an athlete, I put it on to work now in my in my acting and my filmmaking. But also I learned from from my mistakes as well. Like I didn't,

I think I didn't have the mentality that I have nowadays. So I take I take now more care of the way I think. And probably if I had that mentality back there, when I was an athlete, things might have been different, but everything happens for a reason. And, yeah, as you said, like, I touched bottom when I had my injuries. I lost my contract, and I was on my way to the first division. I was training with the first team. Wow. And but also, I think everything happens for a reason.

I don't think that injury just happened because it was bad luck. I just think everything, yeah, it's like all those thoughts you put out there in the universe. Take me through because when I looked online, I couldn't find sort of details on your injury. What happened? How did you injure your knee? Well, I had two injuries in my two knees, in the left and the right. The first one was in the left, which was the big one, and that stopped me a little bit longer. and it was in the moment I was going, training with the first team and everything.

It was both the meniscus, but the first time also the meniscus and a little bit of the Patel. I lost a little bit of cartilage there. I'm great. I recovered and as you guys can see in the Tedlas, I can, I do all my stunts proudly honoring my football career. So are you saying, you personally killed a dog when you did the kind of dish.

No, like, that's important to mention no animals or dogs got hurt or damage in the process of Ted Lasso. You know, I also played football growing up. Football, American football? No. No. Soccer. Yeah, soccer.

In high school, I was actually the captain of my soccer team. Oh, nice. So it was a passion of mine as well, not nearly as serious as you took the sport and how successful you were at it. I found that in the United States, obviously there's a lot of Spanish people that play in the U.S. and parks and games and things like that, I found that when I played with Mexican players specifically, it was a lot more rough the games. Do you experience that being a Mexican soccer player? Well, in Latin America, yeah, we are tougher. Yeah, but it's like the slide

tackles are dirtier. I don't know if this holds true and I'm just stereotyping here. But I specifically was always worried that I'm like, oh, I got to watch my knee. Also, we are very passionate by nature. Yes, yes. So, yeah, I think that's true. Like, yeah, we, well, football is a religion for us. Of course. And so, yeah, I can see that, yes.

Do you contribute any of that passion from other players or perhaps tackles or whatever affecting your injury? Is that partially what caused the injury? Or did it happen non-contact? No, it was an accident. It was, I was running to defend, and then three, actually three teammates, we collapsed. Oh, okay. And then, and actually, I think I, like, yeah, I was running to the fan. I was not looking, and probably the other guys didn't, and boom.

And I just remember, like, I blinked for, I think I probably pass out, probably. probably my only time in life that I passed. Really? Yeah, but it was just a couple of seconds, but I don't even know. I just remember I was like, and I never liked lying down. I just tried to stand up quickly.

And as soon as I stand up, as soon as we stood up, I felt like there was something wrong with my knee because I was losing balance. And that's when I was like, okay, yeah, I cannot go back. And then, yeah, that's how we, that's what happened.

That's brutal, especially with your own teammates. unavoidable obviously like you can't control an accident and it's interesting that you say that it was it was meant to be because it was like really outside of your control outside of your teammates control so it's quite true in that sense of things yeah but again reflecting on life um and i was adding too much pressure probably on to me because i was on my way there were you a midfielder coming back to defend yeah yeah i yeah i i i I played right, left midfield. Okay.

Good at running lots. Yeah, a lot of running. And crossing the ball and I was fast. I had lots of skills with the ball too. Okay, so you had those injuries and they set you back in your career. How did you decide to say, okay, well, now I'm shifting from professional athlete to life insurance salesman to be able to reach the goal of becoming an actor? Well, so like the first, when I finished high school, because my professional football career started when I was 15. So high school I did it at nights.

And then I didn't do anything else after high school, only football. And then, but I always wanted to do stuff. So I joined languages. And also, which is, I think, when my artistic bug started to bother me. because I had some spare time and there was like a music school near my house that I always saw it there and because I was only doing football

and the languages I was like, oh, I'll join the half hour there and I just joined like a bit of guitar and piano and singing and I've been always in the world of sports with my friends and when they saw that they were like, you want to sing and music and I was like, I just have some killing time. And then, but then my parents told me, study something.

Just please us with that because my parents are, they liked studying. And I was like, okay, whatever. And then I junk the career of communication. And at the beginning, I was a worst student. But the teachers love me because football is a religion back home. And that's the guy who plays. Yes. Give him a 10.

And I was like, yeah. And yeah, even though I was sometimes getting late, than missing. I was the worst. But then the injury happened at the same time where I was watching some classes like journalism and audiovisual languages and writing. And nobody wanted to do anything in the videos. And I was the one that you should do it. And I was okay. And I started to act in that. So everyone was calling me to help them with videos. And I, and I, become famous in the university because everyone was like, do I just call Christo?

He acts for free. He likes it and he's good. Yeah. And I was like, okay. So I ended up having like a portfolio of videos like from shitty videos to a bit more better videos. What was the shittiest? Come on.

The shittiest, I mean, like there was like a... Did you like some Shakespeare thing or something ridiculous? Well, because it was communication. We had to create like these campaigns for, products that we invented so I remember I did one like a like a nap like I don't even know and I was just like looking at the video there and I was just like like a commercial you know I remember doing some cookies commercial and I was just doing so many scenes and so many like short films and things and I just loved it and I was just doing it for free and that's when I discovered my passion

I did a bit of theater in the university um so yeah That's where I discovered my passion. And from there on, I was like, this is what I love. I want to do this. Let's do this. So you've probably done drills as a professional athlete. I mean, you've definitely done drills as a professional athlete. But then you've also done drills as an actor.

What's the hardest soccer drill or football drill? And what's the hardest acting drill that you do to practice? Like, what is drill again? Like, for example, in soccer, you would go around the cones over and over again, like a strategy to. practice. Ah, okay, like a short exercise. Yeah, short exercise that you do as an actor and as a football star.

Okay, as a football, as playing football, I mean, also like being in a great shape takes like, yeah, like, because the skills are always there, the game you love playing, but just getting that condition. Condition. I remember, like, the pre-season, like, we, we go to. Barranca, which is like the hill. Hill. And you do sprints up the hill. Yeah. And like I remember so many people throwing up and like literally like you have,

the body collapses and you have to find a place where you can take a shit. Because the whole body is like collapsing just to be in the great shape. Of course. So it's not easy. Yeah. Okay. So the wind sprints on the hills. That's bad.

Yeah. But what about as an actor? What exercises do you do that are hard? As an actor, Td Bank knows that running a small business is a journey, from startup to growing and managing your business. That's why they have a dedicated small business advice hub on their website to provide tips and insights on business banking to entrepreneurs. No matter the stage of business you're in, visit td.com slash small business advice to find out

more or to match with a TD small business banking account manager. Well, I mean, personally to me, just going to the UK and just acting in another language and just because English is my second language, Spanish is what I, it's my language I grew up with. So I remember the first six months getting used to the language and the terms and Shakespeare. Yeah. I was like, God, my brain is hurting. It was midday and I wanted to go to bed. I was, and I actually thought for a moment there's something wrong with me.

And my principal, my course leader, special shout to her, Jack Bezell at Guilford School of Acting. She kindly told me, no, don't worry, Christo, it's fine. You're just getting used to this language and Shakespeare and everything. And I was like, okay, yeah, you're right. I should take it easy. But, I mean, yeah, just getting new language. The new language. And more acting-wise, like the-

theories and but but to me personally my life just you know like just getting used to the language and of course that's hard is memorizing lines for you hard um so at the beginning i think that was what i was like more worried about but as it's like anything in life you just you pick it up and you're good practice like now you give me a ball and like it goes and like i just start kicking it like now working for example in ted lasso an experience i've learned is that things change so much tv is faster than film and where before i will be freak out and you give me a lines and i learn them and then i go to the set and you change them i would be like oh my god but now you do that and i'm i'm more used to that what's your strategy for memorizing do you just read it

multiple times do you have a i think writing them down really yeah okay Rather than just reading them, if I write them down, they stuck in my head better. Because that would be my fear, too. I've tried out for some roles, and I was like so worried about memorizing. No, no. The furthest thing from that. But, you know, I tried to sort of do what you've done in just a very poor fashion, unlike you who've had a lot of success. I am a doctor.

So I said, oh, I'm a doctor in media. I can play a doctor on TV. So I've tried some roles, and it's not the same. No, but I'm sure you can act. No. Terrible. Yeah, no, but like I just, this is also an important lesson that I've learned. And because I have many friends that, because when you start studying and you try to find your way in life,

you get worried that you spend so much time doing something. But I think on the long run, you realize that everything somehow helps in life. I would have never imagined football was going to come back to me in my new dreams, acting. And, and I think what makes me hopefully a good actor is that I've, I've done so many things in my life, like playing football, studying communication, being a life insurance salesman, like living in different parts of the world, I play those in Puerto Rico, in different parts of Mexico. Selling cookies and commercial. Yes, it's cookies commercial. And I, yeah, like, I was a, I work in. PR. I work in a photographer. And I think all of those life experiences help you to be

something and find your way. And it's always good to try. If you don't try, you will never know. So if you hadn't tried. Yeah, I tried and I learned no. Yeah. But you at least you try it. At least you try it. But otherwise you will be in your head like questioning. What if? Yeah, I should, I should do this. I should do this. I should do this. And I think it's always good to try and it's better to try and fail and from there on you carry on for the next things and fail might mean a choice you know it's not like I failed because someone told me I was bad and I said I don't want to do this I failed because I don't like it I didn't enjoy the process I thought this isn't for me didn't match so it was my choice to fail if I pushed and I loved it

so much I think that there could have been a world where maybe I wouldn't be a star but I can you know, at least practice my craft that I enjoy. So I think that works. This is a funny question. So it must have been really easy for you to take on the role of a professional soccer player given the fact that you were a professional soccer player. But now in Transformers, what life experience did you draw upon to play the role in Transformers? Because that's got to be harder.

Yeah. Well, I mean, they chose, I'm grateful Stephen, the director. and Lorenzo and Mark and everyone are Transformers, gave me the opportunity to play the first auto bot that is Latino. And that was a big responsibility to me. We found the character, but I'm grateful they allowed me to keep so many of Mexican expressions and like really having the essence of being Mexican. And when the auto bot hurts himself, he says, aye, aye, aye.

so that was to me important but the character is Will Jack he's a nerd geek so embracing that aspect also he has a bit of an ego but also not mean so to find that

that was cool to play with and yeah Stephen is amazing so it was cool to find it and also for me especially with my everything I'm trying to bring opportunities back home to Guadalajara, where I'm from. And we recorded all the voice for my character in Guadalajara, Mexico. Wow. Okay. The film is shot in New York and Peru, which I haven't been. Hopefully one day will go there, but all the voice we recorded

in my hometown. Wow, that's really cool. What's been your relationship with health? Have you always been healthy outside of your knee injury? Do you see the same doctor all the time? Do you You have a primary care doctor? Yeah, no, sports has always been part of me, and it's still part of me. And I, like, in terms of eating, I've, I've, I've, I've been discovering new ways of eating, like right now I'm in like an intermittent fasting situation, which I think with the crazy schedules, it allows me to keep in shape too. I've also learned that

like I've always loved doing sports and working out like crazy like so much but I also learned that sometimes well it's all about how you eat sometimes more than the exercise or performance than the exercise because now if I compare the amount of exercise I do now

if I compare it to my glory days like I exercise less now and probably in terms of like definition and fitness I might have better results now but but but also I love eating and I eat lots everyone who you meet that says that met me can tell you that I eat like like crazy and I've opened doors in life by just eating so much like I remember as a kid like the mothers of my friends were like yeah I invite Christo hits a lot and even nowadays I go to anyone's house and they are like and they see how much I eat

and that opens doors. What's your favorite meal? Like, if you had a last meal, what are you making as your last meal? No, well, Mexican food is my favorite, of course. Yeah, but you have to go to Mexico to try their real deal. And also our cuisine is so different and it changes from Guadalajara to Mexico City to Waxaca to the north.

So what's the meal? What's the... Well, you have tortas awogadas in Guadalajara and you have, Pozole. Have you tried Pozole? No, it's like a soup with corn, big corn flakes. And it has chicken or meat, or it doesn't have to if you're vegetarian. That's probably my favorite. It just good. It feels warm in the belly and it fills you up. But like I love Japanese food. I think probably after after Mexican food, it's Japanese and Chinese. Chinese, Chinese food too.

Yeah, I have Chinese blood in my veins. Oh, really? Yeah, yeah. You did the genetic testing? No, like just the father of my grandma. Oh, okay. My great grandfather was from China. So I have a bit of that.

And yeah, and the Mexican and the, yeah. So good times. Well, thank you so much for coming on. I really hope you enjoyed our conversation as much as I did. Continued success for you. We're going to be cheering you on in all your venues and ventures. Where can people follow your journey? Oh, no.

Thank you, Dr. Mike, and thank you to everyone listening and thank you for the support. Well, yeah, in social media, I'm like Christo Fernandez, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, I think, at TikTok too, apparently. There we go. And also for everyone out there that wants to support me and the new projects I'm developing my film company, It's called Spectro-MX films.

You can find it also in my profile. And so far, I've developed three indie films in Guadalajara, and hopefully there will be some more things coming up in L.A. And I'm just trying to, yeah, as we were saying, develop more opportunities in other parts. And also for other people, because I think there are many friends of mine from Guadalajara, from London, from L.A. in and then and then I think that yeah there are more things coming up and doors should be open also for for other friends and and also basing myself in creating my own work which I think

for anyone out there that wants to to follow their dream I think that's my advice just don't rely on other people giving you the opportunity just created and make it happen make it happen yeah and as you said earlier in our interview it's not just football is life for acting as life, life is life. Life is life. Like the great song, yes. Brother, thank you so much for coming out. Appreciate it.

Thank you, thank you, man. Cool.