The Big Picture

Wilmer Valderrama discusses his career, Latin culture, and the popularity of
NCIS

My Cultura Podcast Network aims to showcase Latinx voices and engage with the Latino community.
Valderrama also talks about his return as Fez on
That 90’s Show
and how grateful he is for the role that changed his life.

At this year’s SXSW, Wilmer Valderrama stopped by the Collider studio to talk with Collider’s Steve Weintraub. During the interview, Valderrama talked about his multifaceted career in film and television, his work with My Cultura Network, and Latin culture. The renowned actor is well-known for his parts in hit TV series, including That ’70s Show (Fez), NCIS, the sci-fi series Minority Report, in which he played Will Blake, and Quentin Tarantino’s first original series, From Dusk Till Dawn, where he plays the lead antagonist, Carlos Madrigal.

To kick off the one-on-one interview, Valderrama shares his experience as an actor, both the highs and lows, and how fortunate he is to have scored such big roles in the industry.

“I mean, as you know, we’ve heard all the stories, it’s a difficult roller coaster that you embark on, and we always have these conversations like, you know, the high seasons, the dry seasons, you know, there’s a lot, there’s a lot that goes into the fact that some things get trending and some things don’t meet pop culture, you know, and then you, you have to kind of navigate what’s the next opportunity, what’s your strength within that moment in pop culture. I’ve been very, very lucky that I’ve had the support of a lot of colleagues that I’ve been able to partner up and do things that, you know, create ripples. I think I’ve been very fortunate to, to kind of pick some projects that, you know, have prevailed, that have done some pop-cultural things.”

Valderrama then goes on to discuss more on his brand-new podcast, My Cultura Network, where he speaks about Latin culture analytics and his rationale for wanting to pursue his new endeavor.

“You think about the all the analytics and all the new data that explains that the Latino community is not only a fast-growing, you know, population, but, but has been one of the most consistent and, and really, you know, mass movements when it comes to who goes to the movies every weekend, who watches television live, who clicks who, who streams, and you know, when you start hearing that the Latino community has been at times in many studies you’ll see that the Latino community has almost 70% of the box office sales every weekend, every first weekend. In a sense, they are the ones who immediately react to the content and actually show up with their families, and they support the content.”

In addition, Valderrama discussed joining NCIS in Season 14, his return as Fez on That ‘90s Show, how he owns That ‘70s Show’s vista cruiser, and so much more. You can either watch the conversation in the player above, or read it below.

Wilmer Valderrama On the Start of His Career In the Entertainment Industry
Image via Fox

COLLIDER: How are you doing today, sir?

WILMER VALDERRAMA: I’m doing great. I’m doing great, really happy to keep the light on with the stuff that I like to do, you know? So yeah, I’m happy to talk to you! We always have great conversations.

Yeah, well remember you said this and in about 15 minutes we’ll see if you still agree.

VALDERRAMA: “Boxers or briefs!” [Laughs] “Breifs, Jesus Christ.”

We talked in the hallway before we got started, but one of the things is that to make a living as an actor in Hollywood… to get cast in anything is winning the lottery. But to maintain a career, it’s very, very difficult. What has it been like for you on this journey which started when you were a senior in high school? And to maintain it your whole life?

VALDERRAMA: Yeah, it’s nothing short of a blessing. As you know, we’ve heard all the stories. It’s a difficult rollercoaster that you embark on. We always have these conversations of like “the high seasons, the dry seasons,” you know, there’s a lot that goes into the fact that some things get trendy, and some things don’t meet pop culture. You have to kind of navigate what’s the opportunity, what’s your strength in that moment in pop culture. You know, I’ve been very, very lucky that I’ve had the support of a lot of colleagues that I’ve been able to partner up and do things, you know, create ripples, but it’s a great question. I think I’ve been very fortunate to pick some projects that have prevailed, that have done some pop culture and other things. I’d also want to say, not to sound too traditional about it, but the fact that my fans, my supporters, show up every time that I do something… I mean, it keeps me employed. Let’s keep it real.

Wilmer Valderrama Talks Pop Culture, Podcasts, and Representation

I know you’re involved with the iHeart My Cultura Network, so talk a little bit about your relationship with them and why it matters to you to be of part of this.

VALDERRAMA: Yeah, no, it matters in so many ways like you think about all the analytics and the new data that explains the Latino community is not only a fast-growing population, but has been one of the most consistent and really, mass movements when it comes to who really goes to the movies every weekend? Who watches television live? Who clicks, who streams? So when you start hearing that the Latino community has been (at times) in many studies, in many polls that have been saying that the Latino community has almost 70% of the box office every weekend. Every first weekend. In a sense, they are the ones who immediately react to content and actually show up with their families to support the content.

You start thinking like, well, it doesn’t reflect on the screen, it doesn’t reflect on that, and then you start thinking what other pioneering places can you venture and create a narrative that’s obtainable for that culture to see themselves, unapologetically, with their cultural selves. I think the podcasting universe is something that is incredibly fascinating. It’s still uncharted territory when you really think about it. It’s still one of the purest forms of entertainment and opinion, where you can go out there and not only be yourself, but you really dream it the way you want to dream it. There’s not a lot of people making decisions on behalf of that content. If it’s entertaining, it will actually make it on the air, so coming full circle to it, iHeart and I made a partnership, and we launched a network, My Cultura Podcast Network. We’re curating beautiful mainstream stories that invite every other culture, but it just so happens that the voices are Latinx.

I have this conversation with movie producers and studio people all the time. That the numbers for the Latin community that go to movie theaters is just a huge number and the audience is criminally underserved.

VALDERRAMA: Yeah, I mean, and look, very rarely you have a place where you can create a new frontier, where you can somehow tailor it or construct and build a destination where a culture can cultivate their stories and see themselves. The tsunami of stories will not lie about how reflective of the American experience it is. Actually, we hope that through a lot of these podcasts, people can see how much we have in common with one another and the fact of how many things we share when it comes to humanity. But yeah, I agree. There’s a new revelation happening around a lot of the studios, and understanding that without really answering the call of this audience would be really tough to sustain.

Wilmer Valderrama talks accents and His Return as Fez on ‘That ‘90s Show’
Image via FOX/Netflix

Did it take a lot of convincing for you to show up on That ‘90s Show?

VALDERRAMA: [Laughs] It kinda… It didn’t– look here’s the thing, my first thing was (and you guys have probably heard me say this before) but at first it was just like “umm… can I still do the voice?” [Laughs] “Like do I still have that voice?” And the other one’s it’s like, would it be funnier if I show up and have no accent? You know? Like what would be the funniest take. And the conversations with Bonnie [Turner] and Terry Turner, who asked me to do it, which I would do anything for them. They were the ones who discovered and gave me an opportunity that changed my entire life, so whatever they say, whenever they want to do it. Revisiting the character was great, like saying thank you to the fans. Like how cool of an opportunity to get to revisit such a character after so many years.

So when they called me and were like “What do you think he’d be doing?” I said, “Well, he’d be the Paul Mitchell of Wisconsin!” I mean, easy! Why are we talking about this, why don’t you start writing that? And they did it, they made it happen. Then I realized at the first table read, on the first day we did a Zoom table read… and as soon as I said the first word with the accent, everybody was muted, but everybody and every screen was [laughs] losing it, they were cheering and whatever. And internally I’m like “Oh, God, I still got it!” I was very nervous, but um, it didn’t take much convincing because I’m so grateful, I’m so grateful of that character.

Do you think that Fez will make another appearance in Season 2 or Season 3? Or is it like a one-time?

VALDERRAMA: I don’t know… I mean I feel like I did it. And I think it was beautiful, it was a lot of fun, you know. But I think it’s really the kids’ show.

100-percent. But I think that one of the things that is like, That ‘70s Show is an incredibly popular show and so many people watched it. So I do think that having that connective tissue helps.

VALDERRAMA: Totally agree. It spoke numbers, I mean you saw the reactions of the fans and how they showed up for That ‘90s Show. It was like, just the nostalgia of hearing the rumors that we were going to show up and it created such a fun love story of us coming full circle to it. But at some point, we have to kind of recognize that it really is a new show and I’m very proud of this new cast. Oh, these kids are sharpening their tools. By the way, they were way younger than us than when we started on that show, so I think they have such a journey ahead of them and they have such great potential. You know the fact that Kurtwood Smith and Debra Jo Rupp are there as Red and Kitty, I mean, they can’t go wrong.

Wilmer Valderrama Discusses Joining the Main Cast of NCIS
Image via CBS

So with NCIS, you joined in, I believe, Season 14.

VALDERRAMA: Yep.

What is it like stepping into a show that’s been going for that long, and how scared are you the night before the first day of filming knowing that “this is a machine that works, and I can’t be the one to screw it up?”

VALDERRAMA: Yeah, no you have to be delusional to say yes to that. [Laughs] You gotta have some crazy audacity of saying like “Yeah, yeah, yeah, I got this.” You know, like it’s… here’s the thing, man. When they first approached me, they made an offer and I told my agents “I think I’m okay,” and they were like “Woah, woah, woah, you should really consider this, it’s coming from the high-ups at CBS.” And the reason why I had to reconsider was that the show is still number one. Right? And they were firing on all cylinders, and I gotta say, I felt like I wasn’t needed. I don’t think you need me, like I’d rather go to a show that needs me, somewhere I can really contribute something.

So I had a meeting with the showrunners, and the showrunner at the time, rest in peace, Gary Glasberg, sat across from me and he said “Hey, we’d love if you join us on this show.” And I said, “Yeah, I mean look, I’m taking this meeting to say thank you, I just don’t understand what I could do for you guys.” And they’re like “Well, you know” and I’m going to say this, I’ve never said it in an interview before but I’m only giving it to you because I f*ucking love you so much.

He looks at me and he goes “You know, nobody’s running after the bad guy anymore.” They’re still swinging and loving what they do, I mean that was my first question, I was like “Are people tired, what does it look like 13, 14 seasons in?” And they said, “Look, the writers are fresher than ever, the actors are still swinging for the fences, right?” But it’d be important to understand that the show cannot go on the way it is. So I think all in all, to say that I think it was, to them, important that I put a little coffee in their milk.

I think when your show is going on that long if you do not insert fresh blood… you have to mix it up.

VALDERRAMA: For sure, and I think at that time, CBS was doing some big shifts, specifically when it came to the conversation of what do our shows look like, how do they reflect on our audiences, for real. And I think they hadn’t had a Latino character in the history of that show. And even, unfortunately, Cote de Pablo, who’s Chilean, she had to play an Israeli character. You know? So to me like, there has never been a Latino character in the leading cast, so I thought that was an opportunity. And then I said to myself, like well that’s an interesting challenge to come back to network television and this type of show would be really fun and what I did is that I created a character that could alter the show tonally, and maybe push the show to “What does the next 10 years look like for that show, and what is it supposed to feel like?”

You know, a lot of people underestimate NCIS, when they look at a show that’s now officially 21 years old and they realize “Oh, it’s the show my mom and my grandma watch.” The truth is, every five years, the show does a tonal shift to the present day that it’s performing on. The writers have done a beautiful job, so when you watch NCIS now, the show that I’m on now with the beautiful Gary Cole, who’s now… I mean, come on. What a come-up. You are going to feel this show is just as relevant and is performing on the same grounded basis of any other show.

It’s also still very, very popular.

VALDERRAMA: Oh my god. We’re averaging 7 million viewers live.

That’s what I’m saying.

VALDERRAMA: Right? And then by the end of the week, man, we have probably close to 14 million by the end of the week with the streamers? So what I’m trying to say is like, last year, the NCIS franchise was watched by 300 million people. So you think about that. And also you want to think about demo, so we’re number one in households, but we’re also number 2 in 18-49 and people don’t talk about that either.

The thing about it is, what people don’t factor in when they talk about a show is that it’s not just America that watches these American television [shows]. I would imagine that when you go to another country, in certain other countries it’s also incredibly popular.

VALDERRAMA: Well yeah, and I mean it’s one of the reasons why that’s good business, you know? Like, at the end of the day, why these shows continue to get picked up and continue to go. You know, we’re finishing up our 21st season and it’s still moving ahead.

Wilmer Valderrama’s Unexpected Response to What His Favorite TV Show Is
Image via Desilu Productions

Everyone who’s been coming in, I’ve been asking them the same question, and you’re about to get it. If you could only watch one TV show for the rest of your life, what TV show would it be and why?

VALDERRAMA: [Grimaces] Eeeh… Oh my God, that’s a good, good question. I’m going to go with something really… I don’t know how many people are going to say this. I will say…

I’ll let you know if anyone else said it.

VALDERRAMA: Okay, uh, I Love Lucy.

No one has said it.

VALDERRAMA: I said it because there are so many things about that show that made [me] who I am. The tone, the physicality, the fact that a brown man could wear the suit, be that elegant, [the show] would reinspire me again if that was the only thing I was watching. And the fact that he was that ambitious, like I have a production company, I have a studio now, I have multiple productions going and all that stuff is incredibly inspiring, so if I had nothing but that show, I think I could rebuild myself again. So I’d say I Love Lucy, for sure.

Wilmer Valderrama on Memorizing Lines and Time Commitment for NCIS
Image via CBS

I actually want to do one more follow-up on NCIS, but what is it actually like with a show like that? I believe, I could be wrong, I think it’s 22 episodes? What’s the number?

VALDERRAMA: We do 22 a year, yes. This season we did 10, because, obviously, the strike.

Right. But one of the things people don’t talk about is the time commitment it takes to make a show like that. It’s like when you sign on for that, that is your life for, what, 9, 10 months of the year?

VALDERRAMA: It’s about 10 months.

Yeah.

VALDERRAMA: I mean you get 2 months off, it takes 8 days to shoot one episode. We go straight through, we only celebrate the Monday off for President’s Day or whatever it is, we shut down for holidays, you know, but we go straight through and you do 22 episodes straight up. You know, it’s a drama, so you are shooting on location, you’re shooting whatever, it’s a marathon. I’ve had friends, they come in to do a guest star on the show and they’re like “How do you do this?” It’s a lot of pages, there’s a lot of stuff you have to do, and then I have to do the action and I have to do the fight sequences and all that stuff.

I don’t know how good you are at memorizing stuff like dialogue?

VALDERRAMA: Pretty great.

Sre you?

VALDERRAMA: Yeah, I’m pretty… I’m a weapon.

Oh. [Laughs]

VALDERRAMA: You have to be, you have no time!

I was going to say, when I hear about Brando on Godfather having cue cards, I’m like “That would have been me!” Like I don’t knock anyone because I mean how the F do you memorize 60 pages or 45 pages?

VALDERRAMA: One, this is memorizing, bro. Let me tell you the other thing that’s crazy. It’s memorizing procedural stuff. Which it goes– it comes in your brain, and it goes out and it evaporates. You forget it literally five minutes after you said it because it’s just like, “Uh, Leo Clem, 5’2”, you know, 120 lbs. Last seen at this corner of this blah, blah, Washington D.C.” And you’re like, the next scene, and you’ve forgotten who Leo Clem was because you’re just going. It’s very difficult to do that, and sometimes there are tricks. Some people put it on a clipboard or whatever ‘cause those stats are hard. Although, you have to flow, so you kind of have to memorize it.

My thing would be like, listen, let me start the beginning of saying it, “uh, the suspect is…” Cut to my back and I’ll V.O. this. [Laughter] We don’t need to be on camera delivering a whole page…

VALDERRAMA: We’re hoping we’re not the first ones on camera because that way we can screw it up when it’s over our heads. That’s the only time you get to practice!

I would literally be begging directors. You know what I mean? Like you don’t need me. I’m telling you, I can be in the background.

VALDERRAMA: Yeah, yeah.

Wilmer Valderrama Discusses His Car Collecting Hobby and How He Rescued That ‘70s Show’s Vista Cruiser
Image via Wall Street Journal

I read that you collect cars.

VALDERRAMA: I do collect cars.

Is it Jay Leno-esque, or…?

VALDERRAMA: Yeah, he came! He came over to my house and we did a little walk-through. It’s not as crazy, but right now I have a ‘67 Black Mustang, and I have a ‘51 Merc.

Thank you, NCIS.

VALDERRAMA: [Laughs] I got these before that.

So, thank you, That ‘70s Show.

VALDERRAMA: Yes, absolutely that. And then I own the ‘70s show’s Vista Cruiser.

Oh, look at that.

VALDERRAMA: Yeah, I took the Vista Cruiser from the show. I bought it for $500.

For real?

VALDERRAMA: Yeah, it doesn’t run, they were going to just junk it. I was like “No… I’m going to take it.”

Also because it’s worth way more than $500!

VALDERRAMA: And now they’re renting it from me for That ‘90s Show. It’s great business! [Laughs]

[Laughing] You are clearing so much money.

VALDERRAMA: I’m killing it! Isn’t that funny? But how do you make Back to the Future without the DeLorean?

Image via El Rey

That’s funny because like with Taylor Sheridan with Yellowstone, he’s the creator, producer, all that. It’s his land that all the shows use when they’re filming, so they’re renting his land to the production and the cattle and everything else at a cost. So not only is he getting paid, he’s getting…

VALDERRAMA: The rent paid.

…that paid.

VALDERRAMA: And also the rent is getting paid.

It takes money to make money.

VALDERRAMA: That’s right. That’s right.

I could ask you a million other things, but I’ve got two other people outside.

VALDERRAMA: I got you, I got you.

We will continue this conversation, and I really wish you nothing but the best.

VALDERRAMA: Thank you, man.

I’m so happy that you have managed to… you know what I mean? Make it.

VALDERRAMA: I appreciate that so much, and also, I also wanted to acknowledge that, I don’t know how many people tell you this, but you’ve been such a champion for all of us artists who make stuff that we hope people like, we hope people show up for. You’ve been such a voice for all of us who really are passionate about the projects and really are passionate about the trajectory of our careers and giving you exclusives is the easiest thing we can do.

Keep checking back from more of our SXSW coverage.