RAMON RODRIGUEZ alcanza fantasía al estelarizar en la superproduccion mas grande de este verano: TRANSFORMERS: REVENGE OF THE FALLEN
DALLAS,TX.- We fill honored and proud representing the EL LIDER USA newspaper having the opportunity to interview the successful hispanic actor Ramón Rodríguez who has perform one of his fantasies starring in Transformers REVENGE OF THE FALLEN, a super production premiering this week, that you, our estimed readers, should not miss at all. Without saying anymore, know about the opinions of this super actor in relation to his performance in this film that it is expected to brake the record of attendance and become one of the prefered of the lovers of this type of filmes
El Lider USA: Hi Ramón, how are you?
Ramón Rodriguez: I’m good thank you.
EL: Thank you for having us today. So, you’re starring in this summer’s biggest blockbuster, Transformers 2: Revenge of the Fallen. How’s that? How excited are you?
RR: Oh my gosh. I wish you could be here to pinch me, it all feels like a weird, lucid dream, this entire experience. It’s been crazy! I mean, I grew up watching the cartoon, I was a huge fan. I was born and raised in New York City, so I can remember being in my apartment in Manhattan and my sister would be getting ready to go to school and doing her thing, and my mom would be doing her thing and telling me to do stuff and I was just FOCUSED on the TV, watching my Transformers. So it’s kinda like a childhood fantasy, you know? You grow up watching the cartoon and playing with the toys and, well, now I guess we’re REALLY playing with the toys. So it was kinda crazy, and it’s been just a huge, great adventure, man, it’s one of those world experiences that I don’t know if I’d ever get to have if it weren’t for this movie.
EL: It’s surreal.
RR: Very much so, honestly. I’m in the middle of this whirlwind tornado, and I’m just like, Wow. I think, you know, when this is all said and done, when the movie comes out, maybe then I’ll kind of gain some perspective, but it’s been really intense. We just got back from our international press tour yesterday, so it’s been wild. I’ve been living in hotels and airplanes [laughs].
EL: Welcome to Hollywood.
RR: Exactly, right? [laughs]. You have no idea what you’re signing up for and then BOOM, you get smacked in the face with this!
EL: So tell me a little about your character in the movie.
RR: Sure. I play, ahem, Leonardo Ponce de Leon Spitz…
[both laugh]
RR: I love saying that, you should try it.
EL: A complete Hispanic name.
RR: So he’s a freshmen at Princeton University and he runs this conspiracy website called “The Real Effing Deal.com.” He’s got this whole kind of universe, he’s a controlling little dope – uh, kid, little techy guy, who’s got two guys working for him at the dorm rooms. And then in comes Shia’s character, Sam, and we have that kind of moment where we don’t know if our roommate situation is gonna work, you know? He comes in, he’s my roommate or whatever, and then I get sucked into his world of REAL alien robots, freaking out, traveling all around the world, wishing I’d never met this kid. All Leo wants to do is survive. He’s goes from being in control and confident to freaking out and just losing his mind.
EL: So Sam drags you into his adventure, huh?
RR: Exactly.
EL: How did it feel sharing the big screen with Shia and Megan?
RR: It was cool, man, I mean, you know… The transition was really smooth. But I was very much aware of it, obviously. I was a big fan of the first one and I knew they were all coming back, and I knew most of the crew members were coming back, so it was kinda like they already had this family relationship going on. I just wanted to come in and make a smooth transition, but also try to leave my mark, leave an impression with the character. And Shia and me, we became so cool right from the beginning. We would rehearse our scenes with Michael and we would improv it. Most of our stuff was improv, and the writers would be in the room while we were rehearsing, they would be writing down all our improv and that ended up being the dialogue in the movie. Shia is a cool kid, man, a young punk, a competitive kid. We’re very similar in a lot of ways and we actually became really close friends. There’s not many times where you hang out with your co-workers off the set, and we constantly did. I mean, him, Megan, and me would go out to eat, we would go play Xbox together, I mean there’s all kinds of crazy stuff that we would get into.
EL: Cool, cool. So, along with that, how was it like working with Michael Bay?
RR: Well, it’s…Bay-tastic! [laughs]
EL: Is that what they said on the set?
RR: Bayhem, we had a so many words for him. He is, um… First of all, there is no one else like him, that can do blockbuster films the way he can, he’s the number one dude. I don’t know how he does it but he puts together these huge films, and you gotta trust him because, at the end of the day, we’re on the set, and we’re acting to these poles with tennis balls – those are the robots, there’s no green screen – we’re on location, you feel like you’re losing your mind, because you’re acting to thin air. And he’s putting you in these crazy stunt situations – I did a lot of my own stunts – and there’s explosions going off EXTREMELY close to you, dangerously close. You get banged up a lot. I popped a shoulder, Shia popped his, y’know, his eye, we all got beat up making the film. But that’s part of the deal, I guess, when you sign up to do a Michael Bay film. You’re kinda putting your body on the line, and it’s a crazy experience. But then when you see the final product you go, Wow! And you realize why he did that and it’s because he’s a visionary, he knows how to do this stuff, he’s a genius in that sense. I mean, it’s not easy to put these robots and humans together and make it work and he just finds a way to do it.
EL: Okay, this one’s less about the movie, but, if you could build your own Transformer, what form would it take? Like, what machine would you like it to be?
RR: If I could build my own Transformer? Is that what you said?
EL: Yes, if you could build your own [laughs].
RR: If I could build my own Transformer, what would it be. Huh. Um, a blender.
[both laugh]
RR: I’d build a little blender that would transform into all kinds of stuff, that could – I don’t know, that’s a silly answer. Yeah, I guess I would…
EL: I like the blender answer.
RR: Yeah man, we’ll keep it different. Everyone’ll probably say a car or plane, I’ll make a blender.
EL: [laughs] That’s cool. So, as a Hispanic actor, what Latino actor would you like to work with?
RR: That’s an easy question. I love Javier Bardem, I’d love to work with him. And I love Benicio del Toro, so I would love to work with him as well. I grew up watching these guys, I enjoy the choices they’ve made in their careers. They’ve gotten to play all different sorts of roles. That’s kind of what I want to do, y’know? I’ve been able to do some drama roles, I’ve done some action roles with this film, and even some comedic roles. Leo Spitz is very much a comic relief in this film as well, so it’s everything rolled into one.
EL: And a Latina actress?
RR: Latina actresses, who would I like to work with? Penelope Cruz, uh, Eva Mendes… Yeah, I would say those two.
EL: Those are hot choices.
RR: And they’re talented as well, so they’re not just hot, they’re smart, too.
EL: Growing up in New York, as a child you dreamed of becoming an NBA superstar. What changed your mind?
RR: Yeah, I grew up playing basketball, that was my thing. Growing up in New York City, street ball is a big deal and that’s what I grew up doing. I got a scholarship to play at a prep high school in Michigan, and then I got the opportunity to go to college in West Virginia, again on a scholarship, for two years. And if it weren’t for basketball, which is interesting, y’know… Basketball’s what got me into the business, through commercials. I did these Nike commercials back in 2001, and they became really popular, I traveled the world with Nike doing basketball tricks and stuff in Asia. I formed my own group called Project Playground, and they’re actually still around. We did a bunch of NBA shows and college shows, and the Nike commercials got me in front of the camera, and then I got to do some TV stuff for Law and Order. When you’re from New York, you have to do the prerequisites, so you have to do the Law and Orders and Rescue Me, I got those all under my belt. And then I got a great part on a great show called The Wire on HBO, and that was an amazing experience, and it kinda took off from there. And I got small independent films like Bella, and then The Taking of Pelham 123 which was the biggest film for me up until that point, to work with Denzel and Travolta and Tony Scott, and then came Transformers. It’s been quite a ride but I’m so glad it’s happened the way it happened, just a really nice step-by-step process the whole way.
EL: Yeah, you’ve enjoyed every minute of it, it seems.
RR: Yeah, I really have. That was one of my goals throughout the whole thing, especially with Transformers, going around the world. I kept a journal and took a lot of photos because I wanted to remember it and appreciate it.
EL: So, wrapping this up, I wanted to talk to you about your upcoming projects. You’re writing a script about New York, I see?
RR: Yeah, I’m writing a drama script about a father-son relationship and their connection through music, salsa music in particular, and it does take place in New York and Puerto Rico.
EL: Sounds awesome, we look forward to hearing about that. Thank you so much for allowing me to interview you. I wish you the best of luck and look forward to seeing Transformers 2 out next week.
RR: Thank you so much, I really appreciate it.
