Carlos Carrasco, the iconic actor who played Popeye Saavedra in the legendary movie Blood for Blood in 1993, recently revealed that he initially rejected the role of this character – a decision that would have completely changed the essence of the film. In an interview with Gusgri, the Panamanian actor admitted that upon receiving the offer to play ‘Popeye’, he chose to decline it, something that would have altered his entire life. Although he has appeared in other moderately successful productions, Blood for Blood is the one he is most remembered for.
Carrasco acknowledges that the first time he read the script for Blood for Blood he thought “what is this?”, as he believed that what was seen in the film was an inaccurate representation of Latin Americans, only promoting the image of ‘gang members’. He explained, “Originally I rejected the project. I said, ‘No, no. I do not want to do that’. I didn’t want to do it, they sent me the script, I started reading it and I said: ‘What is this, what kind of people are these?'”
The actor also mentioned that his motivation for declining the role was to break away from the notion that Latin Americans in the United States are criminals and only gang members. He stated, “I have always had a desire to seek better representation and better opportunities for Latino talent, for the representation of the community because during the time I was in this industry, one gets tired of seeing the representations of Latinos, who are always the bad guys, women are always the prostitutes.”
Carrasco eventually realized that the intention of Blood for Blood was to go beyond simply showing a gangster movie, but to cover deeper topics and give a glimpse of ‘Chicano’ culture on the big screen. He said, “When that movie came out it was almost revolutionary. Just seeing the Latino, Chicano, culture represented on the screen in a big Hollywood movie, that had a huge impact. The themes of the film are not only gang themes, they are themes of loyalty, honor, respect, of family.”
He added, “When I started working in New York, doing auditions for television series, the roles always came that were the same, always the bad guy, what do I know. There comes a time when you say: ‘That’s not our community’, we are much more diverse than that.”
Carlos Carrasco ultimately accepted the role of Popeye, understanding that Blood for Blood had a greater purpose than he initially realized. The film has since become a classic, and Carrasco is remembered as one of its most iconic characters.
