Harvey Guillén: Breaking Hollywood Molds
About this episode
Harvey Guillén discusses his journey in Hollywood and the challenges of representation in acting.
When actor Harvey Guillén auditioned for a role written for a character 20 years older than him, he got cast anyway. In this intimate conversation with Maria Hinojosa, Harvey reveals how he became the breakout heart of What We Do in the Shadows as Guillermo, the vampires’ overworked human assistant who refused to stay a sidekick. In this 2025 Latino USA episode, Harvey explains how he’s built a career chasing roles not written for someone who looks like him, and rewriting them once he's in the room. He talks about trauma, tenacity, and turning “no” into a career. Latino USA is the longest-running news and culture radio program in the U.S., centering Latino stories and hosted by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Maria Hinojosa. Follow the show to get every episode. Want to support our independent journalism? Join Futuro+ for exclusive episodes, sneak peeks and behind-the-scenes chisme on Latino USA and all our podcasts. Follow us on TikTok and YouTube . Subscribe to our newsletter . See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
People in this episode
Host: Maria Hinojosa
Guest: Harvey Guillén
Topics covered
- acting
- Hollywood
- Latino representation
- career development
- interview
Keywords
- Harvey Guillén
- Maria Hinojosa
- What We Do in the Shadows
- Latino USA
- acting roles
- Hollywood molds
- career challenges
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Latino USA
Books & works: What We Do in the Shadows
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- Andrés Cantor: The Man Behind "Goooool!"
- Released To Die: Episode 3
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