Our Flag Means Demise’s Vico Ortiz may ‘die pleased’ in a Star Wars position

With Max ending the much-beloved pirate sequence Our Flag Means Demise after two seasons, the solid is contemplating their subsequent profession steps. For Vico Ortiz, who performed nonbinary fan-favorite pirate Jim Jimenez on the present, that features interested by a long-held dream of getting concerned with Star Wars — a franchise Ortiz says has closely formed their life and their household’s lives.

On the 2024 JoCo Cruise, a yearly fandom occasion the place Ortiz was one of many visitor performers, a fan requested throughout a Q&A occasion whether or not Ortiz had a want record for future roles.

“Dream-role-wise, I’d like to be within the Star Wars universe in some unspecified time in the future. That’d be so dope. I’ve been an enormous Star Wars fan since — I really feel prefer it’s in my veins,” Ortiz instructed the viewers.

The Puerto Rican actor and drag king, additionally recognized for the queer comedy sequence These Thems and for roles on The Intercourse Lives of Faculty Women and S.O.Z: Soldados o Zombies, traces their Star Wars fandom again to childhood.

“One aspect of my household is massive Star Wars followers,” they stated on the Q&A. “And numerous them, their selections in life, just like mine, have been due to Star Wars.

“Lengthy story quick, the rationale I’m vegetarian and the rationale I sword combat is due to Star Wars. Once I was 11, I learn this e-book referred to as Star Wars and Philosophy. That completely rocked my world. I used to be like, I need to be a peaceable warrior. I need to be a Jedi. I need to learn to sword combat and meditate and eat vegetation and be one with the Pressure.”

Ortiz says changing into a would-be Jedi as a preteen created some issues even in a Star Wars fandom household. “So I did it! I turned vegetarian in Puerto Rico at age, like, 12. The food regimen there was principally pork,” they stated with amusing. “So my dad and mom have been like, ‘All proper, it’s gonna be attention-grabbing!’ And my grandmother was extra appalled that I modified to being vegetarian than anything [in my life]. They have been like, ‘No matter, you’re homosexual, however you’re not going to eat my chuleta? This is perhaps the final chuleta I cook dinner for you!’ And I’m like, ‘Wow, the manipulation!’ However they have been OK with me being a gay and all of the issues. Humorous, priorities, you understand what I’m saying?”

Ortiz doesn’t have a selected Star Wars position or narrative in thoughts — they are saying they only need to be a Pressure person. “If I ever get to fake to make use of the Pressure and have issues transfer, I’d die pleased,” they stated. “That is TMI, perhaps, however in that very same journey from Star Wars, and eager to turn into a Jedi, I additionally acquired into, like, quantum physics […] I’d go to my room, and sit and put a pencil in entrance of me, and actually be like, OK, quantum physics, every part’s related. It’s like atoms, and I’m this pencil, this pencil is me, and I’d actually attempt to transfer it with my thoughts. I did that for a complete summer time.”

Requested in the event that they’ve ever engaged within the widespread Star Wars fandom apply of pretending to make use of the Pressure to open computerized doorways (a behavior even Kenobi star Ewan McGregor cops to), Ortiz outright cackled.

“Completely,” they stated. “On a regular basis! Generally I do it, like, very quietly. I was very intense, and stroll in there like [big, glowering gesture] whoom, you understand? However now I’m similar to [small, casual gesture] tchh. I moved that, that was me. I nonetheless very a lot do this. I’ll by no means cease, in all probability.”

Whereas Ortiz stated a Star Wars character could be the dream position, in addition they volunteered that they’re advantageous with persevering with to play roles like Jim on Our Flag Means Demise and Vero on These Thems — elements they describe as instructional, by way of normalizing trans and nonbinary individuals for mainstream audiences who haven’t seen a lot of these characters on display.

“I like to mess around,” they stated. “I believe there’s extra illustration now, however I don’t thoughts doing roles which are instructional in a method and one other. I positively need to hold pushing the envelope and being like, Yeah, we’re actually like everyone else. We drink espresso, we pay taxes, we get nervousness and every part, these on a regular basis experiences of the human life. So I need to hold doing roles that signify that. It’s not like me sitting and being like, That is what trans nonbinary means, after which pulling up a PowerPoint to elucidate all of that. That’s completely advantageous, and it’s good to have these roles, as a result of we gotta discover training right here and there. But additionally, training is rather like, us respiration and present.”