Benjamin Bratt

Benjamin Bratt (born December 16, 1963) is an American actor. He is known for playing Paco Aguilar in Blood in Blood Out. He had supporting film roles in the 1990s in Demolition Man, Clear and Present Danger (1994) and The River Wild (1994). From 1995 to 1999, he starred as NYPD Detective Rey Curtis on the NBC drama series Law & Order, for which he received a nomination for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series.

In the 2000s, Bratt appeared in Miss Congeniality (2000), Traffic (2000), Piñero (2001), Catwoman (2004), Trucker (2008), and Snitch (2013), among other films. On television, Bratt has portrayed Dr. Jake Reilly on ABC's Private Practice (2011–2013), Steve Navarro on 24: Live Another Day (2014), Jahil Rivera on Star (2016–2018) and Senator Bail Organa on Andor (2025). He has also done voice acting in the Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs film franchise (2009–2013), Despicable Me 2 (2013) and the Coco film franchise (2017-2029).

Early life and education Bratt was born on December 16, 1963, in San Francisco, California the third of five children of Eldy (née Banda), a nurse and political activist, and Peter Bratt Sr., a sheet metal worker. His mother was born in Lima, Peru, and is of Quechua descent. She moved to the United States with her family at age 14. His father has English, German, and Austrian ancestry. His paternal grandfather, George, was a Broadway actor.

An activist for Native American rights, Bratt's mother took Bratt, age six, and her other children to participate in the 1969 Native American occupation of Alcatraz. Led by young people from San Francisco, it raised national awareness of issues facing Native Americans and attracted participants from across the country.

Bratt attended Lowell High School in San Francisco, where he was a member of the Lowell Forensic Society. Bratt earned a B.F.A. at the University of California, Santa Barbara in 1986, where he joined the Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity. Enrolled in the M.F.A. program at the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco, he left before receiving his degree to star in the 1988 television film Juarez. On May 26, 1999, Bratt's final episode was aired. In 2009, Bratt returned as the now-retired Curtis on Law & Order, where he was reunited with his former boss, Lt. Anita Van Buren (S. Epatha Merkerson), in the episode that aired on December 11, 2009. He returned to his film career that same year.

Later work

In 2000, Bratt appeared in The Next Best Thing. That same year, he played opposite Sandra Bullock in the romantic comedy Miss Congeniality and had a small role in the ensemble work Traffic. In 2004, the actor co-starred in Catwoman. Bratt often portrays Hispanic characters, especially in his later work. Bratt said, "I've played 'Latin-looking spiv, third from the right’ so many times I can't count." In 2001, he starred in the biopic film Piñero, for which he received an American Latino Media Arts Award for Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture. He played Puerto Rican actor and poet Miguel Piñero. Piñero was bisexual and when talking about Bratt having to portray his bisexuality, Bratt stated that this was "certainly something I wasn't afraid of." He went on to say, "Whether you're talking about Miguel's sexuality or his time spent in jail or his petty crime or his drug addiction, each one of those things is a component that makes up the entirety of the man." In 2009, Bratt performed in The People Speak, a documentary feature film that uses dramatic and musical performances of the letters, diaries, and speeches of everyday Americans, based on historian Howard Zinn's A People's History of the United States. That year he starred in and produced the film La Mission, directed by his brother, Peter Bratt. His later films include The Woodsman, Thumbsucker, The Great Raid, Trucker, Snitch, Ride Along 2, The Infiltrator, and Doctor Strange.

Bratt has appeared in several television shows since 2000, including starring as William Banks in The Cleaner, Dr. Jake Reilly in Private Practice, and Jahil Rivera on Star. He appeared in such series as Frasier, Modern Family, 24: Live Another Day, DMZ, and Poker Face.

Bratt has been featured in several animated feature films, which include El Macho, the main antagonist of Despicable Me 2. He played Manny the cameraman in Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs and reprised his role in its sequel Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2. Also, in 2015, he voiced Superman in Justice League: Gods and Monsters. In the 2017 film Coco, Bratt voiced its main antagonist, Ernesto de la Cruz, who was a Mexican folk legend and the idol of the film's protagonist, Miguel. Bratt sings "Remember Me", a song in the film that is sung by many other characters throughout and won Best Original Song at the 2018 Academy Awards and the film won Best Animated Feature.

In 2025, Bratt joined the cast of the Disney+ Star Wars series Andor for its second season, portraying Senator Bail Organa, who had previously been played by Jimmy Smits in prior Star Wars productions.

Activism and philanthropy Bratt has been active in the American Indian Movement and supports such causes as the American Indian College Fund.

Bratt has supported and served as a board member of the San Francisco Bay Area's Friendship House Association of American Indians and the Native American Health Center. Bratt also has supported area organizations such as the Tribal Athletics Program, and United Indian Nations.

In 2017, Bratt served as consulting producer for the film Dolores, which explores the life of Dolores Huerta, an American labor leader and civil rights activist. The film received critical acclaim and several awards.

In 2023, Bratt co-executive produced Wings of Dust, a documentary about water contamination in the Peruvian community of Espinar.

Personal life From 1998 to 2001, Bratt dated actress Julia Roberts.

In 2002, he began dating actress and former Bond girl Talisa Soto; they married on April 13 in San Francisco. The two had met ten years earlier during a casting audition. During the filming of Piñero (2001) they began to develop a relationship. Their first child, a daughter, was born on December 6, 2002; their second child, a son, was born on October 3, 2005.

In 2024, Bratt was awarded an honorary doctorate by San Francisco State University.

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes 1988 Lovers, Partners & Spies Esteban 1990 Bright Angel Claude 1991 One Good Cop Detective Felix Chains of Gold Carlos 1993 Blood in Blood Out Paco Aguilar Demolition Man Officer Alfredo Garcia 1994 Clear and Present Danger Captain Ramírez The River Wild Ranger Johnny 1996 Follow Me Home Abel Also producer 2000 The Next Best Thing Ben Cooper The Last Producer Damon Black Red Planet Lieutenant Ted Santen Miss Congeniality FBI Agent Eric Matthews Traffic Juan Obregón 2001 Piñero Miguel Piñero 2002 Abandon Detective Wade Handler 2004 The Woodsman Carlos Catwoman Detective Tom Lone 2005 Thumbsucker Matt Schramm The Great Raid Lieutenant Colonel Henry Mucci 2007 Love in the Time of Cholera Dr. Juvenal Urbino 2008 Trucker Leonard 'Len' Bonner 2009 Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs Manny (voice) The People Speak Himself La Mission Che Rivera Also producer 2013 Snitch Juan Carlos 'El Topo' Pintera The Lesser Blessed Jed Despicable Me 2 Eduardo Pérez / El Macho (voice) Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2 Manny (voice) 2015 Justice League: Gods and Monsters Lor-Zod / Hernan Guerra / Superman (voice) 2016 Ride Along 2 Antonio Pope Special Correspondents John Baker The Infiltrator Roberto Alcaino Doctor Strange Jonathan Pangborn 2017 Shot Caller Sheriff Manny Sanchez Coco Ernesto de la Cruz (voice) Dolores Consulting producer 2019 A Score to Settle Q / San Quentin 2020 Best Summer Ever Daphne's Dad 2022 Wings of Dust Short film; executive producer Dead for a Dollar Tiberio Vargas 2024 Mother of the Bride Will Jackson Millers in Marriage Johnny 2026 Balls Up Señor Santos TBA Post-production

Television Year Title Role Notes 1987 Juarez Sergeant Rosendo Juarez Television film 1988 Police Story: Gladiator School Officer Dave Ramirez Television film 1988–1989 Knightwatch Tony Maldonado 9 episodes 1989 Nasty BoysEduardo Cruz Television film 1989–1990 Nasty Boys Main role 1990 Capital News Carlos Torres Episode: "Pilot" 1993 Shadowhunter Nakai TwobearTelevision film 1994 Texas Benito Garza 1995–2009 Law & Order Detective Reynaldo "Ray" Curtis Main role (seasons 6–9); guest role (season 20)1996 Late Night with Conan O'Brien Episode: "Jim Breuer/Matt Frewer/Spacehog" Woman Undone Jim Mercer Television film 1996–1999 Homicide: Life on the StreetDetective Reynaldo "Ray" Curtis 3 episodes 1998 Exiled: A Law & Order MovieTelevision film 2001 After the Storm Arno 2003 Frasier Kevin (voice) Episode: "The Doctor Is Out" 2005–2006 E-Ring Lieutenant Colonel Jim Tisnewski Main role 2008 The Andromeda Strain Dr. Jeremy Stone 2 episodes 2008–2009 The Cleaner William Banks Main role; also producer 2009 American Experience Narrator 3 episodes 2010–2020 Modern Family Javier Delgado Recurring role 2011–2013 Private Practice Dr. Jake Reilly Main role 2014 24: Live Another Day Steve NavarroMiniseries 2015 Justice League: Gods and Monsters Chronicles Lor-Zod / Hernan Guerra / Superman (voice) Episode: "Bomb" 2016–2018 Star Jahil Rivera Main role 2021 Soul of a Nation Episode: "Soul of a Nation Presents: Corazón de América – Celebrating Hispanic Culture"; director 2022 DMZ Parco Delgado TMiniseries 2023 Poker Face Cliff LeGrand 5 episodes 2023 Skull Island Cap (voice) Recurring role 2024 Loot Himself Episode: "Mr. Congeniality" 2025 Andor Bail Organa 3 episodesTBAThe LandRecurring role

Video games

Awards and nominations Year Award Category Work Result Ref. 1996 NCLR Bravo Awards Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series Law & Order 1997 Screen Actors Guild Awards Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series 1998 Screen Actors Guild Awards American Latino Media Arts Awards Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series 1999 Screen Actors Guild Awards Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series American Latino Media Arts Awards Outstanding Actor in Made-for-Television Movie or Mini-Series Exiled: A Law & Order Movie Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series Law & Order 2001 Screen Actors Guild Awards Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture Traffic Golden Raspberry Awards Worst Screen Combo The Next Best Thing (shared with Madonna) Blockbuster Entertainment Awards Favorite Supporting Actor – Comedy Miss Congeniality 2002 American Latino Media Arts Awards Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture Piñero Hispanic Organization of Latin Actors Awards Rita Moreno Award for Excellence 2005 Golden Raspberry Awards Worst Screen Combo Catwoman (shared with Halle Berry) 2009 Imagen Awards Best Actor/Television The Cleaner PRISM Awards Performance in a Drama Multi-Episode Storyline American Latino Media Arts Awards Year in TV Drama – Actor 2010 Imagen Awards Best Actor – Film La Mission Oaxaca FilmFest Best Actor 2012 American Latino Media Arts Awards Favorite TV Actor – Drama Private Practice Red Nation Film Festival Outstanding Supporting Actor in Television Mini-Series/MOW/Television Show 2013 Imagen Awards Best Actor/Television 2019 News and Documentary Emmy Awards Outstanding Business and Economic Documentary Dolores 2022 Imagen Awards Best Supporting Actor – Drama (Television) DMZ 2023 Imagen Awards Best Supporting Actor – Comedy (Television) Poker Face 2024 Hollywood Critics Association Awards Best Supporting Actor in a Streaming Comedy Series