My Take
Raymond Cruz is one of those guys who never got a franchise lead but absolutely did not need one — the man has built an entire career out of making every scene he touches feel genuinely dangerous. His Tuco Salamanca in Breaking Bad is flat-out one of the most unnerving TV villain performances of the 2000s: all twitchy energy and sudden violence, the kind of character who makes you nervous even when he's just sitting still. What I love is that he could pivot from that to a decade-plus run as Detective Julio Sanchez in The Closer and Major Crimes, showing real warmth and loyalty under the tough exterior. He's a born-and-raised East LA guy who went to East Los Angeles College, and that grounded, working-class authenticity bleeds into every role. No big awards, no tabloid drama, just a consistently excellent actor who makes everything better by showing up.
Overview
Raymond Cruz (born September 10, 1964) is an American actor, best known for his starring role as Detective Julio Sanchez in the series The Closer and its spinoff Major Crimes, as well as his recurring role as drug lord Tuco Salamanca in the crime drama Breaking Bad and its prequel series Better Call Saul.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- Raymond Cruz
- Name (Japanese)
- レイモンド・クルス
- Reading
- れいもんど・くるす
- Born
- July 9, 1961 (age 64)
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Cancer / Ox
- Origin
- Los Angeles, California, United States
- Blood type
- Private
- Height
- Private
- Agency
- Private
- Occupation
- television actor / film actor / actor
2. Background
- Elementary school
- Private
- Junior high
- Private
- High school
- Private
- University
- East Los Angeles College
3. Relationships
- Spouse
- Private
- Children
- Private
- Parents
- Private
- Siblings
- Private
4. Personality
Motto
Private
6. Links
7. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
- 2026-06-02
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public items are marked "Private / Unknown". English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.