Why Jaime Camil Has No Idea What's in Store For His Jane the Virgin Character, Rogelio
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Whether you recognize him from your favorite telenovelas or his always-hilarious role as Rogelio de la Vega on The CW's Jane the Virgin, chances are you've definitely encountered Jaime Camil's work — and loved it.
The Mexican-born actor, who is steadfastly growing his portfolio to exciting new heights in the US, recently packed his bags for New York City, where he's making history as Billy Flynn on Broadway's Chicago during his TV hiatus.
POPSUGAR Latina recently caught up with Jaime about it all at Breyers's 150th birthday party (because what's better on a scorching Summer day than a delicious scoop of ice cream?), and he did not hold back about anything, from the rigorous transition back to the live stage to the Jane the Virgin creator's tight grasp on the show's shocking plot lines to even what it was like to attend his pal Eva Longoria's gorgeous wedding in his native country. Read on to see exactly what he had to say, and then check out the best Rogelio moments — in GIFs.
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On Jane the Virgin
"We are blessed to be working on a show [where] everybody is just a beautiful human being."
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On His Character, Rogelio de la Vega
"They write brilliant stuff for Rogelio. Every single one-liner is just great, and I love the fact that there's no need to ad lib at all, because the book is so clever and [it] has everything in it."
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On Season 3 Spoilers
"We are not kept in the circle of trust of Jennie Urman [our showrunner]. That's the way she likes to work. It's like, 'Jennie, what's going to happen with Michael?' Because, you know, Rogelio was devastated when Michael got shot. I'm like, 'I cannot go on with life, so what's going to happen, Jennie?' [She says], 'You're going to have to wait to find out.' She really doesn't share what's going to happen, so it's very awkward to do interviews because people might think that we're kind of like assh*les. Like, 'Oh, I can't.' No, no, we honestly can't tell you, because we don't know what's going to happen. I just hope that Michael gets better . . . that this gunshot doesn't transform into a horrible ending, which I don't even want to think about. But let's see what happens!"
On Eva Longoria's Wedding
"[It was] beautiful! Just to see a loved friend so happy and so in love and getting married with 100 of her closest friends that needed to be there made it such an intimate wedding. . . . It was just gorgeous!"
On His Role on Broadway's Chicago
"[Chicago] is the perfect gig, because I love musical theater and I love being on stage. I started on stage in Mexico City doing musical theater. Going back to my roots feels amazing, and there's no better place to do it than on Broadway. So I'm super happy to be here, because during my hiatus, which is the break between season two and season three, I get to do this amazing job."
On the Transition Back to Musical Theater
"It's a process because, when you're a guest star on a show, you have 10 days to do it — to learn and sing it and [do] the choreography. It's a very overwhelming process. The first two days, I was not seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. I was like, 'I might have to go back [to LA].' Then I took it with serenity and with patience, and it came. But it came as a stampede of information, because they stuff you with information, and then you have this compressed file in your system that you have to go on stage and do whether you're ready or not. As the shows go by, this compressed information starts to permeate throughout your body and you finally have the show in your bones, and then you can enjoy it more."
On What Makes Chicago Special
"I love the tag that it's the longest running American musical, because it gives so much heritage and history to the show, but at the same time, I'm a little scared, because people might think it's old. And it's not old at all. It's so relevant, so fresh. It looks like it was put in yesterday. The book is so clever, and the jokes are so funny. It's a show that doesn't rely on effects or explosions or mechanics — it's just a human factor that needs to be flawless and precise."