Danny Trejo Details His Unusual Audition Experience For Desperado
When it comes to acting, there is no denying that Danny Trejo has had his fair share of ups and downs concerning his many performances in movies and TV shows. Each endeavor on the big and small screens has arguably offered its own set of challenges along the way, and out of all the fascinating things to happen to the prolific actor in castings sessions, what went down before he was recruited to play the knife guy in the 1995 action drama film "Desperado" was most assuredly unexpected.
Whether it is "Blue Bloods" or "The Book of Boba Fett," there is no denying that Trejo has lent his talents to an abundance of projects. Many people probably recognize him from movies like "Heat," "Machete," "From Dusk Till Dawn," or probably one of the many other titles he has on his resume. In fact, according to IMDb, Trejo has attained over 400 acting credits throughout his career dating back all the way to 1983. While it's presumably safe to presume certain fans may not have heard of everything on the list, some people might be surprised to learn that many of the projects have earned impressive ratings on Rotten Tomatoes. Throughout his remarkable run, Trejo has undoubtedly worked with several talented individuals, but one person he has frequently collaborated with is none other than renowned film director Robert Rodriguez. When he was selecting people to fill out the roster for the film "Desperado," the ambitious filmmaker and Danny Trejo had their memorable first encounter.
The actor wasn't used to playing with knives during a casting call
The low-budget film "Desperado" stars Antonio Banderas as a guitar player armed and ready to take down whoever gets in his way in his quest for vengeance, and one of the individuals sent to stop him is Danny Trejo's character Navajas. When the actor auditioned for the part, he remembers things going much differently than in other casting sessions he had previously experienced. "I walked into Robert Rodriguez's office in Venice, and his words were, 'Wow, you remind me of the bad guys in my high school," the actor said when breaking down his iconic characters with GQ (via YouTube). "I said, 'I am the bad guys in your high school.' And so he just handed me a knife. He said, 'Here, twirl that.' Trejo's Desperado persona Navajas is a killer fond of throwing knives with solid precision. Despite briefly being in the movie and having no lines, Trejo said his turn earned him significant praise from the director, who said, "You can say more with your face than most actors can say with a page of dialogue." That's a hell of a compliment, you know?"
Trejo would go on to star in several bigger films after that, but he has admitted that he prefers smaller budgeted affairs like "Desperado" and working in the world of independent cinema. "I think I'm the king of independent movies, and I love it! I like doing them," the actor told The Hollywood Reporter. "On really high-budget movies, sometimes you're just sitting in your trailer. I can't stand being in trailers: It reminds me of a prison cell." It seems Trejo prefers the freedom the independent side of filmmaking offers based on his experiences, and one of his best memories involves twirling a blade for Robert Rodriguez