• Raul Castillo Jr. was born August 30, 1977 in McAllen, TX to Mexican parents.
• He was motivated to become a playwright and actor by friend Tanya Saracho.
• He attended Boston University College of Fine Arts and graduated in 1999.
• He gained recognition after starring in films such as "Amexicano" and "Cold Weather".
• He is currently 42 years old, 6ft 1ins tall, and has an estimated net worth of over $4 million.
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Who is Raul Castillo? Wiki Bio
Raul Castillo Jr. was born in McAllen, Texas USA on 30 August 1977 – his zodiac sign is Virgo and he holds American nationality. He is an actor and a playwright, best known for his roles in films such as “Amexicano” and “Cold Weather”, as well as for portraying Richie Donado Ventura in the “Looking” HBO series.
Early life and education
Raul was raised in McAllen by his father Raul H. Castillo and his mother Adela ‘Adelita’ Rodriguez de Castillo, with an older brother named Tony and a younger sister. Both of his parents came to McAllen from Reynosa, Tamaulipisa, Mexico and as Raul was raised very close to the border with Mexico, he would often visit his family members who were still living in Reynosa.
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His older brother was the first to start acting, appearing in school plays such as “The Wizard of Oz”, and seeing him perform spiked Raul’s interest in acting while he was attending third grade. Raul also started playing the guitar, and while attending the 6th grade at Our Lady of Sorrows Catholic School, he became friends with Roy Mitchell Cardenas, and the two started an underground punk-rock band called Influential Phecal Material (IPM), and remained a member of the band until the launch of his acting career.
He started attending McAllen High School, and won his first role at the age of 14 in the school play “The Secret Affairs of Mildred Wild”.
He went on to meet Tanya Saracho, the future staff writer for “Devious Maids, Girls”, and she was the one to motivate and encourage him to become a playwright and pursue a career in acting. After matriculation, he enrolled at Boston University College of Fine Arts, graduating with a bachelor’s degree in playwriting in 1999.
Becoming a stage actor
He launched his career as a stage actor right after graduation, joining the LAByrinth Theater Company in Austin, Texas, performing in “Santos & Santos” in 2000, after that becoming their writer.
In 2006, he appeared in the play “School of the Americas”, and then in “Flowers” in 2008 with the Ensemble Studio Theater. The year 2009 saw him star in two plays, entitled “A Lifetime Burning” and “References to Salvador Dali Make Me Hot”, while the year 2012 saw him appear in three plays, two of which are “Jesus Hopped the ‘A’ Train” and “The Way West”. Some of his latest appearances in plays have been in “Adoration of the Old Woman” and “Death and the Maiden” in 2014.
Appearances in movies
Raul made his debut film appearance in the “Immaculate Perception” short film in 2005, and then appeared in other short films such as “Tadpoles” in 2005, and “The Negative” in 2007.
He gained recognition after starring as Ignacio in “Amexicano”, which follows a bond between an illegal immigrant and a blue-collar Italian-American from Queens, New York City. In 2008, he appeared in “Paradiso Travel” and “Arroyo Seco” but didn’t make any notable appearances until starring as Carlos in “Cold Weather” in 2010, which follows a guy who moves back to Portland in Oregon, and becomes involved in the mystery of his ex-girlfriend’s disappearance.
Raul appeared in many short movies in the following couple of years, such as “Gareeb Nawaz’s Taxi” in 2010, “Narcocorido” in 2011, and “Local Tourists” in 2012 among many others.
Some of his most recent appearances have been in “Insane” in 2018, and “El Chicano” and “Knives Out” in 2019, while he has been cast to appear in two movies in 2020, entitled “Little Fish” and “Army of the Dead”.
Appearances in TV series
Raul made his debut TV series appearance in the “Nose Bleed” episode of “Nurse Jackie” in 2009, then appeared in single episodes of “Law & Order”, “All My Children”, and “Damages”. He was invited to play Henry Howell in three episodes of “The Trainee” in 2011, and in the same year began playing Edgar in “East WillyB”, being a member of the cast until 2013.
His first notable role in TV series came in 2014, when he was cast to play Richie Donado Ventura in “Looking”, appearing in 14 episodes through 2014 and ‘15. Two of his latest and most notable roles have been in 10 episodes of “Atypical” as Nick in 2017 and ‘18, and in “Seven Seconds”, portraying Felix Osorio in 10 episodes.
Love life and relationships. Is he gay?
After Raul portrayed Richie Donado Ventura in the “Looking” TV series, the character who is gay, rumors began circulating the internet that the popular actor is gay.
A preview of upcoming #interactive show w/ @museumofman, #BorderCrossing, by #RaulCastillo: http://t.co/l1lLTIJmz8 pic.twitter.com/9jie4IlFtG
— La Jolla Playhouse (@ljplayhouse) May 11, 2015
Raul addressed the rumors, stating that he is straight, and that he accepted the role in “Looking” because it is very important for the LGBTQ and Latino community saying ‘Especially being a straight guy, I wanted to honor this character. And even though it wasn’t representing the entire community -this was one story – I knew there would be a lot of expectations’.
He is currently still in a relationship with a mysterious girl who was until recently living with him in Hell’s Kitchen, but has recently moved out as she found a job in another city. Raul was once in a long-term relationship with his college sweetheart, but the relationship ended after 10 years of dating.
Family, hobbies and other interests
Raul is very close to his family, and although he was raised Catholic, he is not religiously involved. His sister is working as an accountant, and is married to Omar Rodriguez who is a chef and restaurateur.
Raul is very sporting as he has been going to the gym for years now and sees exercising as something necessary for both a healthy mind and body. His muscular body has had him featured in a couple of magazines – he enjoys running, playing football, and boxing. He likes to watch Hollywood movies, while he grew up being a huge fan of actors such as John Leguizamo, Viggo Mortensen, and Luis Guzman among others.
Some of his favorite movies include “The Shawshank Redemption”, “The Dark Knight”, and “Schindler’s List”, among many others.
He is a lover of animals, and a philanthropist who has donated large amounts of money to charity organizations, while he is mostly focused on helping those struck by national disasters such as hurricanes and earthquakes.
Appearance and net worth
Raul is 42 years old. He has short black hair and brown eyes, is 6ft 1ins (1.85m) tall, and weighs around 180lbs (82kgs). As of early 2020, his net worth is estimated at over $4 million.
