ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: How far in advance did Courtney tell you about the plan for Julio?
And what was your initial reaction?
J.R. RAMIREZ:I found out at about the beginning of season 4.
Credit: Myles Aronowitz/Starz
I was just blessed enough to get four years out of it.
I had an amazing director in Dennie Gordon.
I knew she had my back, and I was super happy with the final product.
It’s a great scene.
They really let it play out.
So what was it like shooting that scene?
Hands down, it was the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my career.
It was a very long day.
For me, I really wanted to do all of my stunts.
When you get your Achilles sliced, you have to commit to falling on the floor.
And that was like five or six hours into a 17-hour day.
He was like, “What are you doing?
You have stuntmen here for a reason!”
I was like, “It’s my last day.
If I’m going to go out,I’m going to go out.”
And then, the next day, I was having surgery [laughs].
The Dre and Julio rivalry was building all season.
Dre kept going behind Julio’s back, almost making it sort of a one-sided rivalry.
Do you think Julio underestimated Dre or was he just so preoccupied with settling into the position of distro?
But this season, he was just extremely overwhelmed.
He wanted to do right by the organization and he was a little lost.
But he was out of his element.
I think he sensed that Dre was a snake to a degree.
It was just a beautiful dynamic, the way it was put together between the two characters.
In the end of the day, he really wanted to believe in Dre.
But that was not the case.
It’s going to elevate the stakes immensely for the rest of the season.
Also, we’re going to have some amazing actors who come in for the last few episodes.
I didn’t get to see it, so I’m super excited to watch.
Looking back on your four-season run, what didPowerand the role of Julio mean for you and your career?
Earlier Monday, we exclusively broke the news of your next gig.
What can you say about joiningJessica Jonesfor season 2?
It’s very different from Julio, obviously, but I can’t really say much.
I’m super proud and blessed.
It’s a great family to be a part of and they’ve opened their arms to me.
I couldn’t be happier.
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