Why El Chapo From Narcos: Mexico Looks So Familiar

Narcos: Mexico is a unique program, being both a spin-off of its parent series, Narcos, and a continuation of it. In essence, the original show ran for three seasons with the same characters and continuity that now continue in Narcos: Mexico, while the original series was "reset" for its fourth season. 

These complications aside, both TV shows chronicle the stories of various drug cartels — from the kingpins who run them, to the DEA agents in their pursuit — and the corruption that spawns these operations, with an array of memorable characters played by a slew of actors and actresses who most will recognize right away. These include Scoot McNairy, Diego Luna, and Alyssa Diaz, to name a few. One actor whose name might be a bit harder to place for many viewers, though, is Alejandro Edda, who plays infamous drug lord Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán. 

Edda has been around, though, and here's where you might know him from. 

Funnily enough, Narcos: Mexico wasn't Alejandro Edda's first rodeo in a spin-off series, or as someone with ties to drugs. In the second season of Fear the Walking Dead, he played Marco Rodriguez, the head honcho of the feared drug cartel, Los Hermanos, from Tijuana, Mexico. Using heavy weapons and vehicles that were secured before the outbreak, Los Hermanos is a force to be reckoned with, and the sheer amount of supplies they hoard allows them to control local survivors. They'll make deals if drugs like Oxycontin are in the picture, and turn to violence if things go sour. As the leader of such a fearsome organization, Edda's Rodriguez is no pushover, willing to do whatever it takes to get what he wants. That's why he is able to get former drug addict and former Fear the Walking Dead regular Nick (Frank Dillane) to do his bidding.

However, Nick eventually gets the better of the gang leader. When Rodriguez leads an assault on La Colonia, where Nick is staying at the time, he finds its residents evacuated ... only to be ambushed and killed by a horde of walkers. That's a setup even El Chapo would be proud of.

Top Gun may be Tom Cruise's most famous pilot role (which he's set to reprise in 2021's Top Gun: Maverick), but it hasn't been the only time we saw the actor in a cockpit. In 2017's American Made, he plays Barry Seal, a real-life pilot who got pinballed between the TWA, the CIA, the DEA, the Nicaraguan Contras, and the Medellín Cartel. Quite a life? Yes, but also one that didn't end well for him.

Amidst this mess he meets Jorge Ochoa, a real life Colombian drug trafficker. As played by Alejandro Edda, he's the only man in the Medellín Cartel who speaks English, and so he's also the one to strike a deal with Seal — to use his knowledge of air routes to deliver narcotics, get paid. Choice doesn't really factor into the matter, but for the money Edda's Ochoa is willing to offer — $2,000 per kilo — Seal can't help but accept. That said, Edda's acting brings a certain charm to the role, which would've had just about anyone accepting the deal, illegal or not.

Live-action roles aside, does Eddo's voice sound familiar, too? While video game developer Naughty Dog's acclaimed Uncharted 4 marked Nathan Drake's final foray into adventuring, it also marked Alejandro Edda's first time working for the company, playing a memorable (if brief) antagonistic role. A flashback sequence shows a younger Drake in a Panamanian prison, where he is (of course) in the middle of a fight. His opponent is Gustavo, voice by Eddo, who matches the cavalier adventurer punch for punch until the scuffle is broken up. Returning later, with a vengeance — and a gang to back him up — Gustavo proves a thorn in Nate's side once again, but is stopped by a prison guard. It's a small role, but Naughty Dog must have liked Edda enough to bring him back for more.

Edda later played Manny in The Last of Us Part II. Once again, Edda may not have been the driving force of the game, but he certainly had a larger role than when he played Gustavo, and no matter how much the game itself divided fans and critics, its voice acting/motion capture performances are nothing to scoff at. While the character of Manny himself drew plenty of fire, Edda's performance is admirable, particularly when you consider that he's mostly seen alongside Abby, played by the extremely talented Laura Bailey, a titan in the voice acting industry.

What does the future hold? Outside of Narcos: Mexico's third season, Edda's next acting gig is anyone's guess. The man's got talent, so it shouldn't take long for him to appear again.