You’ve seen the face. That slightly stocky build, the thick mustache, and those cold, calculating eyes. When Marco de la O first appeared on screen as Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán, plenty of people actually did a double-take. He didn't just look like the guy; he moved like him.
The Netflix and Univision co-production of El Chapo wasn't just another narco-thriller. Honestly, it felt more like a political chess match than a shootout gallery. While Narcos often goes for the "Hollywood pretty" version of cartel life, the el chapo series actors brought a gritty, almost uncomfortably realistic vibe to the screen.
But who are these people behind the characters? And why does the casting feel so much more grounded than other shows in the same genre?
Marco de la O: The Man Behind the Myth
Marco de la O wasn't exactly a household name when he landed the role of a lifetime. He’d spent years in the trenches of Mexican theater and soap operas. When the call for the audition came, he didn't even realize he looked like the world's most wanted man. His wife was the one who pointed it out.
"Yes, you do look like him," she told him. That was the spark.
He shaved his beard, left the mustache, threw on a loud, silk shirt, and the character was born. But playing a living legend who is still very much a polarizing figure in Mexico is a tightrope walk. Marco has been vocal about the fact that he didn't want to make a "documentary-style" Chapo. Why? Because the real Guzmán was a ghost for decades. There wasn't enough footage of his early years to mimic.
Instead, Marco had to build a persona from scratch—the gait, the specific regional accent, the way he held his hands. He treats the character as a man of many colors, ranging from the vigorous "young buck" of the 80s to the dark, isolated prisoner of the later seasons. It’s a performance that makes you forget you’re watching an actor.
The Fictional Don Sol: Humberto Busto’s Masterclass
If Chapo is the heart of the show, Conrado Sol is the cold, obsidian soul. Played by Humberto Busto, "Don Sol" is a fascinating case study. He’s one of the few lead characters who is largely a fictional construct, though many fans point to real-life figures like Genaro García Luna as his inspiration.
Busto is a heavy hitter in the Mexican acting scene. You might remember him from the classic Amores Perros. In El Chapo, he plays a lawyer who starts at the bottom and claws his way to the highest halls of power.
His performance is quiet. Chillingly quiet.
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While the cartel guys are out there blowing things up, Sol is in a dim office, adjusting his glasses and destroying lives with a pen stroke. The parallel between his rise in politics and Chapo's rise in the drug world is the real engine of the series. Busto portrays Sol with a repressed ambition that feels like a ticking time bomb.
A Supporting Cast That Actually Looks the Part
One of the biggest gripes people have with narco-series is that everyone is too attractive. El Chapo went the other way. The casting directors prioritized "real" over "runway."
Take Juan Carlos Olivas, who played Héctor Luis "El Güero" Palma Salazar. He captured the tragic, volatile energy of one of Guzmán’s closest allies perfectly. Sadly, Olivas passed away in 2018, but his portrayal remains a highlight of the first two seasons.
Then you've got the Avendaño brothers—the fictionalized versions of the Arellano Félix family.
- Carlos Hernán Romo as Benjamín Avendaño.
- Rolf Petersen as Ramón Avendaño.
They managed to capture that sense of old-school cartel aristocracy—arrogant, stylish, and deeply dangerous. Unlike the versions of these characters in Narcos: Mexico, the actors here feel like they stepped right out of a 1990s Mexican news report.
The Women Who Grounded the Chaos
It’s easy for women to get sidelined in these types of shows, but the el chapo series actors who played the women in Guzmán’s life held their own.
Valentina Acosta played Alejandra, the first wife. She brought a sense of the "old life" to the screen—the time before the private jets and the billion-dollar tunnels. On the flip side, you have Laura Osma as Elba Coronado, the character based on Emma Coronel Aispuro. Osma had to play the transition from a young beauty queen to the wife of a kingpin, a role that required a lot of subtle, silent acting.
And we can't forget Cristina Michaus as Doña Esperanza, Chapo's mother. In a world of monsters, her character is a constant reminder of the protagonist's humanity (or lack thereof). Her scenes with Marco de la O provide some of the show's most grounded emotional beats.
Why the Acting in this Series Hits Differently
Basically, the show feels like a political thriller rather than a "narco-telenovela." It was filmed mostly in Colombia (for security reasons, since the real Guzmán was still in Mexico during early production), but the actors—most of whom are Mexican—kept the authenticity high.
There’s a rawness here.
The shootout scenes can occasionally feel a bit "TV-budget," sure. But the dialogue? The power plays? Those are top-tier. The actors aren't trying to make these people heroes. In fact, Marco de la O has explicitly stated that he thinks it would be "immoral" to encourage viewers to admire Guzmán.
Actionable Insights for Fans of the Cast
If you’ve finished the series and want to see more of these actors, they haven't disappeared. The talent pool in this show is deep.
- Check out Marco de la O in Rambo: Last Blood. Seeing him opposite Sylvester Stallone is a trip after watching him lead a cartel for three seasons.
- Follow Humberto Busto’s directorial work. He’s not just an actor; he’s a filmmaker with a real eye for social justice themes. His short film Julkita is worth a hunt.
- Watch Amores Perros. If you want to see where several of these actors (including Busto) got their start in the "New Wave" of Mexican cinema, this is the essential starting point.
The el chapo series actors did something rare: they took a story everyone thought they already knew and made it feel personal, political, and deeply uncomfortable. They didn't just play roles; they inhabited a very dark chapter of modern history.
To truly appreciate the performances, try watching the show in its original Spanish audio with subtitles. The nuances in the different regional accents—the Sinaloan "cantadito" versus the sharp, formal Spanish of the Mexico City politicians—add a layer of depth that the English dub simply can't capture. It transforms the experience from a standard crime drama into a rich, cultural character study.