Olmos first met director Robert M. Young when he played a small role in Young's film "Alambrista!" in 1977. They continued to work together on such films such as "The Ballad of Gregorio Cortez," "Saving Grace," "Triumph of the Spirit," "Talent for the Game," "Roosters," and "Slave of Dreams," and in 1983 they co-founded a production company, YOY Productions, with Robert's brother, Irwin Young.
Born and raised in East Los Angeles, Olmos began his career as a rock singer with a number of groups (including one called "Eddie and the Pacific Ocean"), while attending East Los Angeles College and Cal State University. Increasingly interested in acting, he appeared in numerous LA theatre productions and in small roles in TV shows like "Kojak" and "Hawaii Five-O," and the movie "Aloha, Bobby and Rose." His first big break came in 1978, when he was cast as El Pachuco in Luis Valdez's musical drama "Zoot Suit." His charismatic performance created a sensation, and he stayed with the play for its year-and-a-half run in Los Angeles and its eventual move to Broadway. Olmos won the L.A. Drama Critics Award, the Theater World Award, a Tony nomination and a special recognition from the American Theater Wing for having created one of "three definitive performances on the American stage." He later reprised the role in a 1981 "Zoot Suit" film directed by Valdez.
Olmos next played an American Indian in Michael Wadleigh's "Wolfen" and a multi ethnic police detective in Ridley Scott's futuristic film noir "Blade Runner." He then portrayed the title role in Robert M. Young's "The Ballad of Gregorio Cortez," about a turn-of-the-century Mexican-American farmhand on the run from a Texas posse after an unjust murder accusation. Deeply committed to the project (for which he also served as associate producer and wrote the music), and feeling that it could enhance Latino pride, Olmos devoted two years to the sales and marketing of the film.
In 1992, Olmos made his feature directorial debut with "American Me," which he wrote and starred in, playing a Mexican-American gangster running a crime syndicate out of a California prison. (Olmos co-produced the film with Robert M. Young.) His other films include "Lorca," "A Million to Juan," Gregory Nava's "My Family," and "Mirage." On television, he has appeared in "The Fortunate Pilgrim," "Menedez: A Murder in Beverly Hills," Larry McMurtry's "Dead Man's Walk," and will soon be seen in "The Limbic Region" for MGM/Showtime. Olmos was honored with a Golden Globe Award for his work in the HBO production "The Burning Season," about Brazilian political activist Chico Mendez. Olmos also narrated the documentary "Maria's Story" and directed the TV film "Walking on Water."
Currently, Olmos serves as a United States Goodwill Ambassador for UNICEF and as Executive Director of the Lives in Hazard Educational Project, a national gang prevention program funded by the US Department of Justice. He played a central role in organizing a relief fund for the victims of the Mexico City earthquake in 1985 and was highly praised for his efforts in the aftermath of the 1992 LA riots, leading a community effort to clean up the devastated areas. He speaks an average of 150 times a year to young people in troubled environments at schools, juvenile halls, prisons, and Native American reservations. He is also active in many film-related programs, including the IFP, Women in Film and Sundance. In 1992, he received the Eastman Second Century Award, for "an individual who makes outstanding contributions to emerging filmmakers."
