MIAMI— Arturo Castro walked onto the set of Tron: Ares excited about the romantic comedy elements of his character Seth Flores' storyline. Of course, it wasn't the only thing that had him pinching himself. "It was the kind of experience that I could only dream of when I was a child in Guatemala," he said in an interview with The Latin Times.
It wasn't just the futuristic wardrobe or the CGI-heavy script that had him living his wildest fantasies. It was being part of the Tron franchise, sharing the screen with Jared Leto and "the legend that is Jeff Bridges. And last, but not least, there was Gillian Anderson and the interactions between his characters, many of which were out of the final version of the movie.
"We were filming some scenes that were later cut, and the energy felt like a rom-com," he laughs, recounting a deleted moment with Anderson that involved what he jokingly calls "a very emotionally confusing face touch."
"There needs to be a director's cut, with that material," he says, and who wouldn't want to see it!
That anecdote sums up the Guatemalan actor's signature blend of humor, vulnerability, and wide-eyed wonder. And it's what makes his performance in Tron: Ares, Disney's newest installment in the cult cyber-saga, a revelation.
Castro plays Seth Flores, a brilliant but conflicted coder navigating the blurred lines between reality and the digital world. For the Broad City alum, it's a deeply personal career milestone.
"I had to pinch myself. I mean, I'm in Tron," Castro says, his voice rising with disbelief. "When I was in Guatemala, I never imagined I'd be in a franchise like this, working with people like Jared Leto, Greta Lee, and Gillian Anderson. And then to bring my own Latinidad to it, to be there as myself, not playing a stereotype? That's big."
The movie, which premiered last weekend, picks up years after the events of Tron: Legacy. Leto plays Ares, a sentient program that crosses into the human world. Flores (Castro) is the mind behind the code that made that possible, though he didn't intend to unleash a war between AI and humans.
"Seth is a genius, but he's also scared of what he's created," Castro explains. "He's someone who wants to connect but doesn't know how. And that loneliness, that tension? It felt real to me. I've known that feeling."
So did his mother, whom he brought to Miami with him.
Castro remembers sharing the trailer with her. "I brought her to set. Watching her see me in this massive production, in that suit, surrounded by all these brilliant people. She cried. I cried. It felt like we were both breaking cycles of invisibility. She was the one who believed in me when nobody else did."
She has been with him at the premiere and -even more exciting- making the rounds on Spanish-language TV shows like Despierta América.
Born in Guatemala and raised between his homeland and the U.S., Castro has spent years building a career rooted in complexity. He first won hearts as Jaime, Ilana Glazer's sweet and awkward roommate in Broad City. Then he turned heads with his deeply uncomfortable performance as a cartel leader in Narcos. In between, he launched Alternatino, a sketch show where he played dozens of characters dissecting Latino identity, masculinity, and dating apps with surgical precision.
But Tron: Ares is different. It's a sign that the industry may finally be catching up with his talent as a multifaceted performer.
"People used to say I was 'too Latino' for certain parts and 'not Latino enough' for others," he says. "Now I'm in Tron. I don't know what else to tell you."
He's already looking ahead. Next year, he will be in several movies, including Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice, with Eiza González, and Matchbox with John Cena. Tron Ares can be seen in movie theaters across the country and will be available on Disney+ in a few months.
Here is the full interview:
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