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Personal Info
Known For
Acting
Birthday
July 23, 1944
Place of Birth
Corpus Christi, Texas, USA
Pepe Serna
1.0 Popularity
Biography
Durable Mexican-American actor Pepe Serna has appeared in more than 100 feature films and 300 television shows, but is most recognized for his gritty support performances in a variety of motion pictures, including Scarface (1983) as Al Pacino's ill-fated cocaine partner, as well as the western Silverado (1985) with Kevin Costner, the crime yarn The Rookie (1990) starring Clint Eastwood and Charlie Sheen, and the drama American Me (1992) starring Edward James Olmos. In a career surpassing five decades, Pepe's characters have played on both sides of the law -- from drug peddlers to sheriffs. He was born (and raised) in Corpus Christi, Texas on July 23, 1944, the son of a naval base interpreter for Latin American pilots and a hairdresser. His desires to become an actor happened early in life, moving to Hollywood in 1969 to finally pursue his dreams. He didn't have to wait long to find steady Latino work on film and TV. Making an inauspicious debut in the exploitation film The Student Nurses (1970), Pepe found more "A" quality work after being discovered by producer Hal B. Wallis for the coming-of-age film Tim Belcher starring Richard Thomas and Catherine Burns and the western Shoot Out (1971) starring Gregory Peck. Specializing in urban, streetwise roles, he went on to mix a number of popular films (The New Centurions (1972), The Day of the Locust (1975), Car Wash (1976), A Force of One (1979), Walk Proud (1979), Honeysuckle Rose (1980), Inside Moves (1980), Deal of the Century (1983), Red Dawn (1984), Caddyshack II (1988)) with a slew of popular TV crime dramas such as "Mannix," "Police Story," "Adam-12," "The Rookies," "The Rockford Files," "Baretta," "Kojak," "CHiPs," "Barney Miller," "Scarecrow & Mrs. King," "T.J. Hooker," "Simon & Simon," "Hill Street Blues," "Miami Vice," "Cagney & Lacey" and "Diagnosis Murder." Long married to wife Diane, Pepe is a noted keynote teacher and motivational speaker who tours colleges and universities. His strong sideline as a painter has been met with critical success, having been commissioned quite frequently. His vibrant paintings and one-man stage shows reflect a serious return to his Mexican roots and was the subject of the 2015 short documentary "Life Is Art."
Known For
Credits
Say a Little Prayer
2024
0.0
Moe
2023
7.0
Flamin' Hot
as Abuelito
2023
8.0
Green Ghost and the Masters of the Stone
as Rancher
2022
4.7
With Love
as Luis Delgado
2021
6.1
The Planters
as Jesús
2019
6.2
The Margarita Man
as Jose Martinez
2019
2.3
From the Dead
as Rodrigo
2019
4.6
Flavor of Life
2019
0.0
Downsizing
as Señor Cárdenas
2017
5.4
Lowriders
as Pepe
2017
6.7
Dimension 404
as Wally Nash
2017
6.4
Monday Nights at Seven
as Paul
2016
0.0
Under Water: Dive Deep
as Lil' Big Me
2016
0.0
Restored Me
as Manny
2016
10.0
Superpowerless
as Dr. George Holst
2016
0.0
Kill or Be Killed
as Rudy Goebel
2016
4.0
Road to Juarez
as Fortunato
2015
3.5
Ana Maria in Novela Land
as Father Miguel
2015
5.1
Cake
as Nuncio
2014
6.3
Man from Reno
as Paul Del Moral
2014
6.4
White on Rice
as Professor Berk
2009
5.6
The Black Dahlia
as Tomas Dos Santos
2006
5.6
The Virgin of Juarez
as Eduardo Morales
2006
6.3
Big Dreams Little Tokyo
as Mr. Gonzalez
2006
5.8
Criminal Minds
as Ruben Garcia
2005
8.3
Latin Dragon
as Hector Sanchez
2004
4.6
Exposed
as Raoul
2003
5.0
Deadly Swarm
as Commandante Alvarez
2003
3.1
Kingpin
2003
6.1
Justice League
as Shifflet (voice)
2001
8.2
Along for the Ride
as Dr. Sanchez
2001
6.0
The Zeta Project
2001
7.5
Daybreak
as Herman Ortiz
2000
4.8
The Princess and the Barrio Boy
as Bum
2000
5.0
Bread and Roses
as Restaurateur
2000
6.3
Picking Up the Pieces
as Florencio
2000
4.2
Luminarias
2000
2.3
The PJs
as Sanchez (voice)
1999
6.8
Jesse
as Pappa Vasquez
1998
5.5
The Brave
as Alessandro
1997
6.0
Land of Milk & Honey
as Danny
1995
3.0
Sliders
as Roberto
1995
7.6
In the Flesh
as Harlan Ramirez
1995
0.0
🎬
Hotel Malibu
1994
4.0
A Million to Juan
as Mr. Ortiz
1994
5.4
Second Chances
as Salvador Lopez
1993
4.3
Diagnosis: Murder
as Capt. Collins
1993
7.1
Dudley
as Santana
1993
6.0
Jonny's Golden Quest
as Agent Menendez
1993
7.5
American Me
as Mundo
1992
7.4
Only You
as Dock Official
1992
5.4
Conagher
1991
6.6
The Rookie
as Lt. Ray Garcia
1990
5.9
Postcards from the Edge
as Raoul
1990
6.6
🎬
DEA
1990
6.0
Bad Jim
as Virgilio Segura
1990
7.3
The Forgotten
as Sgt. Pepe Gutierrez
1989
5.4
Quantum Leap
as Manuel Vega
1989
8.0
Break of Dawn
as Hector
1988
6.0
Caddyshack II
as Carlos
1988
4.2
The Fortunate Pilgrim
as John Colucci
1988
5.0
Human Error
1988
6.0
The Three Kings
as Alex Sweetwood
1987
2.8
A Year in the Life
as Carlos
1987
6.8
Out of Bounds
as Murano
1986
5.3
Matlock
as Walter Padilla
1986
7.1
Streets of Justice
as Det. Almos
1985
5.0
Hell Town
as Enrique
1985
5.0
Fandango
as Gas Station Mechanic
1985
6.7
Hunter
as Roberto Sanchez
1984
7.1
Miami Vice
as Oswaldo Guzman
1984
7.5
Miami Vice
as Zabado
1984
7.5
The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension
as Reno Nevada
1984
6.0
Red Dawn
as Aardvark's Father
1984
6.3
Best Kept Secrets
as Jim Ramos
1984
7.5
Scarface
as Angel
1983
8.2
Deal of the Century
as Vardis
1983
4.7
Scarecrow and Mrs. King
1983
6.4
The Ballad of Gregorio Cortez
as Romaldo Cortez
1983
6.9
Heartbreaker
as Loco
1983
3.4
The A-Team
as Tómas Jefferson
1983
7.5
White Water Rebels
as Harry Cutter
1983
0.0
Knight Rider
as Lupo
1982
7.5
Cagney & Lacey
1982
7.0
T. J. Hooker
as Frank Fierro
1982
6.4
Seguin
as Manuel Flores
1982
0.0
Vice Squad
as Pete Mendez
1982
6.2
Simon & Simon
1981
6.7
Tarantulas: The Deadly Cargo
as Migrant Worker (uncredited)
1981
4.8
Joe Dancer II: The Monkey Mission
as Vito
1981
6.5
The Greatest American Hero
1981
7.2
Hill Street Blues
1981
7.6
Hill Street Blues
as Raymond Cassiano
1981
7.6
300 Miles for Stephanie
as Bobby Hernandez
1981
0.0
Inside Moves
as Herrada
1980
6.3
Honeysuckle Rose
as Rooster
1980
5.2
City in Fear
as Raymond Zavala
1980
5.1
The Jerk
as Punk #1
1979
6.9
The Streets of L.A.
as Sgt. Castro
1979
5.0
Walk Proud
as Cesar
1979
5.2
A Force of One
as Orlando
1979
4.8
Roots of Blood
as Juan
1979
6.9
The Paper Chase
1978
7.6
Lou Grant
1977
7.3
CHiPs
1977
6.8
Rafferty
1977
5.0
Car Wash
as Chuco
1976
5.9
The Killer Inside Me
as Johnny Lopez
1976
4.3
Swashbuckler
as Street Entertainer
1976
6.1
McNaughton's Daughter
as Ruiz
1976
3.3
The Deadly Tower
as Mano
1975
6.6
The Day of the Locust
as Miguel
1975
6.4
Bronk
1975
6.2
The Desperate Miles
as Ruiz
1975
0.0
Barney Miller
as Julio Rodriguez
1975
7.3
Baretta
1975
6.4
The Gun
as Natcho
1974
8.0
The Rockford Files
as Ray Ochoa
1974
7.6
The Last Angry Man
as Charlie Parelli
1974
0.0
Miracle on 34th Street
as Y Leader
1973
6.8
Kojak
as Enorio Patias
1973
7.0
Kojak
as Rudy Diaz
1973
7.0
Police Story
1973
6.9
Group Marriage
as Ramon
1973
4.9
Kung Fu
as Los Vidrios
1972
7.7
The Rookies
1972
6.8
The New Centurions
as Young Mexican Man
1972
6.6
Cannon
1971
6.6
Johnny Got His Gun
as Jose (uncredited)
1971
7.5
Shoot Out
as Pepe
1971
6.4
The Student Nurses
as Luis
1970
4.9
Adam-12
as Roger
1968
7.0
Mannix
1967
6.7
🎬
Three Years Gone
N/A
0.0