Leguizamo started out as a stand-up comic doing the New York nightclub circuit. In 1984, he made his
T.V. debut with a small part in
Miami Vice. His other early roles include: an extra in Madonna's
Borderline (song) video(1984), as a friend of
Madonna's boyfriend;
Mixed Blood (1985)'
Casualties of War (1989);
Hangin' with the Homeboys (1991); the robber in
Regarding Henry (1991) and
Night Owl (a.k.a.
Nite Owl) (1993), which was filmed from 1991-1992. In 1991, he also wrote and took part in the
Off-Broadway production
Mambo Mouth, where he played seven different characters.
Mambo Mouth won an
Obie Award and an Outer Critics Award. He was listed as one of 12 "Promising New Actors of 1991" in "John Willis' Screen Worlds Vol. 43".
In 1993, Leguizamo wrote and participated in
Spic-O-Rama, where he made fun of the stereotyping of
Latinos in the
U.S.. The production won a
Drama Desk Award and four
Cable ACE Awards. Leguizamo also played the role of "
Luigi Mario" in the 1993 movie production
Super Mario Brothers, starting his acting career in Hollywood. Other movies have since followed, including
Carlito's Way (1993) as "Benny Blanco" alongside
Al Pacino,
To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything, Julie Newmar (1995) as "Chi Chi Rodriguez",
Romeo + Juliet (
1996) as "Tybalt, Prince of Cats",
The Fan (1996) as "Manny",
Executive Decision (1996) as "Captain Rat",
The Pest in 1997, as con man Pestario "Pest" Vargas,
Doctor Dolittle (
1998) as "Rat#2",
Summer of Sam (
1999) as Vinny, and
Moulin Rouge! (2001) as "
Toulouse Lautrec".
In 2000, Leguizamo played two genies in the
Emmy Award winning
miniseries Arabian Nights. Leguizamo has participated in over 53 films, including
The Alibi, where he played the role of "
Hannibal". Leguizamo also created, executive produced, wrote for, and starred in the
1995 Latino-oriented variety show called "
House of Buggin'". The show showcased Leguizamo's well-known ability to assume a wide variety of colorful, energetic characters. The show ran less than a year on Fox.
In 1998, he debuted on
Broadway in the production of
Freak, which was also turned into an
HBO film by director
Spike Lee. Leguizamo has produced 10 films, including
Piñero and made 13 TV guest appearances. In 2000, he wrote and participated in
Freak, which was basically about his whole life experience with his family, how he had a troubled family, and a messed up life. Then in 2003, he wrote and particated in
Sexaholix which basically explained his love life, and how he started a family. Later in 2003, he voice-acted Globox from
Rayman 3. The game versions with his voice acting were
PlayStation 2,
GameCube,
Xbox,
PC, and
Mac.
During the 2005-2006 television season, Leguizamo joined the cast of the show "
ER", playing Dr.
Victor Clemente, a new attending who is keen on introducing the staff of County General to better ways of treating patients and cutting-edge technology. Clemente, however, was plagued with personal problems and was fired from the hospital near the end of the season. Dr. Clemente's departure from the show was a blessing for Leguizamo. He revealed to CraveOnline that he was not happy working on the television program. "I was depressed doing ER," he admitted, "I started gaining weight, I was eating donuts, I started smoking again. I’m eating McDonalds, things that I know when I’m depressed I do. I tried to kill myself internally."
In October
2006, Leguizamo's memoir,
Pimps, Hos, Playa Hatas and All the Rest of My Hollywood Friends: A Life, was released. During an interview on
Late Night with Conan O'Brien, Leguizamo stated that his memoir was very frank about odd experiences involving other celebrities and co-stars he had worked with. He claimed that working with
Arnold Schwarzenegger was one of the most enjoyable experiences he had as an actor. He also said that Arnold's accent let him say things that others would think were
sexist or homophobic if said by someone else, that
Steven Seagal was an egotist with
diva tendencies, and that
Leonardo DiCaprio was a "patron of prostitutes".
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