The untold truth of Rafael Silva
Rafael Silva is one of the breakout stars in the new Fox series, 9-1-1: Lone Star. The show is a spin-off of the original show 9-1-1. The new show is based in Austin, Texas, and it has a fresh cast of first responders. It has been such a hit for Fox that it was recently renewed for a second season.
Before appearing in 9-1-1: Lone Star, Rafael had played small roles in Madam Secretary, Fluidity, and Narrator Syndrome. This piece will look at Rafael’s role in 9-1-1: Lone Star, and the inspiration behind his acting career.
He is appreciative of how 9-1-1: Lone Star producers brought out his gay relationship with Ronen Rubinstein
FOX/Getty Images The most talked-about relationship in 9-1-1: Lone Star is the one between Carlos Reyes (Rafael) and T.K Strand (Ronen). Carlos is a police officer with the Austin Police Department, while Strand is a firefighter and former drug addict. Strand and Carlos are portrayed as gay from the outset, and Rafael is appreciative of how the show portrays the duo’s sexuality as normal.
The pair’s relationship is complicated on-screen, but Ronen and Rafael have a great relationship off-screen. Ronen is more experienced than Rafael as an actor, and he’s helped Rafael take on his first significant role. Silva told Media Village:
“The beautiful thing about the entire cast is it doesn’t matter if we get it right the first time, (because) we’ll find the meaning of the scene. That’s the only thing you can really hope for as actor – working with someone that will pick you up every single take. I feel that with Ronen every time we’re on set.”
Silva took up acting to get over his fear of speaking in public
Rafael was born on 18th July 1994 in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. He grew up wanting to work with farm animals like his grandfather and most of his uncles. However, his dreams changed after he moved to the United States at the age of 13. He became introverted due to the change in culture and developed a fear of speaking in public.
To get over that fear, Rafael took up theatre during his time in high school. He told Assignment X:
“I started acting when I was a junior in high school. I used to be very afraid to speak in public. I figured if you were going to be afraid of something, you might as well be in the eye of the hurricane. So I started acting because I was afraid of speaking in public…”
Silva enrolled in Pace University after high school and participated in the school’s acting, commercials, and voiceovers programs. He landed the role of Carlos two years after his graduation. Rafael told Assignment X that acting on set makes him feel empowered. He said:
“But being on set has been a complete shift to how I thought as an actor, how I approached the craft. It really has allowed me to be a lot more empowered and encouraged, to really dive into the craft, be more specific, love it even more. It’s completely different. It’s a completely different world.”
He trained with a police officer to aid in his portrayal of Officer Reyes
Rafael is a fitness fanatic, and before he got his role in 9-1-1: Lone Star, he engaged in different forms of martial arts. He is a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu specialist, and we can tell that he was a blue belt from his Instagram.
Despite being in top shape physically, Rafael took lessons with a police officer to learn how to handle himself as a member of the force in 9-1-1: Lone Star. He told Assignment X:
“I read the Austin manual handbook to be a police officer, which is about seven hundred and eighty pages, maintaining that consistency, studying. I’m someone who loves to study. I also trained with Chick Daniel. Fox has provided a personal officer to train me. We have met several times. The support that I receive from Fox for this role has really been amazing.”
