'Mayans MC' actor Clayton Cardenas says creator Kurt Sutter's writing keeps him primed as an actor
On October 2, MEAWW published an exclusive interview with actor Clayton Cardenas, who plays Angel on the FX series 'Mayans MC', where he talks about the series, his character's journey so far and his relationships on the show.
So far in season 2 of 'Mayans MC', Clayton Cardenas' Angel has been through a lot. He had only just discovered more details about his mother's murder and was going to follow the lead Happy (David Labrava) gave him along with his brother EZ (JD Pardo). But, after the last episode 'Xquic', it doesn't look like his troubles are going to come to an end anytime soon. The rescue mission ended on unexpected terms as Angel's baby mama Adelita (Carla Baratta) revealed that for the revolution to keep going, she must stay back in Potter's (Ray McKinnon) custody.
As they bid farewell in the last scene of the episode, a dejected Angel was practically dragged away from EZ before the cops arrived on the scene.
But Clayton hadn't predicted such a character arc this season. Actually, he didn't pay much thought to where his character would take him, for he has been very confident in creators Kurt Sutter and Elgin James' writing. In an exclusive chat with MEA WorldWide, Clayton said he let go of the reigns of his character and just went with the flow instead.
"Quite honestly, I learned from Season 1 working with Kurt (Sutter) that trying to predict where your arc is going might be a waste of time. We are dealing with someone who has created Shakespeare on bikes, so you can expect many surprises and left turns when you think you are going right. It keeps me on my toes as an actor. Moments on-screen come out much more organically when you don’t have the context in your head for such a long period of time. You don’t have the time to try and predict. You just let it go and follow."
As an actor, Clayton feels "misunderstood", but Angel is a character he deeply relates to. "I see all of myself in him", he remarks. "Every emotion he [Angel] has been through, I have lived through at some point in my life. The character you are seeing on screen is an accentuated piece of Clayton I am portraying."
Going forward into Season 2, the plotline and the character arcs are due to get complicated as a result of some deep secrets being harbored over decades. Once these are out in the open, it will affect Angel directly. So, what lies ahead for Angel? "Man, he’s just trying to figure life out like the rest of us," Clayton states.
'Mayans MC' airs on Tuesdays at 10 PM on FX.
This is part 2 of the exclusive interview with Clayton Cardenas on 'Mayans MC'. Watch this space for part 3.