A few times I have been curious how Pedro Pascal feels that his, arguably, most popular role to date requires him to hide his face most of the time. It kind of makes you wonder about all the fans of The Mandalorian who had never heard of him before he appeared on the Star Wars spin-off series as the titular, interplanetary bounty hunter.
Of course, I also have no doubt that the Chilean-born, 45-year-old actor has surely gained a following from playing Javier Peña on Netflix’s historical crime drama Narcos. Not to mention, I am certain he is especially well-known as fan-favorite Oberyn “The Red Viper” Martell on Game the Thrones, which he claims to be a life-changing moment for his career. That is not even counting the impressive film career he has since led - such as the whip-cracking Whiskey in Kingsman: The Golden Circle, a treasure-hunting former special operative in Triple Frontier, and, most recently, the power-hungry Maxwell Lord in Wonder Woman 1984.
However, for now, I would like to focus on Pedro Pascal’s TV roles, and specifically the ones you may have forgotten he was in or never even knew about in the first place. From guest spots on crime procedurals to recurring characters on family dramas and even one starring role with a surprising connection to his more famous efforts, prepare to be shocked by how many times you may or may not have seen Mando before he put the helmet on with the following eight examples of his lesser-known small screen appearances, starting with a show has tended to be a lot of actors’ first tase of sci-fi/fantasy phenomena.
Buffy The Vampire Slayer (Eddie)
When he was still using his second middle name (Balmaceda) for his stage persona, Pedro Pascal landed his first guest appearance on a major network TV show in the form of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. On the Season 4 premiere episode in 1999, he plays Eddie, whose sudden disappearance leads new college student Buffy (Sarah Michelle Gellar) to suspect that vampires are hunting on campus. Her suspicions are confirmed when she later finds her classmate freshly fanged and ready to attack, only to fall prey to her stake.
Touched By An Angel (Ricky Hauk)
A year later, Pedro Pascal (once again billed as Pedro Balmaceda) was blessed with a more favorable “supernatural” encounter as the central focus of a Season 6 Touched by an Angel episode. He plays Ricky Hauk, who is devastated by news that the gas station he works for is closing, until the show’s heavenly heroines Monica (Roma Downey) and Tess (Della Reese) step in and inspire him to pursue his true passion: writing poetry.
Brothers & Sisters (Zach Wellison)
Speaking of hope and inspiration, Pedro Pascal’s character on Brothers & Sisters was definitely someone in need of such blessings. He guest starred on two episodes of the ABC hit in 2011 as Zach Wellison - a former military officer now at war with homelessness, but still initially reluctant to accept the help of fellow veteran Justin Walker (Dave Annable).
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (Special Agent Greer)
Pedro Pascal can claim to have appeared on all three major iterations of Dick Wolf’s iconic crime procedural series, but the sole time he played a person with a badge was on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit in Season 12. However, as it turns out, his ATF agent character, Greer, actually supplied a criminal with the gun used to kill a woman before she could testify against her rapist. His role in the murder later resulted in his own death at the hands of the woman’s daughter.
The Good Wife (Nathan Landry)
For one of his very first major recurring TV spots, Pedro Pascal played someone who had his heart in the right place and on the right side of the law, but at the cost of the audience’s sympathy. He appeared in six episodes of the first two seasons of The Good Wife, a hit legal drama which later inspired CBS All Access’ The Good Fight, as Nathan Landry - an attorney trying to keep Alicia Florrick’s (Julianna Margulies) corrupt husband Peter (Chris Noth) behind bars.
Lights Out (Omar Assarian)
Pedro Pascal engaged in a different kind of fight for the short-lived FX sports drama Lights Out, starring future Mindhunter star Holt McCallany in the title role of Patrick “Lights” Leary. After retiring from the ring, the aging Lights becomes a trainer to Pascal’s character Omar “The Armenian Avenger” Assarian - an up-and-coming boxer who may have the right moves to help finally bring his father’s gym to championship status.
Burn Notice: The Fall Of Sam Axe (Comandante Veracruz)
Long before becoming a member of one of the most worshipped fictional universes among geeks, Pedro Pascal acted alongside one of the most worshipped actors among geeks, Bruce Campbell, in this TV movie prequel to USA’s hit espionage series Burn Notice. Campbell reprises his character Sam Axe near the end of his Naval career when he discovers that his Columbian army liaison Comandante Veracruz (Pascal) is the one who framed him as a consort for a wanted terrorist group.
The Unaired Wonder Woman Pilot (Ed Indelicato)
Another big franchise that Pedro Pascal has joined more recently is the DCEU as one of the central protagonists of the aforementioned Wonder Woman 1984. Coincidentally, his role as Maxwell Lord is actually his second time sharing the screen with Diana Prince - the first being his role as an LA cop who, essentially, acts as a Jim Gordon type for the superheroine (Adrianne Palicki) in a planned TV series reboot from 2011. Of course, you may not have remembered Pascal’s appearance (the actor included) because NBC chose not to pick up, nor even air, this infamous pilot which has only been seen by the public through leaked footage online.
What do you think? Does Pedro Pascal shine brighter as Ed Indelicato in the failed Wonder Woman pilot, as Maxwell Lord in Wonder Woman 1984, or do you believe that neither of these roles were up to par with his acting capabilities? Let us know in the comments and be sure to check back for additional information and updates on the star of The Mandalorian, as well as even more insight into your favorite celebrities’ lesser-known acting efforts, here on CinemaBlend.
