There are cinematic hard men and then there's Danny Trejo, an actor so tough he makes Chuck Norris look like Tim Allen with facial hair.
Even his latest outing - violent thriller Forces Of Execution (out on DVD (3 Feb) - sees the man mustering as much testosterone as co-stars Steven Seagal and Ving Rhames combined. So, to find a soft spot under that hefty, tattooed frame, we pinned him down to talk about his hidden passions.
FILM
"I’m an action man, pure and simple, those are the sort of films I prefer. I do have fond memories of Sherrybaby, though - a cutesy indie film starring Maggie Gyllenhaal which my agent had to near enough force me to star in. I didn’t want to do it. But I’m glad he did - I got to give Maggie a bath! She was awesome, such a talented actress. Which also reminds me – for this we got to go to England for the premiere, to a place called Bedford. It’s a beautiful place, if very quiet. Not the sort of place you go for nightlife unless you like sleepy bars."
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DRINK
"Anything non-alcoholic - I just got back from Florida where I did a photo-shoot with a gorgeous model, who needs to be drunk when you can have fun being sober? I cut all that out 40 years ago. It can be good, too – I want to be the guy standing there at 1.30am when a beautiful woman comes over and says, “oh my date’s so drunk he can’t drive”, then I can be the perfect gentleman and offer them a lift home. Or a sarsaparilla – I love western films. Back in the day, the only cowboy not getting drunk on whisky would be the hero. That’s how I see myself."
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FOOD
"I’d go for an enchilada with shredded beef, plenty of cheese, two over-easy eggs on top. It doesn’t look sophisticated but boy it tastes good. I cook using pots and pans given to me by Lady Gaga, a friend of mine - she’s great. I worked with her for the sequel of Machete, and you’re not going to believe this but she cooks her own food during filming, right down to steaming the vegetables in her trailer. She’s much healthier eater than I am, and she impressed me as a person."
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MUSIC
"Lady Gaga aside, as I do like her music, I’d say singing along to cartoons is a guilty pleasure. Being a father of three who are all grown up now I’ve had to watch lots of Aladdin, lots of The Lion King down the years - and that might go against my macho image but, deep down, any man who says he doesn't like Disney films is lying."
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MAGAZINES
"I’m a big fan of Easy Rider Magazine, the holy grail of biker magazines. They featured one of my motorcycles, my Machete bike, in their June issue of last years. I also love US tabloids, like People and The National Enquirer, purely because they’re great to read to pass time on a flight. Your tabloids in the UK are fine, too, especially with so many stories on the royal family. I used to love the Queen Mother! And you probably think I’m joking but I also think your Queen is the bomb. Do say hello to her for me, will you?"
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TV
"A lot of people say bad things but I still can’t stop watching re-runs of Charlie Sheen in Two & Half Men. Man, I wish he never left. Then of course there’s Breaking Bad, which I appeared in, and was so glad the last episodes were well received. It was like Star Wars in terms of fandom. I do have a bone to pick with Vince [Gilligan, the show’s creator] and the team though. [*SPOILER ALERT*] The guys still haven’t handed over the head of my character after they put it on the back of a tortoise and blew it up [laughs]. They owe me it!"
Forces Of Execution is out on DVD on 3 Feb
Images: AllStar, YouTube
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