William Levy is ready to leave his mark on Hollywood.

The former telenovela star has been focusing his time on feature films, and he opened up to Venue Magazine about his career.

Levy explained that his participation in "Dancing With the Stars" and his appearance on Jennifer Lopez's music video helped push him into the American market. He's also remained very aware of what he's accomplished.

"You always have to have two feet on the ground and not think that because you did something in the American market, you've made it," he said. "I've always tried to look at it this way. I'm very thankful that God has put me where I am, that people have accepted me, and that they have liked what I am doing."

Although William Levy calls Miami home, the actor was born in Cuba and emigrated to the United States more than a decade ago.

It's his childhood and everything he has gone through that has made him especially appreciative of what he does have now.

"I appreciate life and everything that I have," he said. "When I wake up, when I go to sleep, I never imagined that I'd have what I have."

He says part of the reason he took up acting was to be able to reach people similar to him. If he hadn't become an actor, he probably would have been a baseball player, which is what he was into before his career.

Levy never drank, went out or did anything because he wanted to get a scholarship to play baseball at a university. He later went to Los Angeles to become a model, which is when he first studied acting.

"I took classes in LA with American teachers, with the idea and vision of getting into American movies," he said. "When I got into the Latin market, I had to get used to their way of working. The big change was that when it came to working in telenovelas they asked me for more and more. In movies, it's the opposite. Less is more."

He prefers the less is more method himself.

Levy said that he's been told to improve his accent, but he's said that he won't because "it's a part of Latinos." Just because William Levy is making American movies, he said, doesn't mean William Levy is American.

When asked about the just 5 percent of Latino actors that are in Hollywood movies, Levy explained that he thought the number was far too low. He explained that there is plenty of talent, and that they shouldn't be overlooked.

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