Annie 2014 Movie Cast & Update: 'Gotham' Star David Zayas Talks New Movie, Being a Cop & Fun Facts You Want to Know (Exclusive)

By David Salazar First Posted: Dec 18, 2014 09:00 PM EST

Carving out a career as an artist is one of the great all-time challenges.

Art is often looked down on as a craft burdened with financial risks that far outweigh the potential gains and rewards.

Many jump into the task without the financial considerations and thrive. Others fail.

Others do what Puerto Rican actor David Zayas did: accept the real-world responsibilities while finding a way to pave his way as an actor.

Zayas, a former NYPD cop, took acting classes while working his full-time job and eventually landed roles in such shows as "Oz," "NYPD Blue," "The Bats," "Dexter" and most recently "Gotham." He has also landed many roles in Hollywood productions, including "The Expendables" and the upcoming "Annie." In addition to his big studio work, Zayas has acknowledged a love and passion for working on films by first-time filmmakers and Latino filmmakers.

Zayas recently sat down with Latin Post to talk about his experiences on "Annie," his career and even revealed some other fun facts you were dying to know.

Latin Post: What was your experience on the set of Annie and how did you land the role?

David Zayas: I auditioned for the role and I was lucky enough to land it. My experience was great. It was great to do a film, especially a classic updated and in my hometown in New York City. It was wonderful.

LP: In the film you play Lou, who helps Annie. Can you tell us a little about the character?

DZ: Well, Lou is the owner of the bodega that is right across the street from where Annie and the other foster kids live with Miss Hannigan. Basically, I am like a friend of them when they come into the store and help them out as much as I can. And I wind up having a wonderful connection with Annie. So when the events in the movie happen, I get involved.

LP: What was your connection to the material? Did you bring any personal experience? And what did director Will Gluck give you any insight on?

DZ: I will talk about Will Gluck first. He was a great director. He had a way of working on film that I never worked on. First of all, I've never done this kind of a film before, so it was new to me. It was new to me and it was a great experience. It's actually the first film my grandkids can watch. Cause most of the films I do are kind of dark. ... But this is a film for the whole family. But the experience, having kids and having grandkids and being involved in a community where there are so many kids and they are trying to bring a positive image to the city, I think it was a great thing to be involved with.

LP: You said that he showed you a new style of filmmaking that you had never been used to?

DZ: Well, it's a different genre of film that I have never done, and he has a unique way to bring something out out of you, at least for me. The humor. The passion of it. That combination with the fact that how do you act with movies with kids. And how do you bring that same intensity and same clarification in films. And he has a way of bringing that out and explaining things to you and articulating ways to go about that. And I really appreciated that.

LP: What was the experience of sharing a scene with Quvenzhane Wallis?

DZ: Well, she is wonderful. She has a great charisma. She is very talented. And she has a good sense of herself and she knows what is going on. And I had a great time with her.

LP: Of all the colleagues that you worked with on this film, was there one that you really took something away from?

DZ: I took something away from everyone, including Quvenzhane. And I think that watching everyone work, particularly Jamie Foxx and Cameron Diaz and my good friend Bobby Canavale, Rose Byrne and Adewale [Akinnuoye-Agbaje] [with whom] I worked with back on "Oz."

Every time I work on something, I am open enough to learn and understand that you are going to get some information, learn something from that other actor, learn something about the way they work. You are going to learn something that is going to help you in the future. I got that from everyone.

LP: Do you remember the first moment when you realized "I want to be an actor"?

DZ: The first moment I said I wanted to be an actor I was 12 years old and I saw "Dog Day Afternoon" with Al Pacino, and I said, "Wow, what's going on?" And I [said to myself] "This is what I like. This is what I want to do." I want to try and make people feel and experience what I am experiencing right now in watching this film. And that was the first time I wanted to be an actor.

Then, of course, life gets in the way and I didn't really pick it up again until I was halfway into ... I was a NYPD cop. I was halfway into that, and I said, "You know what? I'm going to give this a shot. And I'm going to go to acting school and I'm going to try and learn as much about this and see if it ignites me." And it did.

LP: How you do balance that regular full time job with the passion? A lot of people want to do that. They want to be actors. They want to be filmmakers. And they want to be artists. And they have to deal with real life. What was the key for you with balancing those two and then coming out with your dream job?

DZ: Learning how to compartmentalize well. Compartmentalizing your time, and using the energy needed for the task at hand helped me get the most out of both. I did both for a long time. I was a cop, and then when I started acting, I was working. I had to find a way to be able to do both. And it was difficult. But if you're passionate about it and it is what you want to do, you'll make it happen.

So I think it's really understanding what it is that you want to do. If you want to be an actor or you want to be a musician or you want to be a writer, [you should] go at it with the passion of it, not the result of what you might get from it. Just do it because you're passionate about it and you love it. I think that formulates how you go about doing it.

LP: So, as a former police officer, I've noticed that you've done a lot of work in films as a law enforcer. Do you bring a lot of your own personal experiences to these roles?

DZ: I do. As a police officer, part of your job is to size up somebody. Their character. Where they're at the time you approach them. What their condition is and what they're thinking. I do that as an actor. It helps you in getting to the next level when doing a scene.

That and the confidence. It can be a very insecure business and you have to really try to have some self-confidence. Being a police officer really helped me with that. It goes hand in hand sometimes. For some roles, not all of them.

LP: Speaking of self-confidence, what do you think has been the greatest challenge you have had to overcome thus far?

DZ: I don't really even think about that. With me, it's all positive. With me, if there's a blockage somewhere, how can I get through it? How can I get around it? Different things will stop you, whatever it is. Your type, something that you have no control over. I don't really think about it. I just stay positive and if something gets in my way, I try and find a way to get through it or to get around it or to bypass it and see what I can get.

LP: So now we're gonna do something a little bit fun that we do here at Latin Post. It's called "Speed Round", where I just say a phrase, and I want you to say the first thing that comes to mind.

Favorite Puerto Rican Food? Lechon or Mofongo?

Lechon.

Knicks or Nets?

Knicks.

Favorite Actor?

Morgan Freeman.

Favorite Film?

"The Godfather".

One thing people don't know about you that you want them to know?

See, you got me there because I don't want people to know much about me. Umm. Wow ... I'm a good dancer.

Favorite Musician?

Bruce Springsteen.