John Ortiz is an American actor. He was born John Augustin Ortiz on November 21, 1969 in the Bushwick neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York. He is of Puerto Rican ancestry. Ortiz graduated from John Dewey High School in Brooklyn, where he met his wife. He resided in that borough with his wife Jennifer and son Clemente until 2010, when he and his family moved to California.
Ortiz is known for his antagonist role as Arturo Braga in the films Fast & Furious (2009) and Fast & Furious 6 (2013), and Clyde in Jack Goes Boating (2010), which earned him a nomination for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Actor. His other film performances include Guajiro in Carlito's Way (1993), Sheriff Eddie Morales in Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem (2007), Javier J. Rivera in American Gangster (2007), Ronnie in Silver Linings Playbook (2012), Victor Nieves in Kong: Skull Island (2017), Dr. Powell in Bumblebee (2018), and Arthur in American Fiction (2023).
Ortiz's television roles include Nelson "Margarita" Marquez in Lush Life (1996), Ruben Somarriba in The Job (2001–2002), Carlos Tavares in Clubhouse (2004–2005), Turo Escalante in Luck (2011–2012), Ben Leon in Rake (2014), David in Togetherness (2015–2016), Felix Iguero in Messiah (2020), and Joe Sandoval in Promised Land (2022).
Ortiz is also an artistic director/co-founder of the LAByrinth Theater Company.
