Mayans MC star J.D. Pardo, who plays outlaw biker E.Z. Reyes in the spin-off Sons of Anarchy, plays a very different role in Terminal List, the new Prime Video thriller starring Chris Pratt.
“I didn’t do it on purpose, but it’s interesting to play on the wrong side of the law,” Pardo, 41, told The Post. “It’s like Maya” [EZ is] in this criminal world, and here is law, and he tries to enforce it.
“It’s always fun and exciting to do something new to keep growing.”
The Terminal List premieres on July 1 and is based on the novel by Jack Carr and follows James Rhys (Pratt), a man whose Navy SEAL platoon is ambushed on a secret mission. When he returns home, he has conflicting memories of what happened and his guilt is questioned. He also discovers that larger forces are coming into play that are working against him, putting his loved ones in danger. Pardo plays FBI agent Tony Layoun, who crosses paths with Rhys.
“This is a great story by Jack Carr, a great series of books and just a stellar cast. Chris, Constance Wu, Taylor Kitsch… it just keeps going,” Pardo said. “I really wanted to be a part of it because it’s inspiring to work with such talent. We had a lot of fun on set.”
Pardo said that he was familiar with the world of fur seals featured in the series due to his family background.
“My father was in the LAPD for 30 years and in the Marine Corps for 30 years. So I grew up in this atmosphere, among many such guys, ”he said. “What was interesting to me was that Tony Layun, being an FBI agent, there is a moment when he gets pulled into the world of Rhys. And there should be a feeling that he is like a fish in water, because the consequences are life or death. I just kept this idea in my head that Tony was just an ordinary person who was trying to catch Superman.”
As events spiral out of control and the media portrays Rhys as a dangerous man, Tony becomes embroiled in a game of cat and mouse with him.
“Everyone talks about how you can’t catch him, [how] he avoids every situation. Here’s Tony, who’s a little behind someone like James Reese,” he said. “But he has the power of faith. He feels like he can catch it.”
According to him, some of Pardo’s co-stars on the set were real Navy SEALs, which made him work harder.
“I am always ready to take on a challenge. With the Mayans, I couldn’t ride a bike, so I had to go to Harley school and immerse myself in the world. Just like in Terminal List, I had to immerse myself in this world of former Navy SEALs who played these characters,” he said.
“Just being around them as a group…when they say action, these guys don’t have stuntmen. Stunt guys come in and do the scenes they were supposed to do, but most of the time our guys do it. So my role as Tony leading this task force, psychologically, I didn’t want these guys to do anything that I couldn’t do.
“So I challenged myself every day.”
