Tenoch Huerta facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Tenoch Huerta
Huerta in 2024
Born	José Tenoch Huerta Mejía (1981-01-29) 29 January 1981 (age 44) Ecatepec, State of Mexico, Mexico
Other names	Tenoch Huerta Mejía
Occupation	Actor
Years active	2006–present
Notable work	Days of Grace Güeros Narcos: Mexico The Forever Purge Black Panther: Wakanda Forever

José Tenoch Huerta Mejía (born January 29, 1981) is a talented actor from Mexico. He has appeared in many movies and TV shows in Latin America and Spain. He is well-known for his roles in Narcos: Mexico and as Namor in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) film Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022).

Early Life and Acting Start

Tenoch Huerta was born in Ecatepec de Morelos, State of Mexico, on January 29, 1981. His father loved movies and encouraged him to take acting classes. Tenoch later studied acting with famous teachers like Carlos Torres Torrija and Luis Felipe Tovar.

Tenoch has Indigenous roots. His great-grandmother on his mother's side was Nahua, and his great-great-grandmother on his father's side was Purépecha. He encourages everyone to learn about their own family history and Indigenous heritage.

Tenoch Huerta's Acting Journey

Huerta started his acting career with a small part in the movie Asi del precipicio in 2006. In 2009, he played Li'l Mago, a gang leader, in the film Sin nombre, directed by Cary Joji Fukunaga.

In 2015, he acted in The 33, a movie about a real-life mining disaster, and in Camino. From 2018, he became well-known for playing Rafael Caro Quintero in the Netflix series Narcos: Mexico.

In 2021, he appeared as Juan in The Forever Purge, which is the fifth movie in The Purge series. He acted alongside Alejandro Edda, who was also in Narcos: Mexico.

A big moment in his career came in 2022. At San Diego Comic-Con, it was announced that Tenoch Huerta would play Namor in the Marvel Studios film Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. Many people in Mexico were very happy about this. Tenoch himself has spoken out against unfair treatment in the film industry and was excited to play the character.

In 2023, Tenoch Huerta was chosen to play Juan Preciado in the movie Pedro Páramo. This film is based on a famous novel by Juan Rulfo and was shown for the first time at the Toronto International Film Festival in September 2024.

Activism and Speaking Out

Besides being an actor, Tenoch Huerta is also known for his work as an activist against racism. He started speaking out because of his own experiences with unfair treatment and discrimination.

Huerta used to work with Poder Prieto, a group in Mexico that wants to change how people see Brown individuals. He worked to make sure Brown people are shown fairly and positively in movies and TV. The group also wanted to give a positive meaning to the word "Prieto," which was often used as a hurtful term.

Tenoch Huerta always talks about how important it is to have different kinds of people, especially people of color, shown accurately in movies and TV. He believes that diverse stories help create true cultural narratives.

In 2022, Huerta wrote a book called Orgullo Prieto (Black Pride). The book talks about racist ideas in Mexico and shares his personal stories to help people understand the issue better.

That same year, Huerta spoke at UNESCO's Global Forum against Racism and Discrimination. This allowed him to share his ideas about activism and media representation with people all over the world. In 2023, he met with over 2,000 students through UNESCO. He taught them about understanding their own advantages, challenging old systems, and how working together can make a difference.

Huerta also joined a discussion with the United Nations' Antiracism Working Group. This talk was held to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. His involvement shows how dedicated he is to fighting racism, an issue that is now getting more attention globally, partly because of movements like Black Lives Matter.

Awards and Recognition

Tenoch Huerta has won several awards for his acting. He won Best Actor at the Short Short Film Festival in Mexico City for his role in Café paraíso. He has also been nominated five times for the Ariel Award, which is a very important film award in Mexico. He won the Best Actor award in 2012 for his part in Días de Gracia. In 2023, Huerta won an NAACP Image Awards for his supporting role as Namor in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.

Film Roles

Television Roles

See also

In Spanish: Ténoch Huerta para niños