Associate producer Don Ferrarone, (a former chief inspector with the U.S. Marshal's service and D.E.A. division chief overseeing the U.S./Mexico border), provided research from his long-standing investigations of various cartels that use the Miami area as an import/export hub for their trade. Despite earnest efforts by both local and federal government agencies to stem the flow of designer drugs, it continues to be a widespread problem in every major city around the country. Although Bad Boys II is fiction, many of the circumstances detailed in the script, even some of the funnier moments, are inspired by stories from actual case files.
In Bad Boys II, Tapia, played by Jordi Mollà, runs the biggest cartel on the east coast. Until Mollà appeared opposite Johnny Depp in the controversial and powerful drama Blow, few people outside of his native Spain and Europe were familiar with his work. A talented actor with a wide range of roles to his credit, Mollà is considered the most popular male star in his country. "Jordi was such an interesting character in Blow," says Bay. "He’s got this youthful exuberance and his persona has impact. You can feel it in the quality of his performance. He is a chameleon-like actor. He is a very talented actor, and so cool."
"About three days before I began filming, Michael mentioned the idea of my speaking with a Cuban accent," recalls Mollà. "He thought it might be funnier because it was an unfamiliar accent to me. I resisted at first. But after thinking about it, I decided to give it a try. I called Yul Vázquez (the Cuban born actor who plays Detective Reyes) and asked for help. We taped him saying my lines in English and in Spanish, and the process seemed to work well. We built the character in about two days, " he says.
Among the pointers he quickly picked up were that "Cubans use physical gestures, so my hands moved a lot more, my voice changed, everything changed a bit. I asked Yul to give me some bad words, little phrases you use when you get angry, but always thinking about how the audience has to understand what I’m saying. I started enjoying the experience more and more. Michael was right. The Cuban accent really changed the whole thing."
Mollà was mindful of the obvious stereotypes about drug kingpins, but felt that it was leavened by the overall comedic tone of the film, so he took every opportunity to develop the humor in his character. "The movie is a natural comedy," says Mollà. "So even if I’m the bad guy, the serious guy, I can still have fun with him."
He also used Tapia’s background to bring added dimension to the role. "Even though Tapia has built this empire with mansions, private jets, expensive cars and beautiful women, the most important thing to him is still his family," adds Mollà. "Nothing takes precedence over his daughter and his mother. That’s very Latin. Even though he’s an incredibly powerful and dangerous, in the end, he’s really just a family man who lives with fear every day of his life. He suspects everyone."
Movie Database
In Theaters
