Jimmy L. Smits Bio
Jimmy L. Smits, born July 9, 1955, in New York City, is an American actor whose career spans more than four decades across television, film, and theater. He first gained national attention as the earnest attorney Victor Sifuentes on the NBC legal drama L.A. Law, a role that established him as a leading dramatic performer. Over the years, he has built a reputation for bringing depth and quiet authority to a wide range of characters, from a police detective to a galactic senator.
Smits is widely recognized for his portrayal of Detective Bobby Simone on NYPD Blue, Congressman Matt Santos on The West Wing, and Bail Organa in the Star Wars saga. Beyond his on-screen work, he has been a vocal advocate for greater Latino representation in the entertainment industry and has supported philanthropic causes connected to his community and family.
Early Life and Background
Jimmy L. Smits was born in Brooklyn, New York, and raised in a working-class neighborhood alongside his two sisters, Yvonne and Diana. His father, Cornelis Leendert Smits, was of Dutch descent and originally from Paramaribo, Suriname, while his mother, Emilina Pola, was Puerto Rican and born in Peñuelas. The family maintained a strict, devout Roman Catholic household, and Smits has said he identifies culturally as Puerto Rican, a connection he has nurtured through frequent visits to the island.
When he was ten years old, Smits moved to Puerto Rico for a couple of years, an experience he later described as jarring and traumatic because he did not yet speak Spanish and was placed in a Spanish-only school. He returned to New York, graduated from Thomas Jefferson High School, and went on to become a first-generation college student. He earned a bachelor’s degree from Brooklyn College in 1980 before completing a Master of Fine Arts at Cornell University in 1982, where he had also developed his interest in acting.
Path to Acting
Smits was an athlete in his youth, but his time at Brooklyn College introduced him to theater and redirected his ambitions toward the stage. At Cornell, he refined his craft through graduate training and participated in the Hangar Theatre in Ithaca, New York, the university’s summer repertory program. In 1982, his roles at the Hangar included Max in Cabaret, Paul in Loose Ends, and the lead in Pudd’nhead Wilson, giving him early professional stage experience.
His transition to screen work began in 1984 with a small but memorable role on Miami Vice, appearing in the first episode as Sonny Crockett’s original partner. He also worked on Pee-wee’s Playhouse during this period. These early appearances led to his casting in L.A. Law in 1986, the role that would launch his career as a serious dramatic actor and connect him with influential writers and producers, including Steven Bochco.
Jimmy L. Smits Career
Early Career (1984–1990)
Smits’s first notable screen appearance came in 1984 on Miami Vice, where his character was killed in the opening minutes of the pilot episode. In 1986, he made his feature film debut as drug dealer Julio Gonzalez in the action comedy Running Scared, starring Billy Crystal and Gregory Hines. That same year, he was cast as attorney Victor Sifuentes on L.A. Law, joining a stacked ensemble that became one of the most talked-about dramas of the decade.
For L.A. Law, Smits earned six Primetime Emmy Award nominations for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series, ultimately winning the award in 1990. In 1989, he also took a leading role opposite Jane Fonda in the romantic adventure Old Gringo, demonstrating his ability to carry a major feature film.
Breakthrough (1994–2006)
Smits’s most celebrated television role came in 1994 when he joined NYPD Blue as Detective Bobby Simone, a thoughtful and principled partner to Dennis Franz’s Detective Andy Sipowicz. He played the character until 1998 and received several Emmy nominations, helping the show remain a critical favorite throughout the decade. He also won a Golden Globe Award and a Screen Actors Guild Award as part of the show’s ensemble.
In 1995, Smits starred in the multigenerational drama My Family, appearing alongside Edward James Olmos and Jennifer Lopez. He expanded into science fiction in 2002, taking the role of Senator Bail Organa of Alderaan in Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones, a part he reprised in Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith (2005), the video game Star Wars: The Force Unleashed (2008), and the spinoff film Rogue One (2016). From 2004 to 2006, he portrayed Congressman Matt Santos on The West Wing, a character who eventually won the U.S. presidency, earning him an ALMA Award for the performance.
Notable Works and Milestones
Smits’s signature roles include Victor Sifuentes on L.A. Law, Detective Bobby Simone on NYPD Blue, Congressman Matt Santos on The West Wing, and Bail Organa across the Star Wars franchise. He has also earned recognition for his work in Dexter, where he played Assistant District Attorney Miguel Prado, and in Sons of Anarchy, where he portrayed Nero Padilla, a role that added another memorable character to his résumé.
Later Career (2007–2025)
From 2007 to 2008, Smits played Miguel Prado in the third season of Dexter and received an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series for the role, as well as a Saturn Award for Best Guest Starring Role on Television. In 2007, he briefly starred as Alex Vega in the CBS series Cane before the show was canceled amid the Screen Writers Guild strike. He joined the cast of Sons of Anarchy in its fifth season as Nero Padilla, building a complex relationship with Katey Sagal’s Gemma Teller Morrow.
Smits took on the role of Kevin Rosario in the 2021 musical film In the Heights, a project rooted in Latino culture and storytelling. On television, he played Elijah Strait in the NBC drama Bluff City Law beginning in 2019, returning to a legal setting for the first time in more than two decades. He also appeared in the Netflix musical drama The Get Down in 2016 and reprised Bail Organa for Obi-Wan Kenobi (2022). In 2025, he returned once more as Miguel Prado in the premiere of Dexter: Resurrection. He was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on June 4, 2021.
Jimmy L. Smits Award Nominations
Jimmy L. Smits has accumulated a remarkable number of nominations across television and film throughout his career. His six Primetime Emmy nominations for L.A. Law remain a benchmark of his early recognition, and he added further Emmy nominations for NYPD Blue, Dexter, and other projects. He has also received eleven Screen Actors Guild Award nominations and multiple ALMA Award nominations for his portrayals of complex Latino characters.
Jimmy L. Smits Awards Won
Smits has won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series for L.A. Law in 1990, a Golden Globe Award for NYPD Blue, and a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series in 1995. He has received two ALMA Awards, a Saturn Award for Best Guest Starring Role on Television for Dexter, and a Hollywood Walk of Fame star in 2021.
Jimmy L. Smits Family
Smits was born to Cornelis Leendert Smits, a man of Dutch descent originally from Paramaribo, Suriname, and Emilina Pola, a Puerto Rican woman born in Peñuelas. He grew up in Brooklyn with his two sisters, Yvonne and Diana, in a close-knit, working-class household. He was previously married to Barbara Smits, with whom he has two children, and has been in a long-term relationship with actress Wanda De Jesus since 1986. The couple lives together in Los Angeles.
Personal Life
Smits has long been committed to issues of representation and community service. He helped found the National Hispanic Foundation for the Arts, an organization dedicated to increasing the presence of Latinos in media, telecommunications, and entertainment. He has also supported diagnostic colorectal screening campaigns through public service announcements and has been involved with Detroit-based nonprofit Cass Community Social Services, including serving as Honorary Chair of their Catch the Fireworks With Cass event in 2010.