Getty Actor Tyler Alvarez attends The 23rd Annual Critics' Choice Awards at Barker Hangar on January 11, 2018 in Santa Monica, California.
Fans of The Fosters may recognize the actor playing Declan Rivers on the show this season. Tyler Alvarez, 20, has appeared in a number of television shows on a variety of networks.
On the March 6 episode of The Fosters, Jude was told he looks like a “banker on vacation.” He took offense to the remark, but Declan was kind enough to give him a Cool Guy Makeover. When that doesn’t work out, he brings up the livestream and coerces Jude into taking his shirt off on camera. The episode ends with Declan telling Jude that they’ve been dropped by the gaming company, only for Declan to text him that same night say they’re back on and will stream from Declan’s house.
Read on to learn more about Tyler Alvarez.
1. He Starred as Peter Maldonado on ‘American Vandal’
Alvarez starred as Peter Maldonado on ‘American Vandal’. The mockumentary series revolves around a high school prank in which one mystery student draws phallic images on 27 teachers’ cars. The show premiered on Netflix September 15, 2017.
Alvarez’s character, Peter Maldonado, sets out to discover the identity of the culprit. The show was a complete hit and was nominated for two Critics’ Choice Television Awards: Best Actor in a Movie/Miniseries for Jimmy Tatro, and Best Limited Series.
In an interview with GQ, Alvarez was asked what he thought when he first received the script for the show. He said, “When they sent me the first two scripts, I was like, I really want to try to solve this on my own without the [other] scripts. So I made something similar to the board that we have in the TV studio [in the show]. On my wall I had all these notecards, and a list of facts, and then the things we don’t know, and the theories. I made up my own list of suspects and I was like, ‘Hold on, the janitor! The janitor has access to every room in the school!’ And then I got the next script and the janitor was in it. So it was cool that I had already called that out.”
American Vandal enlisted the talents of the cinematographer who had just finished working on Amanda Knox’s documentary for Netflix, which Alvarez says he believes made a big difference. “… we had those real documentary cameramen filming. And the director wouldn’t tell them what was going on sometimes, because we wanted them to be surprised—we wanted those natural jerks of ‘What’s going on?’ and figuring out who to cover.”
2. He Played Diego Rueda in Nickelodeon’s ‘Every Witch Way’
Alvarez was born and raised in New York City. His father works for the DEA and his mother works for a private hospital. Asked how, of all things, he got into acting, Tyler tells Latina.com, “I like making people laugh and entertaining people so my mom when I was little signed me up for a class, an acting class. After I did it, I had so much fun in the class that I had to make a career of it. It had to be what I do. I had so much fun and I just wanted to continue having fun.”
At the time, he cited his idols in the industry as Meryl Streep and Paul Rudd.
In Every Witch Way, Diego is a Churi Kanay, and can freeze people with his bare hands. His girlfriend in the show is Maddie Van Pelt.
3. He Was in ‘Orange Is the New Black’
Alvarez is no stranger to Netflix– along with American Vandal, he also plays Benny Mendoza, Gloria’s son, on the Emmy-nominated series Orange is the New Black. He appeared in five episodes of the series.
His character arc on the show involves developing a relationship with Sofia’s son, Michael, which leads to all kinds of drama for Gloria. Alvarez’s other credits, listed on his IMDB, include High School Lover, and Fresh Off the Boat as Wes.
4. His Next Project Is with James Franco
Alvarez will next be appearing in The Pretenders, directed by James Franco, and starring Franco, Juno Temple, Dennis Quaid, and Jane Levy.
The movie centers on a love triangle between a photographer, director, and actress. In an interview with Vulkan Magazine recently, Alvarez was asked about his character, and how he fits into the storyline of “The Pretenders”. Alvarez said, “I play Doug who is Terry’s roommate and best friend. Doug is a loving, charismatic, and bright young man who has a passion for theater. He wants to grow up to be a stage actor. However, their friendship is tested after Doug lands his first role.”
5. He Hopes to Accomplish Things Beyond Just Acting
Speaking to Vulkan Magazine, Alvarez shares that he has many interests and hopes to accomplish a lot in his life. “I really try and push myself to try and do things that I have never done when I have free time. Whether it’s attending my first protest or taking my first flying lesson. I don’t want to live my life only experiencing things within the entertainment industry.”
According to his IMDB page, Alvarez played lacrosse in high school and is fluent in Spanish and English.
He has two younger half-siblings from his father and a younger half-sister from his mother, and currently resides in Los Angeles.