| Matt Cedeño | |
|---|---|
| Born | November 14, 1974 Moses Lake, Washington, U.S. |
Matt Cedeño (born November 14, 1974) is an American actor and former male fashion model.
He was born in Moses Lake, Washington to an Afro-Cuban father and an Irish-English mother.[1] He became a model doing gigs in Milan, Spain, New York and Los Angeles, which Cedeno juggled, along with academics, until he finished school. He portrays Brandon Walker on the American soap opera Days of our Lives. Also, he played a movie role as Carlos co-starring with Laura Prepon (That 70s Show) Oxygen Channel film, Romancing the Bride (2005).
Matt played a young boxer in the feature film Price of Glory (Jimmy Smits plays the same character years later) and also appeared in the movie The Suburbans with Jennifer Love Hewitt and Ben Stiller.
He has been nominated three years in a row for an ALMA award as Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama for his work as Brandon Walker on NBC's Days of our Lives.
El Pollo Loco's most recent marketing efforts feature Cedeño playing a character named El Caliente. This has drawn fire from Chicano advocacy groups who claim that the ads depict a stereotypical view of Latinos. Generally, however, El Caliente is seen as less offensive than previous Latino mascots such as the Frito Bandito. His character "El Caliente" is referenced several times in Psych. Cedeño even guest stars on an episode of Psych, where he plays a Spanish soap opera actor who is framed for murder.
He recently guest-starred in the one hundredth episode of Desperate Housewives as Umberto Roswell, the gay husband of Edie Britt (Nicollette Sheridan).
Cedeño was the first actor to serve as Celebrity Ambassador for "PADRES Contra El Cancer," which is an organization committed to improving the quality of life for Latino children with cancer and their families throughout Southern California and the Miami, FL area.
He married his wife Erica Franco on July 31, 2009. They have one child.