Daniel Gonzalo Pino (born April 15, 1974) is an American actor who starred as Detective Scotty Valens on the CBS series Cold Case from 2003 to 2010, and as NYPD Detective Nick Amaro in the long-running NBC crime drama Law & Order: Special Victims Unit from 2011 to 2015. In 2002, he appeared in London's West End in Up for Grabs with Madonna. In May 2003, Pino played Desi Arnaz in a CBS special on the life of Lucille Ball, Lucy. He played drug cartel leader Miguel Galindo on Mayans M.C. which airs on FX, and FBI agent John Bishop in procedural crime drama Gone.
Early years and education Named after his grandfather, Pedro Gonzalo de Armas, Pino was born in Miami, Florida, to Cuban parents.Terrero, Nina, "What am I? Danny Pino says being Cuban means family comes first" , nbclatino.com, May 14, 2013. He attended Rockway Middle School and graduated from Miami Coral Park High School in 1992, and from Florida International University in 1996. He also attended New York University's Graduate Acting Program at the Tisch School of the Arts, graduating in 2000.
Career
Pino is known for his performance as the Mexican drug lord Armadillo Quintero on FX's The Shield. He has also appeared in the films The Lost City (2005) and Flicka (2006), which featured Tim McGraw, and starred in the hit CBS series Cold Case as Detective Scotty Valens. In 2011, Pino joined the cast of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit for its 13th season, along with Chase actress Kelli Giddish, coinciding with Christopher Meloni's departure. On SVU, Pino portrayed NYPD Detective Nick Amaro, a detective transferring from the narcotics squad to the Special Victims Unit.
Pino wrote two episodes of Cold Case: "Stealing Home" and "Metamorphosis". Starting in 2005, he has been in six CBS Cares public service announcements, with other stars of CBS original programs. He has made single appearances on The Sharon Osbourne Show in 2004, The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson in 2005, The Drop in 2005, Entertainment Tonight in 2008, and The Ellen DeGeneres Show in 2011. In 2016, he played Alex Vargas in Scandal and Democratic Senator Luke Healy in BrainDead.
In 2017, he joined the cast of the procedural crime drama series Gone, as FBI agent John Bishop, alongside Chris Noth and Leven Rambin. He currently co-stars in FX's Sons of Anarchy spinoff series Mayans M.C., as cartel leader Miguel Galindo.
In August 2020, he joined the cast of Stephen Chbosky's film adaptation of the broadway musical Dear Evan Hansen as Larry Murphy, a role that was re-conceived for the film from "father" to "stepfather," with the character renamed as Larry Mora.
Personal life Pino is fluent in Spanish as evidenced by TV shows such as Cold Case and Mayans M.C., and interviews he has done.
Pino and his wife, Lilly, married February 15, 2002. They have two sons, Luca Daniel, born February 15, 2006, and Julian Franco, born June 5, 2007.
Filmography
Film Year Title Role Notes2005 Between Victor Rx Carlos The Lost City Alberto Mora 2006 Flicka Jack 2008 The Burning Plain Santiago 2009 Across the Hall Terry 2010 Across the Line: The Exodus of Charlie Wright Gabriel Garza 2018 Mayans M.C. Miguel Galindo Video short 2020 Fatale Carter Heywood 2021 Vivo Bus Passenger (voice) Dear Evan Hansen Larry Mora
Television Year Title Role Notes 2001–2002 Men, Women & Dogs Clay Guest star, 13 episodes 2002 Point of Origin Burn Victim TV movie2003 The Shield Armadillo Quintero Guest star, 4 episodes Lucy Desi Arnaz TV movie 2003–2010 Cold Case Detective Scotty Valens Series regular, 151 episodes 2004 NYPD 2069 Eddie Vega TV movie 2007 CSI: NY Detective Scotty Valens Cold Case crossover, 1 episode 2010 Burn Notice Adam Scott Guest star, 2 episodes 2011 Metro Douglas Romero TV movie 2011–2015, 2021 Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Detective Nick Amaro Main role, guest star 2014–2015 Chicago P.D. 2 episodes2016 BrainDead Luke Healy Main Role Scandal Alejandro Vargas Recurring role 2017–2018 Gone John Bishop Main role 2018–2023 Mayans M.C. Miguel Galindo Main role 2019 One Day at a Time Tito Netflix, Guest star, 2 episodes 2021 The Good Fight Ricardo Diaz Episode: "And the Firm Had Two Partners..."2024Hotel CocaineRoman Compte8 episodes AccusedJake Harris1 episode TBAThe Magnificent SevenSantiago “Santi” VegaMain role
Awards and nominations Pino has won two awards so far and has been nominated for five, all from his work on Cold Case and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.
Year Award Category Result Notes 2005 Imagen Award Best Supporting Actor—Television Cold Case 2006 Imagen Award Best Actor—Television Cold Case 2008 ALMA Award Outstanding Actor in a Drama Television Series Cold Case 2009 ALMA Award Outstanding Actor in a Drama Television Series Cold Case 2010 Imagen Award Best Actor—Television Cold Case 2012 ALMA Award Outstanding Actor in a Drama Television Series Law & Order: Special Victims Unit 2015 Imagen Award Best Supporting Actor-Television Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
References
External links Danny Pino CBS bio
Danny Pino on Twitter