Ranger BORSTAR Actor Vince 'Rocco' Vargas Part One | Mike Ritland Podcast Episode 159

About this video

Vincent ‘Rocco’ Vargas, actor from Mayans MC and former Army Ranger, discusses his career journey with host Mike Ritland. Vargas recounts his upbringing in 1990s Los Angeles surrounded by gang culture, his path through sports to military service with the 2nd Ranger Battalion (including deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan), and his eventual transition to acting. He describes questioning his faith during combat and reflects on the contrast between physical operations work and creative work in Hollywood.

Key takeaways

• Vargas describes growing up in 1990s Los Angeles gang culture but staying out of gangs through sports, crediting his father (a former gang member turned Marine and firefighter) for keeping him focused on athletics year-round
• Vargas recounts that he found Ranger training physically manageable but struggled academically due to dyslexia, and describes his 2005 Iraq deployment as a time when he questioned his faith while witnessing the realities of war
• Vargas explains he discovered he missed creative work when acting on Mayans MC after years in military and law enforcement, though he found Hollywood’s attitudes toward military and law enforcement challenging

Episode details: published October 22, 2023 · 20.2K views · 1:15:44 long. Summary written by Self Growth Videos from the episode itself. Stories told by Mike Ritland’s podcast guests are the guests’ own accounts, attributed to them — not independently verified. Commentary is Ritland’s, presented as his analysis.

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