Julio Torres spins immigrant stress into satire

Fresh Air

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Tv & Film, Arts, Society & Culture, Books

4.3 • 36.1K Ratings

🗓️ 3 April 2026

⏱️ 45 minutes

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Summary

As a gay, atheist teenager in El Salvador, Julio Torres felt like an alien. He was legally labeled “alien” when he came to the U.S. on a student visa, and then tried to get a work visa. The comic/filmmaker drew on those experiences to write, direct, and star in the satirical film, ‘Problemista.’ He spoke with Terry Gross in 2024 about immigrant stress, his odd form of comedy, and why he's attracted to difficult people. “I don't see difficult people as nightmares to escape. I'm really drawn to them like a moth to a flame,” he says. His new comedy special on HBO is called ‘Color Theories.’

Also, film critic Justin Chang reviews ‘The Drama.’

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Transcript

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0:00.0	This is Fresh Air. I'm David Being Coulee. Today's guest, Julio Torres, is a comic actor,
0:05.8	director, and writer. You may have encountered him in several different venues. His comedy
0:10.9	specials on HBO and Comedy Central, the short films he used to do on Saturday Night Live,
0:16.5	his bits as a correspondent on The Tonight Show, and as a writer and actor on the HBO series Losa Spookies.
0:23.4	In 2023, he made his debut as a movie director with Problemista, the satirical film he also wrote and in which he starred.
0:32.0	In 2024, Julio Torres wrote, directed and starred in Fantasmas, an absurdist comedy series on HBO Max.
0:40.0	And now, Torres has a new TV special called Color Theories, which premiered last week on HBO Max.
0:46.6	In the fall of 2025, Torres performed color theories as a one-man-off Broadway show.
0:52.6	The Hollywood reporter called it a TED Talk masquerading as absurdist stand-up.
0:57.9	Here's an early scene from color theories in which Torres defines a particular shade of the
1:03.6	primary color blue.
1:05.3	Navy blue is the color of law and order.
1:09.8	Navy blue is the color of having to create an account.
1:18.1	Navy blue is the color of people that demand that you are as VP through the website,
1:22.4	even though verbally you already told them that you're coming.
1:25.7	It's like, well, are you coming?
1:26.7	Yeah, I told you're not coming.
1:28.7	Well, you know, you have to create an account and do it through the website.
1:29.4	Okay, well, this no longer feels like a party, right?
1:31.7	This is a census.
1:37.5	Navy blue is the color
1:39.2	of airports,
	...

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