The premiere of Loki season 2 brought us a new character to unpack: X-5, a hunter who seems to be against everything that Mobius, Loki, Hunter B-15, and the rest of the team stands for. X-5 may be your introduction into this actor, but he’s been a great performer for years. Rafael Casal, known best for Blindspotting (both the film and subsequent Starz series of the same name), has made a career out of collaborating with frequent co-star Daveed Diggs.
A rapper, writer, and actor, Casal is a fascinating performer, and seeing him in Loki is a treat. While X-5 may be his first foray into a big franchise like this, it does highlight how talented Casal is. His quick wit and energy works well bouncing off of Tom Hiddleston and Owen Wilson in a way that’s surprising in their first scenes, and I’m excited to see where X-5 will go throughout the season.
While we don’t know much about X-5 yet and there is a lot to hope for in the future of Loki, Casal’s creative history is fun to dig into because his projects are all so different from each other. If you had to choose one thing to really dive into to see just how amazing Casal is, you should start with Miles in Blindspotting.
If you haven’t seen him before, watch Blindspotting
The movie, which was co-written by Casal and Diggs, tells the story of Miles and Collin (Diggs). Trying to stay out of trouble for the last three days of his probation, Collin works as a mover with Miles in an area of the San Francisco bay that is becoming gentrified. Things go sideways and, without spoiling anything, Collin doesn’t make it through the three days without a hitch. This leads into the Blindspotting series that ran on Starz for two seasons before it was canceled.
Blindspotting is a brilliant show that centers around Ashley (Jasmine Cephas Jones) and her relationship to Miles while he is serving time in jail and raising their son Sean. The film and the series are a real showcase of Casal’s talents, a great watch as a whole, and perfect if you suddenly want more of Casal in your life after seeing him in Loki season 2.
(featured image: Jeremy Chan, Getty Images)
