The Evolution of Eugenio Derbez, from ‘La Familia P. Luche’ to ‘Dora and the Lost City of Gold’ (Photos)

In the early ’90s, there was an up-and-coming comedian who could morph in and out of characters at the drop of a dime. If you looked at the U.S. box office, you might say i’m talking about “Ace Ventura” and “The Mask” star Jim Carrey. But in Latin America, the man with the elastic face and an unlimited resevoir of charisma was Eugenio Derbez, who in 1992 got his first variety sketch show and rose to fame with Spanish speaking audiences. Derbez is now starring in “Dora and the Lost City of Gold,” Paramount’s adaptation of the Nickelodeon children’s show. How did Derbez go from sketch comedy to American movie star? TheWrap has tracked his evolution below.

‘Al Derecho Y Al Derbez’ (1993-1995)

Derbez birthed many of his recurring alter egos in his first short-lived crack at a sketch comedy show. ‘Al derecho y al derbez’ introduced us to the cooky philosophy professor Armando Hoyos, who loves wordplay and unusually large eye glasses, and Derbez’s devil character Diablito. The Diablito sketch preceeded the Youtube fail video, as Derbez with red face paint and a sinister grin watches humans from a control room, always one button push away from making them fall or miss a goal in a soccer game.

“Under the Same Moon” (2007)

Derbez’s most well known dramatic role came when he played an illegal immigrant worker Enrique who helps a young boy Carlitos reunite with his mother Rosario. While Enrique doesn’t originally embrace Carlitos, toward the end of the film Enrique ends up sacrificing himself at the hands of police to let Carlitos run free.

Read original story The Evolution of Eugenio Derbez, from ‘La Familia P. Luche’ to ‘Dora and the Lost City of Gold’ (Photos) At TheWrap