MIAMI – You might have recognized actor Oscar Torre, who has lived in Los Angeles for nine years but was born and raised in Miami, showing up on “Cane” as Santo doing the dirty work for Jimmy Smits’ character, Alex Vega. Torre took time to talk to The Miami Herald after arriving back in town after the finale of “Cane.”

Q: What do you think of your character Santo?

Man, it’s a dream, this character. I grew up in Miami, so most people growing up here like the “Scarface” character Tony Montana, and I realized I’m playing this character that has all those elements. I knew what I wanted to bring to the character, especially the humor – most people I know who are shady like that have a lot of humor.

Q: Were you starstruck at first on the set of “Cane”?

Not at that point, because when I went in for the callback, Jimmy Smits was in the room, so that was the time to get starstruck. But I try to get into character and psych my self up, so once I got to the set I was in the “Santo” mode – the guy who can walk up to anybody and feel right at home.

Q: What’s next for you after “Cane”?

While doing “Cane,” I was offered a few film roles and I turned them down because they weren’t good. They were very similar to the one in “Cane” – once they see you they think of you as that. I’m shooting a film with the “Ladron” director that should be fun – I’m playing a chef who’s kind of a villain. He wants to open a restaurant but he’s a little homicidal.

Q: What do you love about Miami?

It’s home. And the water’s warm. In L.A. I never go in the water because it’s freezing.

Q: What’s not so great?

Rain. In L.A. it never rains. That’s why we have all these fires. I HATE the rain in Miami. So many outings were ruined for me as a kid because of rain.

Q: Do you have any favorite hangouts?

Versailles in Little Havana – I just came from there, actually. That’s one of the first things I do – go get some Cuban food. The worst Cuban restaurant in Miami is probably the best in L.A.

And I eat pizza, because it’s not so good in L.A. And I eat Chinese fried rice here. It’s totally different. It’s got a Latino mix in there.