Magnum PI

Season 1 M-Net (*101) 20:00 Action

Los Angeles is as close to Hawaii as you get in TV land thanks to its palm trees, white sand beaches and tropical vibe. But Jay Hernandez has gone for the real deal as private investigator Thomas Magnum in the 2018 reboot of the ’80s action show made famous by Tom Selleck and he couldn’t be happier, saying that “we’re filming in Hawaii. It is like a working holiday. You wrap shooting and drink cocktails on the beach. This is the life!”

The 40-year- old is California born and bred and has been surfing all his life, which he claims is the best work-out and helps him stay toned. He almost followed his dad Javier Hernandez Sr into mechanic work but a talent agent sharing an elevator talked him into acting classes while he was in high school. Jay met his wife Daniella (Atlanna in 2006 animated series Aquaman) when they were working on Hang Time (1995-2000) – he was 20 and she was 23. They married in 2006. Despite hating horror films as he’s afraid of the dark, Jay has been in a number of them including grisly 2005 slasher Hostel and 2007’s Grindhouse. He turned down a prosthetic wig for his role in 2016 comic book movie Suicide Squad, choosing to rather shave his head bald to play fire- controlling El Diablo. He won’t be back for the sequel since his character is dead and Magnum PI has been renewed for season 2. Jay is a bit of a foodie when he’s at home and in his words, makes “a mean rare- grilled steak and arugula salad with South African wine”.