Guzmán was born in Cayey, Puerto Rico and was raised in New York City's Greenwich Village and the surrounding Lower East Side neighborhood. He went to Seward Park High School[2] on the Lower East Side. His mother, Rosa, was a hospital worker, and his stepfather, Benjamin Cardona, was a TV repairman.[3] Guzmán graduated from The American University, and shortly after began his career as a social worker and moonlighted as an actor, eventually becoming heavily involved in street theater and independent films.[4]
In early 2008, Guzmán starred in "Naturally Aged Cheddar Hunks" TV ads for Cabot Creamery.[7] He also appeared in the music video "Yes We Can." In 2010, he starred in HBO's How to Make It in America and appeared in a comical series of Snickers commercials that played during that year's Super Bowl.[8][9]
In 2018, Guzmán, along with New York Yankees all-star Bernie Williams, appeared in a season six episode of Jon Taffer's Bar Rescue, offering assistance not only to the El Krajo Tavern in Loiza, but the town's community center, after it was devastated from Hurricane Maria.
During Telegramgate, Guzmán was interviewed by MSNBC for his opinions on the situation in Puerto Rico and he expressed that "Ricky had to go" and that corruption on the island was a major problem that he hoped would be solved.[12]