Carlos Solis

"Carlos Solis was used to sitting in a position of power. Whether it was behind the wheel of a powerful car, at the head of a power-lunch, or at the helm of a powerful company."

- Mary Alice Young

Carlos Solis, a religious ex-con, is the husband of high maintenance wife, Gabrielle Solis.

Early life
Carlos was born in the Mexican city of Guadalajara to Juanita and Diego Solis, his father physically abused both Carlos and his mother. Carlos was told that his father left his mother for a waitress in El Paso, but in "Come In, Stranger", Juanita told Gaby about how Diego used to beat her. But she said that when he beat Carlos for the first time when he was 4, "[she] made sure that Diego Solis never hurt [her] son or [her] ever again." It is implied that Juanita Solis murdered Carlos's father to protect Carlos and herself from his domestic violence. Carlos entered college on a golf scholarship. While living in New York at a fashion show, he would meet his future wife to whom he would propose to on their third date.

Season 1
In September 2004, while on their way to Mary Alice Young's funeral, Carlos tells Gabrielle Solis, his wife to let someone named Al Mason to know how much Carlos paid for her diamond necklace. Gabrielle and Carlos bicker about how Gaby can't work that into a conversation. Carlos tells Gaby they shouldn't talk as loud because people will stare. Gaby tells Carlos sarcastically she hopes people won't think their unhappy. Later on, Carlos tells Gaby she has to come to a party with him because his boss is expecting all the wives to come. Carlos later see's his gardener, John Rowland and asks him why he hasn't cut down a rose bush yet. John tells him he didn't have time. Carlos gets upset and leaves. It is then revealed that Gaby is having an affair with John that Carlos doesn't know about. That night, Carlos is looking at the grass and can tell John hasn't mowed it. Gaby tells Carlos not to worry about it. At the party, Gaby makes sure Carlos has a drink all night long so she can go home and mow the lawn. The next morning, Carlos see's the lawn was mowed. ("Pilot")

Carlos almost catches Gaby and John having sex. Carlos home home at midnight one night which upsets Gaby because she had to eat alone. To make it up to Gaby, Carlos gives her a white gold necklace. Carlos tells Gaby he wants to make love to her but Gaby wants to talk. Carlos doesn't want to and Gaby gets upset. Carlos tells her it was a joke and asks why she's upset. Gaby tells Carlos she's not excited anymore and misses the surprises. Later on, Carlos gets Gaby a car which makes her excited again. ("Ah, But Underneath") Carlos comes home one night to tell Gaby he might be late coming home the next night. This upsets Gaby. Carlos introduces Gaby to their new neighbors. The little girl living next door blackmails Gaby when she see's Gaby and John kiss. ("Pretty Little Picture")

Carlos starts to think Gaby is having an affair when he finds a gym sock under their bed. Gaby claims that their maid Yao Lin cleans with them. Carlos finds out later that their cable guy was late and he slipped on water in the master bathroom. Carlos goes to the cable guys house and beats him up. He looks around his house and he realizes he's gay and he leaves as quick as he can. While in the bath with Gaby, Carlos and Gaby see on the news the cable guy being pulled away in the ambulance. The cable guy drew a picture of what the guy who hurt him looked like and he looked just like Carlos. Gaby decided not to ask any questions. ("Who's That Woman?")

Carlos's mother, Juanita comes to town when Carlos tells her he thinks Gaby is cheating on him. ("Come In, Stranger")

Season 2
Gabrielle had a miscarriage, and after the loss of the baby, Carlos managed to get early parole by seeking aid from a program for Catholic inmates. Through the program, Carlos made the acquaintance of a nun, Sister Mary Bernard, who has inspired him to live a more religious life. Gabrielle was jealous because Sister Mary is "a knockout", by Gabrielle's admission, and also because she was turning Carlos against Gabrielle. Following her miscarriage, she told Carlos that she did want children but she wanted Carlos to want her for her, not just because she was capable of having children.

Sister Mary invited Carlos to accompany her to Botswana, and he accepted at first. When he went to the doctor for his physical examination and vaccinations in preparation for the trip, he left Gabrielle to fill out a questionnaire for him. She neglected to mention his allergy to eggs, telling the nurse that he was allergic to fish eggs (caviar). This resulted in Carlos suffering an allergic reaction from one of the vaccines, forcing him to stay with Gabrielle. While he was delirious, he talked about Sister Mary in a very unreligious way, which Gabrielle reported to her priest. He had Sister Mary transferred to another convent but not before she and Gabrielle had a fight. Gabrielle thought Carlos was dead but soon discovered that he had paid the gardener, Ralph, to do his community service and Ralph was hit by a car. Gabrielle also discovered that Carlos was having an affair with the maid, Xiao-Mei, who was carrying Carlos and Gabrielle's child. After finding this out, she takes into consideration the affair she had with John, but decides that Carlos' sleeping with the woman carrying their child is unacceptable, and forces him out of the house.

Season 3
Gabrielle told Carlos that she wanted a divorce. At Bree and Orson Hodge's wedding party, Xiao-Mei told them she was in labor. The baby was born black, and the doctor admitted to Carlos and Gabrielle that the embryos were mixed up and that their embryo didn't take. This made Carlos and Gabrielle's divorce simpler. After fighting for a while, as their divorce turned nasty, the hostage situation made them realize that they didn't want to be the rage-filled, vengeful, bitter, schemers that they had turned into.

Carlos's attempt to stop scheming had limited success. He moved in with Mike Delfino, taking advantage of Mike's amnesia and claiming that they were best friends. He also began dating again although he and Gaby still had feelings for each other and Carlos told Gaby he's right across the street if she ever needs him. Carlos later bonded with Travers McLain and Travers's mother, Edie Britt, which reignited his desire for children. Edie, having hit a dry spell in her love life, conspired with Travers to lure Carlos to her house late in the evening so Edie could make a move on him. Carlos judged Edie for using her son as "bait", and she doesn't want to be a party girl anymore. Under this she takes off all her clothes, including her bra and underwear. Naked, she is hugged by Carlos and their relationship begins with sex. Unfortunately that side of their relationship was not a success, initially, and they ended up in hospital after sustaining injuries. They agree to stay friends.

Travers, Edie and Carlos spend the day together at the zoo and when looking at pictures, they comment on how they look like a family. They share an emotional moment together and Carlos kisses Edie, and their relationship hit a new level. Carlos and Edie continue seeing each other but fear being caught, and are almost caught by Mike. Edie uses her job as a realtor to use empty houses for their advantage. However, when Carlos reveals he doesn't want Gaby to know, Edie is convinced he's still in love with her and tells Gabrielle at her engagement party that she has been dating Carlos. The news doesn't go down well and Gabrielle tells Edie she is unhappy about her dating Carlos. Edie refuses to stop seeing him, and Gabrielle turns to schoolgirl tactics to get back at her, telling Lynette and Susan not to speak to her. Edie retaliates by inviting Lynette and Susan to Travers's birthday party. Both think Gabrielle will be out with Victor all day and won't find out, but panic when they see her arriving at the party. She tells them that if they don't leave, their friendships are over, so Carlos removes Gaby from the party. She tells him she's in love with Victor, but he reveals that he and Edie will never be anything serious. Gaby realizes that he is still in love with her.

Edie's ex-husband, Charles, came to collect Travers and Edie spoke to a lawyer about shared custody, suspecting Carlos was losing interest. Charles and Edie argued when he found out and Edie threatened to go for full custody. Carlos persuaded not to and convinced her to think of what's best for Travers, which is for him to stay with Charles. He comforted her, saying that he will be there for her and Edie called off her lawyer.

Edie became upset when Carlos laughed at the idea of getting married, when suggested by Mike. Edie asked Carlos to move in but he refused, having signed a lease with the owner of Mike's house, Lillian Simms, who's in a nursing home. Attempting to stop this, Edie visited Lillian and lied about Carlos to get her to destroy the lease, which she did. Legally, she can change her mind within 72 hours of the agreement, so Carlos was evicted and Edie offered him a place to stay. Carlos realized she was responsible and she asked him why he won't commit to her. He told her that he isn't in love with her, and she told him she could be pregnant. The pregnancy test is negative and Carlos realized he was disappointed. Seeing a new way to keep Carlos, Edie suggested they try for a baby despite not being in love, and Carlos agreed. Edie, however, was still taking birth control pills. Carlos found them and dumped Edie, which led her to attempt suicide.

Season 4
After finding out that Victor only married her to gain goodwill, Gaby kissed Carlos on her wedding day.

In the fourth season, Carlos went home to find Edie hanging. He thought she was suicidal about their relationship but it emerged that she faked her suicide attempt. She came close to dying as Karen McCluskey complained to Carlos about the garbage cans being left out but noticed something in Edie's bedroom window. They went to investigate and found Edie. They rushed her to hospital and Carlos rang Gabrielle to tell her that they can't leave because of Edie's suicide attempt. Edie uses her suicide and her knowledge of Carlos's illegal bank account to get him to stay. However, he wants to be with Gabrielle and they begin an affair.

Edie pushed Carlos too far. She took her blackmail further, proposing marriage and telling him if he refused, she would tell the IRS about his illegal bank account. Carlos says "Yes". However, at the end of the episode, it's revealed that Carlos has paid a Certified Public Accountant named Al Kaminsky to move the money.

Edie realized Carlos was having an affair and got pictures of him and Gaby kissing. She also visited the IRS and told them about Carlos's offshore bank account, but they tell her that that account doesn't exist. So she gave the pictures to Victor and dumped Carlos. Carlos arrives at a small dock where Gabrielle tells him Victor tried to kill her while out at sea so she knocked him overboard. They go back to get him and when they do, Victor and Carlos fight. Victor went to stab Carlos and Gabrielle knocked Victor overboard again. When they look for him in the sea, they can't see him so Gabrielle and Carlos decide to frame it as suicide and let the boat go out to sea. Carlos wanted to go the police, but Gaby drugged him to stop him. However, Victor is later found alive. He pretended to have amnesia and forgotten what had happened on the boat but when he and Gaby are alone - he threatens her, declaring that he remembered everything. Gaby and Carlos plan to leave Fairview, but the tornado warning stopped them. As the storm intensified, Gaby left the house to confront Edie about Carlos's finances.

In the meantime, Victor sneaked into the house with a gun and tried to kill Carlos. Carlos ran out into the storm and Victor ran after him, firing shots. Victor is killed by a flying fence post and Carlos was hit on the head, rendering him unconscious and blind.

Carlos told Gaby that it is only temporary and that his sight will return, but found out from Edie that Carlos's sight will never return. Edie congratulated her for accepting the lifelong task of caring for a disabled husband. Gaby was upset that Carlos lied to her, but he explained that he was worried that she would not marry him, had she known the truth. She says that she would have come around but now he has robbed her of this chance. Gaby tells Carlos that she is with him "for better or worse." In the five-year jump, Carlos and Gaby are happily married and now have two daughters, Juanita and Celia Solis.

Carlos's life has changed dramatically. Despite medical doubts, Gaby unexpectedly became pregnant twice in a row. While Carlos viewed Gabby's pregnancies as "miracles", she was less enthusiastic and worried about money. Carlos became a masseur in order to keep their family afloat.

Time Jump
During the time jump, Carlos continues to be blind and stays married to Gaby. Now that Carlos doesn’t have a high paying job, Gabrielle and Carlos are downgraded to middle class citizens. Gabrielle and Carlos find out they CAN have kids after all when Gabrielle gets pregnant to what is later named Juanita Solis, after Carlos's mother. A year or two later, Gaby gets pregnant again and has another daughter which they name Celia Solis. It is strongly hinted there were complications or Carlos or Gaby dropped Celia a couple of times due to the fact she isn't all that bright.

Season 5
Early in the season, Carlos learned that his vision can be easily restored. He happily anticipated getting to see his wife for the first time in five years and his daughters for the first time, although Gaby was worried that he wouldn't recognize her and find her unattractive. When his sight is restored, Carlos finds his daughters and wife beautiful and notices that Gaby sold nearly all of her valuable belongings in order to support their family. He eventually quit his job as a masseur and take a high-paying business job so that he can give his daughters a better life and Gaby a life he feels she has earned.

Carlos became president of the company he was working at due to the death of Bradley Scott. Later on, in this episode, he hired Lynette Scavo.

In the season finale, Aunt Connie claims she is dying and needs someone to care for her granddaughter Ana. Carlos agrees as a way to pay back the aunt who did so much for him, despite Gaby's protests. Ana seems nice, but is actually a schemer who can get guys to do what she wants by flirting.

Season 6
Carlos tries to make Gaby sign adoption papers, but Gaby refuses; however, later in the episode Gaby signs the papers making Carlos and Gaby Ana's legal guardians, 24/7.

The morning after Mike and Susan's wedding, Carlos and Gaby are having breakfast when Ana enters. Gaby teaches Ana how to get guys and tells her that she should ignore them. She tells her that that is how she got Carlos which enrages him. They all then rush outside when they hear Karen's screams.

Carlos is shocked when he learns of the attack on Julie Mayer as he says that she is the nicest girl ever. Carlos, Tom and Orson then start to get suspicious about the Bolens and decide that it is time that they get to know them. Later, the guys stop Nick and start questioning them. Angie then comes and tells Nick that his mother's on the phone, providing him with an excuse to leave.

Season 7
Carlos finds out that Juanita is not their real daughter, but hides it from Gaby, afraid that it will hurt her. When Gaby eventually finds out, they out to look for her real daughter, Grace. Over first meeting her, they see Grace throwing a tantrum over an expensive jacket, and know that Grace is Gaby's real daughter. They also find out that her parents are illegal immigrants, though Grace (being born in the United States) is a citizen. Her father gets arrested after not showing the police a license, leaving Grace's fake mother to go in hiding. Even though Gaby and Carlos try multiple times to take in Grace at her house, Grace's "mother" insists she stay with her. He supports Gaby when she goes into therapy after she begins to lose it, and later goes to Gaby's hometown with her to confront her former stepfather who is now dead, but instead Gaby sees a teacher who she confided in and didn't believe her, causing to Gaby to tell the woman she should feel ashamed and not her. They leave the town and Gaby puts the past behind her.

When Andrew seeks rehab for drinking, he decides to come clean to Carlos over running over his mother. Bree and Gaby both try to stop him and when Carlos invites Andrew to a camping trip, they suspect the worst. They chase Carlos to the woods and when they see him with a bloody towel and dirty shovel, Bree blurts out what Andrew did just before her son returns. Carlos is outraged, not only with Andrew but with Bree and Gaby for hiding the truth. He tries to force Andrew to drink in his mother's memory and walks out of the cabin. Andrew, Bree and Gaby find him at his mother's grave as Andrew talks to him about what happened and Carlos decides to forgive him. When Bree comes to thank him, however, Carlos coldly says that he can't forgive her knowing the truth all these years and hiding it from him and tells Bree their friendship is over. This changes, however, after Carlos kills Gaby's stepfather, who returned to Wisteria Lane and was tormenting her. The two appear to have reconciled after Bree agreed to protect Carlos.

Season 8
A month after killing Gabrielle's evil stepfather Alejandro, Carlos is not able to fall asleep. He starts to feel extremely guilty about the murder. He starts to get extremely angry at everything and everyone, this includes yelling at Juanita even after she made Carlos and Gaby breakfast. While Susan, Gaby, Lynette, and Bree are fighting at Gaby's pool, Carlos is talking with Mike Delfino and Chuck Vance about sports.

Carlos starts heavily drinking which concerns his wife. Carlos also starts spending a lot of time with Susan about the murder because they both feel extremely guilty. Mike and Gaby start to think Susan and Carlos are having affairs. Gaby later makes Carlos go to rehab after his drinking gets to bad. Carlos eventually checks himself out and gets drunk. Gaby later forces him to go back to rehab or she will leave him and takes Juanita and Celia with her. While Carlos is gone, Gaby gives their living room a complete makeover to help Carlos forget about Alejandro.

After Carlos returns home from rehab, he decides to turn his life around by quitting his job to help recovering alcoholics turn their lives around. Carlos also gets the Solis's a cat named Rufus. Juanita nearly falls off the roof trying to get Rufus but she manages to get back inside.

Carlos is an usher at his best friend Mike's funeral. Carlos recalls the time when he is in rehab and Mike came and visited him and told him not to give up because Mike was in the same situation (back in season four).

In "Give Me the Blame", Carlos decides he wants to turn himself in for the murder of Alejandro because he feels guilty about letting Bree take the blame for a crime he committed. Gaby later decides to take the blame for the murder. Gaby stops Carlos from getting to the courthouse by putting a pocket knife in his jacket. Just as Gaby is about to confess, Lynette tells her Karen McCluskey already has. Bree is released of all charges, Mrs. McCluskey is not arrested since she is about to die anyways, and Carlos gets off the hook scot free without anyone else finding out the truth.

In "Finishing the Hat", Carlos hires a new young, hot, Hispanic gardener named Carmen to make Gabrielle jealous. At Renee and Ben's wedding, Gaby tells Carlos that the most stupid thing she has ever done was had that affair with John Rowland. Carlos and Gaby make up and start dancing to the tango and later start dancing with Juanita and Celia.

Later life
"Gabrielle and Carlos Solis left the neighbourhood the following year. This was after Carlos helped her develop a personal shopping website which led to Gabrielle getting her own show on the Home Shopping Network. They soon bought a mansion in California where they argued happily ever after..."

- Mary Alice Young

Carlos helps his wife Gabrielle to develop her own personal shopping website as an extension of her current career. The website was such a success that Gaby was offered her own show called "Gabrielle's Closet" where she would work as a TV personality on the Home Shopping Network. This show was also a smash success and led to Gaby becoming excessively rich, her, Carlos, Juanita and Celia then moved to a Californian mansion where her and Carlos argued happily ever after. ("Finishing the Hat")

Trivia

 * Ricardo Antonio Chavira was almost replaced because producers felt his acting was stiff in the Pilot.
 * Despite being a "gay basher" (in both cases, he didn't know they were gay) on the show, Ricardo Antonio Chavira has had several gay love scenes on the hit TV show Six Feet Under.
 * During seasons 3-6, Carlos overtook titular housewife Bree for fourth most appearances by characters in the series. It wasn't until season 7 that Bree finally overtook him.
 * For the first 8 years of knowing him, Susan used to call him "Ricky Ricardo", a clear homage to both the TV series I Love Lucy and the actor's name (Ricardo Antonio Chavira).
 * Carlos is one of the eleven main characters who appear in every season.
 * Carlos is one of two main characters whose mother was killed in a hit-and-run. Strangely enough, Bree is the other, also being the mother of Andrew Van de Kamp, who killed his mother.
 * After season 5 (season 6 and onwards) both Gabrielle and Carlos only drive Mercedes-Benz cars.
 * Carlos appears in more episodes than any of the other guys.

Gallery
Gallery of photographic stills released to promote the character.