Penélope Cruz was born on April 28, 1974 in Alcobendas, Spain. Her father -Eduardo Cruz- was a merchant and her mother -María de la Encarnación Sanchez- owned a hair salon. They were fans of singer-songwriter Joan Manuel Serrat and named her daughter Penelope after his namesake song. She is the eldest of two brothers: Mónica, who is a television actress and Eduardo, who is a singer.
Her interest in art and cinema began when she was a teenager, when at 15 she watched the film Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down! by Pedro Almodóvar. She then decided she wanted to become an actress to fulfill her dream: to work with that director.
She studied classical ballet at the National Conservatory of Madrid for nine years, and then four years of various dance courses to perfect her technique. She also studied acting to be able to perform in different auditions. She was first chosen for a leading role for a video clip of the group Mecano called La fuerza del destino. She then made television appearances that opened the doors to the world of acting.
She filmed her first movie called The Greek Labyrinth in 1991 and years later, in 1997, her dream came true: she collaborated with Pedro Almodóvar playing a small character in Live Flesh. The film stars, among other actors, Javier Bardem (The roads not Taken), an actor who would become her husband several years later in 2010. That same year she also starred in Open your Eyes, directed by Alejandro Almodóvar, a title that brought her international fame as it was a box office success. Finally, with The Girl of your Dreams, she was nominated for best actress at the European Film Awards. This certainly took her directly to Hollywood.
Throughout her career she has worked with outstanding actors such as Matt Damon (Suburbicon), Tom Cruise, Nicholas Cage, Johnny Depp (Transcendence), Matthew McConaughey (Serenity), Halle Berry (who will soon star in Moonfall by Roland Emmerich), among others.
She again achieved her dream of working with Almodóvar in 2006 with a leading role in Volver. The following year she became the first Spanish actress to be nominated for an Oscar for best actress, although she did not win. It was not until 2009 that she took home the award for best supporting actress for the feature film Vicky Cristina Barcelona, thus becoming the first Spanish actress to win an Oscar.
What other things we love about her? One of her best friends is renowned actress Salma Hayek, with whom she performed in The Roads not Taken in 2020. Penélope is a polyglot since she speaks Spanish, French, English and Italian. In the film To Rome with Love, directed by Woody Allen, we witnessed her almost perfect Italian.
Where else do we have the pleasure of seeing her?
Penelope Cruz will star alongside Jessica Chastain (Molly’s Game), Bingbing Fan, Lupita Nyong’o and Diane Kruger in The 355. The thriller is directed by Simon Kinberg and is about a group of agents from different agencies around the world - Colombia, the United States, China, Germany and England - who come together to recover an ultra-secret weapon that is in the hands of an enemy and poses a serious danger to the entire world.
The film is eagerly awaited by all fans of the genre and of each of these powerful actresses. It has also been informed in recent days that its release will be postponed in the United States and Latin America until 2022.
We must be patient while we look forward to this incredible premiere!
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