Antonio Banderas

José Antonio Domínguez Bandera (born 10 August 1960), better known as Antonio Banderas (), is a Spanish actor and filmmaker. Known for his work in films of several genres, he has received numerous accolades, including a Cannes Film Festival Award and a Goya Award, as well as nominations for an Academy Award, two Primetime Emmy Awards, five Golden Globe Awards, and a Tony Award.

Banderas made his acting debut at a small theater in Málaga, where he caught the attention of director Pedro Almodóvar, who gave the actor his film debut in the screwball comedy ''Labyrinth of Passion'' (1982). They have since collaborated on many films, including ''Matador'' (1986), ''Law of Desire'' (1987), '' Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown'' (1988), ''Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down!'' (1989), ''The Skin I Live In'' (2011), and ''Pain and Glory'' (2019), the latter of which earned him the Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actor as well as a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actor.

In 1992, Banderas made his American film debut with the musical drama '' The Mambo Kings'' (1992), followed by roles in ''Philadelphia'' (1993), also in 1993 he starred in “Benito”, '' Interview with the Vampire'' (1994), ''Assassins'' (1995), and ''Evita'' (1996). He portrayed Zorro in '' The Mask of Zorro'' (1998) and '' The Legend of Zorro'' (2005). He made his directorial debut with the comedy film '' Crazy in Alabama'' (1999). He is a frequent collaborator with director Robert Rodriguez, having starred as El Mariachi in the '' Mexico Trilogy'' films ''Desperado'' (1995) and '' Once Upon a Time in Mexico'' (2003). He has starred in franchise films, including as the patriarch in the ''Spy Kids'' series (2001–2003) and as the voice of Puss in Boots in the ''Shrek'' films (2004–present).

On stage, Banderas made his Broadway debut as Guido Contini in '' Nine'' (2003), for which he was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical and won a Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actor in a Musical. He received Primetime Emmy Award nominations for his roles as Pancho Villa in the HBO television film '' And Starring Pancho Villa as Himself'' (2004) and Pablo Picasso in the anthology series '' Genius: Picasso'' (2018).

Early life

José Antonio Domínguez Bandera was born on August 10, 1960, in Málaga to Civil Guard gendarme officer José Domínguez Prieto (1920–2008) and schoolteacher Ana Bandera Gallego (1933–2017). He has a younger brother named Francisco. As a little boy, Banderas wanted to become a professional football player until a broken foot sidelined his dreams at the age of 15. He showed a strong interest in the performing arts and formed part of the ARA Theatre School run by Ángeles Rubio-Argüelles y Alessandri (wife of diplomat and filmmaker Edgar Neville) and the College of Dramatic Art, both in Málaga. His work in the theater and his performances on the streets eventually landed him a spot with the Spanish National Theatre.

Career

1982–1989: Early collaborations with Pedro Almodóvar

Banderas began his acting studies at the School of Dramatic Art in Málaga and made his acting debut at a small theater in Málaga. He began working in small shops during Spain's post-dictatorial cultural movement known as La Movida Madrileña.

While performing with the theater, Banderas caught the attention of Spanish director Pedro Almodóvar, who gave the young actor his film debut in the screwball sex comedy ''Labyrinth of Passion'' (1982). Five years later, he went on to appear in the director's comedic thriller ''Law of Desire'' (1987), making headlines with his performance as a gay man, which required him to engage in his first male-to-male onscreen kiss. Banderas appeared in Almodóvar's surrealist sex comedy ''Matador,'' with Vincent Canby of ''The New York Times'' writing, "The movie looks terrific and is acted with absolute, straight-faced conviction by the excellent cast... ''Matador'' is of most interest as another work in the career of a film maker who, possibly, is in the process of refining a singular talent."

The director cast him in his internationally acclaimed 1988 film, '' Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown''. Rita Kemply of ''The Washington Post'' described Banderas' performance as "warm" and described the film as a "glossy delight." The film went on to receive a nomination for the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film. The recognition Banderas gained for his role increased years later, when he starred in Almodóvar's controversial ''Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down!'' (1989) as a mental patient who kidnaps a porn star ( Victoria Abril) and keeps her tied up until she returns his love. The breakthrough role helped spur him on to Hollywood. Almodóvar is credited with helping launch Banderas's international career, as he became a regular feature in his films throughout the 1980s.

1990–1999: Hollywood stardom

In 1991, Madonna introduced Banderas to Hollywood. (He was an object of her desires in her pseudodocumentary film of one of her concert tours, '' Madonna: Truth or Dare''.) The following year, still speaking minimal English, he began acting in U.S. films. Despite having to learn all his lines phonetically, Banderas still managed to turn in a critically praised performance as a struggling musician in his first American drama film, '' The Mambo Kings'' (1992). Film critic Roger Ebert praised the film, describing it as being "filled with energy, passion and heedless vitality."

Banderas then broke through to mainstream American audiences in the 1993 Jonathan Demme film ''Philadelphia'' as the life partner of lawyer Andrew Beckett (Tom Hanks), who is suffering from AIDS. Also in 1993, he acted in the Bille August-directed ''The House of the Spirits,'' an adaptation of the Isabel Allende novel of the same name. Banderas acted alongside Meryl Streep, Jeremy Irons, Glenn Close, and Winona Ryder.
The film's success earned Banderas wide recognition, and the following year, he was given a role in Neil Jordan's high-profile adaptation of Anne Rice's '' Interview with the Vampire'' (1994), sharing the screen with Brad Pitt, Tom Cruise, and Kirsten Dunst. He starred in several major Hollywood films, including the Robert Rodriguez-directed neo-Western action film ''Desperado'' (1995), alongside Salma Hayek, Steve Buscemi, and Quentin Tarantino. The film was a financial success. Owen Gleiberman of ''Entertainment Weekly'' wrote, "The movie’s greatest visual coup... is Banderas himself. The camera loves this velvet stud as much as it did the young Clint Eastwood."

That same year, Banderas portrayed the antagonist in the Richard Donner-directed action film ''Assassins'', co-starring opposite Sylvester Stallone and Julianne Moore. In 1996, he starred alongside Madonna in the musical film ''Evita'', an adaptation of the stage musical by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice in which he played the narrator, Che, a role played by David Essex in the original 1978 West End production. Janet Maslin of ''The New York Times'' wrote that "Banderas... does an unexpectedly splendid job as the film's conspiratorial singing narrator." For his performance, he was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy. He also had success with his role as the masked swordsman Zorro in the 1998 film '' The Mask of Zorro,'' starring Anthony Hopkins and Catherine Zeta-Jones. Roger Ebert praised the onscreen chemistry between the two leads, writing, "The best scenes in the movie are between Banderas and Zeta-Jones, who share chemistry and, it turns out, a sense of justice." His performance earned him another Golden Globe Award nomination. In 1999, he starred in the historical action film '' The 13th Warrior'', a movie about a Muslim caught up in a war between the Northman and human-eating beasts.

2000–2009: Broadway debut and franchise films

In 2001, Banderas collaborated with Robert Rodriguez, who cast him in the first three movies of the ''Spy Kids'' franchise (2001-2003). He portrayed Gregorio Cortez, a retired OSS agent, alongside Carla Gugino, who played his wife, Ingrid Cortez. Roger Ebert praised the first film, describing it as "giddy with the joy of its invention. It's an exuberant, colorful extravaganza, wall-to-wall with wildly original sets and visual gimmicks, and smart enough to escape the kids film category and play in the mainstream." He also starred in Michael Cristofer's ''Original Sin'' alongside Angelina Jolie the same year.

In 2002, he portrayed social realist painter David Alfaro Siqueiros in Julie Taymor's biographical drama '' Frida,'' with Salma Hayek playing Frida Kahlo. That same year, he starred in Brian De Palma's erotic thriller ''Femme Fatale'' opposite Rebecca Romijn, and in 2003, he starred in the last installment of the trilogy '' Once Upon a Time in Mexico'' (in which he appeared with Johnny Depp and Hayek). Banderas' debut as a director was the poorly received '' Crazy in Alabama'' (1999), starring his then wife Melanie Griffith. He starred in the Christopher Hampton-directed historical drama '' Imagining Argentina'' (2003) alongside Emma Thompson.

Banderas made his Broadway debut playing Guido Contini in the 2003 revival of Maury Yeston's musical '' Nine'', based on the film ''8½'', playing the prime role originated by Raul Julia. Ben Brantley, the chief theater critic of ''The New York Times,'' wrote that Banderas was "a bona fide matinee idol for the 21st century -- a pocket Adonis who suggests a more sensitive, less menacing variation on the Latin lovers of yore," adding that "he has an appealingly easy stage presence and an agreeable singing voice that shifts, a bit abruptly, between pop whisperiness and Broadway belting." He won both the Outer Critics Circle Award and the Drama Desk Award for Best Actor in a Musical and was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical. His performance is preserved on the Broadway cast recording released by PS Classics. Later that year, he received the Rita Moreno HOLA Award for Excellence from the Hispanic Organization of Latin Actors.

Also in 2003, he starred as Mexican revolutionary Pancho Villa in the HBO television film '' And Starring Pancho Villa as Himself''. Banderas acted alongside Alan Arkin, Jim Broadbent, and Michael McKean. The film was directed by Bruce Beresford and written by Larry Gelbart. Phil Gallo of '' Variety'' wrote, "Villa was larger than life, and Banderas vibrantly captures his bravado. Everything in the telepic, though, is designed to make Villa a likable force, which pushes and pulls Banderas in a number of directions, only some of which play well. Eventually, 'Villa' exposes a dark side in the man, and Banderas forsakes crafting the image of a hero to allow the man’s ambiguity to shine." Banderas was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie and the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Miniseries or Television Film for his performance.

The following year, Banderas portrayed Puss in Boots in the DreamWorks animated film '' Shrek 2'' (2004). Todd McCarthy of '' Variety'' praised his performance, writing that he is "deliciously sending up his Zorro persona." The film was an immense box office and critical hit. It went on to receive a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature. Banderas reprised his role in ''Shrek the Third'' (2007) and the last film in the ''Shrek'' franchise, '' Shrek Forever After'' (2010), which helped make the character popular on the family film circuit. In 2005, he reprised his role as Zorro in '' The Legend of Zorro''. In 2006, he starred in ''Take the Lead'', a high-set movie in which he played a ballroom dancing teacher. That year, he directed his second film, '' El camino de los ingleses'', based on the novel by Antonio Soler, and also received the L.A. Latino International Film Festival's "Gabi" Lifetime Achievement Award on October 14. Banderas received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2005, the 2,294th person to do so; his star is located on the north side of the 6800 block of Hollywood Boulevard.

2010–present: Reunion with Almodóvar

Banderas acted in the Woody Allen-directed comedy-drama '' You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger'' (2010), starring Anthony Hopkins, Josh Brolin, and Naomi Watts. The film premiered at the Cannes Film Festival and received mixed reviews. The following year, he starred in the horror thriller ''The Skin I Live In'' (2011), which marked the return of Banderas to Pedro Almodóvar, the Spanish director who launched his international career. The two had not worked together since 1990 (''Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down!''). In ''The Skin I Live In,'' he breaks out of the "Latin Lover" mold from his Hollywood work and stars as a calculating revenge-seeking plastic surgeon following the rape of his daughter. According to the Associated Press, Banderas' performance is among his strongest in recent memory. That same year, he reprised his voice role as Puss in Boots, this time as the protagonist of the ''Shrek'' spin-off prequel, '' Puss in Boots''. This film reunited Banderas with Salma Hayek for the sixth time. The film received critical acclaim and was a box-office hit.

Banderas took a small role in Almodóvar's comedy ''I'm So Excited!'' (2013) and also acted in Steven Soderbergh's action thriller '' Haywire'' (2011), Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris' romance fantasy ''Ruby Sparks'' (2012), and Terrence Malick's experimental drama ''Knight of Cups'' (2015). Banderas starred in '' The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water'' as Burger Beard, the film's main antagonist. In 2018, Banderas starred in the National Geographic limited series '' Genius: Picasso'' as the noted sculptor and painter Pablo Picasso. For his performance, he received a Primetime Emmy Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award, and a Golden Globe Award nomination. He also acted in '' Life Itself'' (2018), which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival.

In 2019, Banderas starred in the Spanish film ''Pain and Glory'' (''Dolor y gloria''), directed by Pedro Almodóvar. The film centers around an aging film director played by Banderas who has a chronic illness and writer's block as he reflects on his life in flashbacks to his childhood. The film has been described as semi-autobiographical, according to Almodóvar. The film premiered at the 2019 Cannes Film Festival to critical acclaim. On May 25, 2019, Banderas won the Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actor for his role in the film. Manohla Dargis of ''The New York Times'' praised his performance, writing that "Banderas’s melancholic presence and subtle, intricate performance add depth and intensities of feeling... because he draws so flawlessly from Almodóvar." He was later nominated for his first ever Academy Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role for ''Pain and Glory'' and lost to Joaquin Phoenix for his role in '' Joker'' (2019).

That same year, Banderas starred in Steven Soderbergh's Netflix film '' The Laundromat'' alongside Meryl Streep and Gary Oldman. During this time, he starred in Spanish-language adaptations of the musicals '' A Chorus Line'' (2019) and ''Company'' (2021) at the Teatro del Soho CaixaBank in Spain. In 2020, he co-starred with Robert Downey Jr. in the fantasy adventure film '' Dolittle''. The following year, he starred in the black comedy '' Official Competition'' alongside Penélope Cruz, which had its world premiere at the 78th Venice International Film Festival. The film is a meta-comedy and satire on the film industry. A.O. Scott of ''The New York Times'' wrote, "Banderas... can be marvelously subtle and affecting as well as magnetic. It’s almost indecent for someone so beautiful to possess such skill, and you might have to go back to the old daysto Gary Cooperto find a matinee idol with equivalent gifts."

In 2022, Banderas appeared as Santiago Moncada, the antagonist of the film ''Uncharted'' with Tom Holland and Mark Wahlberg. He also returned to work for DreamWorks Animation, reprising his voice as Puss in Boots in the sequel '' Puss in Boots: The Last Wish'' with Hayek again and a new cast with Florence Pugh, Olivia Colman, Ray Winstone, and Wagner Moura. In 2023, he appeared in '' Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny'' with Harrison Ford, Mads Mikkelsen, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Toby Jones, and John Rhys-Davies. He also portrayed Herod in the Christmas musical film '' Journey to Bethlehem''.

In June 2023, it was announced that Banderas was set in ''Paddington in Peru''. He is reportedly playing Hunter Cabot, a dashing and intrepid riverboat captain who offers to help the Brown family on their Peruvian adventure. His daughter will be played by Carla Tous. Other co-stars include Hugh Bonneville, Emily Mortimer, Olivia Colman, and Jim Broadbent. He is set to star opposite Nicole Kidman in the A24 erotic thriller '' Babygirl,'' directed by Halina Reijn.

New stage as theater producer

Antonio Banderas has always declared that what makes him happiest is theater. On November 15, 2019, his theater project, the Teatro del Soho CaixaBank, opened its doors in Malaga. It is a creation center dedicated to the production, exhibition and distribution of shows, and training in the different areas of the performing arts.

Since spring 2024 he also sponsors a new performing arts school in Malaga, the Sohrlin Andalucía School of Arts. It is located on an old metallurgical factory. Its objective is to become a large stage center in which to design, create and export Andalusian talent to the world.

Filmography

Personal life

He is a longtime supporter of Málaga CF. In May 2010, Banderas received an honorary doctorate from the University of Málaga. He received an honorary degree from Dickinson College in 2000.

In August 2015, Banderas enrolled in a fashion-design course at Central Saint Martins. As of 2016, Banderas resides in the United Kingdom in Cobham, Surrey.

Religious beliefs

Banderas is an officer (''mayordomo de trono'') of a Roman Catholic religious brotherhood in his hometown of Málaga and travels during Holy Week to take part in the processions.
Antonio Banderas, en la Semana Santa malagueña
', ''ABC'', 30 March 2010. although he once described himself as an agnostic in an interview with ''People'' magazine in 2006: "I have to recognize that I am agnostic. I don’t believe in any kind of fundamentalism. I prefer to take life in a different way, with a sense of humor. I try to teach my kids to be open. Whatever they believe is fine with me."

About his involvement with Holy Week, he revealed he had rekindled his relationship with Catholicism in 1994 after a period of spiritual search.

In 2021, he described his religious beliefs and Holy Week to ''El País'':

Relationships

Banderas married Ana Leza in 1987 and divorced her in 1996. He met and began a relationship with American actress Melanie Griffith in 1995 while shooting ''Two Much''. They married on May 14, 1996, in London. They have a daughter, Stella del Carmen Banderas (born September 24, 1996), who appeared onscreen with Griffith in Banderas' directorial debut '' Crazy in Alabama'' (1999). In 2002, the couple received the Stella Adler Angel Award for their extensive philanthropy. Griffith had a tattoo of Banderas' name on her right arm that has since been removed.

In June 2014, Banderas and Griffith released a statement announcing their intention to divorce "in a loving and friendly manner." According to the petition filed in the Los Angeles Superior Court, the couple had "irreconcilable differences" that led to their separation. The divorce became official in December 2015. Despite being divorced, Banderas and Griffith remain close friends. His former stepdaughter Dakota Johnson has stated she considers Banderas part of the family, calling him a "bonus dad." As of November 2015, Banderas is dating Nicole Kimpel, a Dutch investment banker.

Health

In 2009, Banderas underwent surgery for a benign tumor in his back. Speaking at the Málaga Film Festival in March 2017, Banderas revealed he had suffered a heart attack on January 26, 2017, but said it "wasn't serious and hasn't caused any damages." Following that incident, he underwent heart surgery to insert three stents into his arteries. In a '' Fresh Air'' interview in September 2019, he recalled it as being life-changing. He said, "It just gave me a perspective of who I was, and it just made the important things o tothe surface. When I say this, people may just think that I'm crazy, but it's one of the best things that ever happened in my life."

Business activities

He has invested some of his film earnings in Andalusian products, which he promotes in Spain and the US. He owns 50% of a winery in Villalba de Duero, Burgos, Spain, called Anta Banderas, which produces red and rosé wines.

He performed a voice-over for an animated bee, which can be seen in the United States in television commercials for Nasonex, an allergy medication, and was seen in the 2007 Christmas advertising campaign for Marks & Spencer, a British retailer.

He is a veteran of the perfume industry. The actor has been working with fragrance and beauty multinational company Puig for over ten years, becoming one of the brand's most successful representatives. Banderas and Puig have successfully promoted a number of fragrances so far: ''Diavolo'', ''Diavolo for Women'', ''Mediterraneo'', ''Spirit'', and ''Spirit for Women''. After the success of ''Antonio for Men'' and ''Blue Seduction for Men'' in 2007, he launched his latest, ''Blue Seduction for Women,'' the following year.Antonio Banderas Launches "Blue Seduction" for Women
Softpedia.com; accessed 17 September 2014.

Awards and honors

Banderas has received many award nominations throughout his career, including an Academy Award nomination for ''Pain and Glory''. He also received five Golden Globe Award nominations for his work ranging from films to television. He has also received two Primetime Emmy Award nominations for his work, on the television projects '' And Starring Pancho Villa as Himself'' (2004) and '' Genius: Picasso'' (2018). He also received a Screen Actors Guild Award nomination for his performance as Pablo Picasso in ''Genius: Picasso''. In 2003, he received a Tony Award nomination for Best Actor in a Musical for his performance in the Broadway musical production of '' Nine''. That year, however, he did win the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actor in a Musical for his performance in ''Nine''. In 2019, he won the Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actor, the European Film Award for Best Actor, the Goya Award for Best Actor, and the New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor for his performance in Almodovar's ''Pain and Glory''.

See also

* List of actors with Hollywood Walk of Fame motion picture stars
* List of celebrities who own wineries and vineyards

References

External links

* Official Antonio Banderas
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Banderas, Antonio
1960 births
Living people
20th-century Spanish male actors
21st-century Spanish male actors
Actors from Málaga
Audiobook narrators
Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actor winners
Drama Desk Award winners
European Film Award for Best Actor winners
Spanish businesspeople
Spanish expatriates in the United Kingdom
Spanish expatriates in the United States
Spanish film producers
Masked actors
Spanish male film actors
Spanish male musical theatre actors
Spanish male television actors
Spanish male voice actors
Spanish socialists
Theatre World Award winners