Among the famous Hollywood actresses, there are several women who are distinguished by their special charm, attractiveness, and talent. Penelope Cruz is considered one of these. The Spanish woman has been at the peak of popularity for several decades, receiving roles in the most famous films. In addition, she is building a modeling career and is involved in charity work.
Childhood and youth
The future model and actress was born in the small town of Alcobendas, located near Madrid, in April 1974. Penelope Cruz's nationality is Spanish. The girl's mother was a hairdresser and also an impresario; her father worked in retail and was a talented auto mechanic.
Penelope Cruz's biography states that she is the eldest child in the family. She has a sister, Monica, as well as a brother, Eduardo, who is known to many as a musician and talented singer. Sister Cruz also appears in films. In addition, she has a half-sister on her father's side, whose name is Salma.
The girl was raised as a Catholic and often lived in a small apartment with her grandmother, whom she loved very much. In her interviews, Cruz always says that her childhood was happy, despite her parents being busy and some difficulties.
As a child, Penelope did not dream of becoming an actress. She had a good figure and average height, and was actively involved in dancing, in particular classical ballet. At the age of 9, the girl attended the Spanish National Conservatory and was very diligent. The teachers noticed the talent of the young dancer, as well as her stubbornness and restlessness.
After graduating from the conservatory, Penelope moved to New York and entered the Christina Rota School, where she studied ballet and theater arts. The unfamiliar country did not frighten the girl: she calmly left her homeland. Already at the age of 11, she began to show interest in cinema, reviewed the films of famous directors, and adopted the style of actors.
At the age of 15, Penelope began attending various castings, but was rejected many times by agents due to her youth and restlessness. Cruz later recalls that it was ballet that gave her the strength to shape her character. In these dances, endurance and strict discipline are important. Penelope cultivated these qualities in herself in order to get on the set.
After some time, luck smiled on the girl. She was hired by a young talent agency. Later, her agent Katrina Bayonas found the girl's first role .
In her interview, the woman said that she saw the inner fire that burned in Penelope’s eyes. There was something special about her that complemented her attractive appearance.
Carier start
Penelope's first appearance on screen took place in 1989. It was a video from a popular music group. After that, she was invited to the role of TV presenter of a popular teen show. She ran it for several years. Then the girl’s career developed rapidly:
- In 1991, she received a cameo role in an erotic series, where she appeared completely naked.
- The following year, she appeared on the big screen for the first time in the role of the young and gullible girl Sylvia in the comedy with dramatic overtones “Ham, Ham.” It was in this film that she first met her future husband, Javier Bardem. After the film’s release, journalists said that it was the film that became key in Cruz’s career. She began to be considered a sex symbol. The girl in the film appeared topless on the screen. Critics and viewers received the film very favorably.
- A year later, Cruz was nominated for the Spanish Award for Best Actress. Many critics said that her characters in films are charming and unforgettable.
From 1993 to 1996, Penelope played in 10 Spanish and Italian films. At the age of 20, the girl moved to New York. There she continues to practice ballet, act in films and study English.
Later, the actress says that she began to take an interest in English too late. Before filming the movie, she could only say phrases she had memorized for casting, as well as some simple words.
Further development
In 1997, Penelope played the role of a Lenon fan in the comedy The Dangers of Love. Her performance received rave reviews from critics and audiences. The latter were looking forward to the next film with the participation of the young actress. The woman’s career continues to develop:
- After filming the comedy, Cruz took part in several more films. They received positive reviews from film critics, but viewers did not appreciate the actors' performances.
- Penelope Cruz's first American film is the western Hill and Valley. This time, critics did not appreciate the performance of the cast and the plot of the film. The woman herself said that during the filming process she felt discomfort when communicating with people who spoke English. Despite the failure, she was nominated for Best Actress.
- The next film brought Cruz a European Film Academy Award. In the film “The Girl of Your Dreams” she played the role of a singer. Film critics reacted positively to the actress’s performance, noting that she became the central figure of the plot.
- In 2000, the woman received her first leading role in the film “The Woman on Top.” She reincarnated as a girl who suffers from seasickness. The film was a success with viewers.
- The actress's next work was the western "Untamed Hearts", where she played with Matt Damon. The audience liked the film and the creative duo, but critics were not so favorable to the film.
After this, the actress was nominated for several awards and received recognition in Hollywood.
From the daughter of an auto mechanic to a world personality
Penelope was born in one of the cities of sunny Spain in the most ordinary family. But her life changed when, while still a teenage girl, Cruz went to New York to study at a dance school. In this city, she tried herself as an actress, receiving her first role in the film “Ham, Ham.”
After which Penelope became convinced that she wanted to be an actress, not a dancer. They began to invite her to act in films, but the actress’s role was the same - the image of a sexy woman.
Penelope made a career as a model, becoming the face of the cover of magazines that had an audience of millions.
Crucial moment
In 2001, a turning point came in Penelope's career. She took part in several films, but was not awarded any awards, despite good reviews from film critics. In the film “Vanilla Sky” she played opposite Tom Cruise.
Despite mixed reviews from connoisseurs of dramatic stories, the film's box office receipts worldwide reached $200 million. After this, Penelope received a role in the dramatic film “Cocaine”. She was secondary, but Johnny Depp became Cruz’s partner on the set. The film received mixed reviews, but audiences loved it. The fees for it reached $80 million.
From 2001 to 2005, Cruz took part in 10 films, but did not receive good reviews from film critics. Some of them were marked as failures. Spectators and press representatives said that the secret of the actress’s failures lay in problems in her personal life. Many claimed that Penelope changed the style and manner of playing, but the experiment was unsuccessful. Despite this, the audience's attitude towards the attractive actress has not changed.
First successes in Hollywood
Having settled in the famous Greenwich Village, a neighborhood favored by artists and other bohemians, the girl quickly made friends.
She enrolled in Christina Rota's dance studio and also studied English and acting. She starred in the film of her idol Almodóvar in 1997. Penelope again found the master herself and told him that she had already become an actress. The director laughed at the eccentric, but invited her to audition. The thriller “Living Flesh,” like all the master’s creations, is ambiguous and very sensual, and was based on the English writer Ruth Rendell. The film earned flattering reviews, a Goya film award and many nominations, including BAFTA.
Penelope's next film was the heartfelt masterpiece Open Your Eyes. The young actress was accompanied in Alejandro Amenábar's film by Fela Martinez and the romantic Eduardo Noriega as Cesar.
Until the early 2000s, she starred in several films, but she received recognition as a deep dramatic actress only after the release of the 1999 film “All About My Mother.” Pedro Almodovar's film also stars Marisa Paredes and Cecilia Roth. The film received an Oscar - it was recognized as the best foreign film of the 1999 film season. It was from this moment that the Spanish beauty’s stellar career began to develop.
Worldwide recognition
The second turning point in Penelope’s career was the film “Bandits,” where she played with Salma Hayek. The actresses agreed on all parameters and became a wonderful duet. The film was successful among audiences. Critics also reacted favorably to it .
After this, Penelope took part in the famous film “The Return”. In it she received the main role. The actress carefully prepared for filming. To transform into her heroine, Cruz reviewed many Italian films with celebrities from the 1950s.
Later, the actress said that this role was the best gift for her during her entire filming in various films. Film critics noted that Penelope can not only decorate the picture with her beauty, but also show the viewer real feelings, experiences, and mental anguish. For this film she was nominated for several awards, including an Oscar. However, Cruz lost all the nominations to another actress. Despite this, in her homeland she was awarded the award for Best Actress.
In 2008, the actress took part in three films. All of them were successful. Penelope received an Oscar for her role as a mentally unstable woman in the film Vicky Cristina Barcelona. From now on, the list of successful projects begins to actively grow:
- In 2011, Penelope received the role of a pirate in the famous film “Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides.” The director of the film told the press that he only saw Cruz in this role, since she could stand next to Johnny Depp and be his equal.
- In April of the same year, the actress received her own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
- The following year, Penelope starred in the film Roman Adventures, which also starred Woody Allen.
- The following year was marked by the release of the thriller “The Advisor.” Penelope Cruz's husband Javier Bardem also starred in this film. However, the spouses did not have scenes together.
Further, Penelope's career develops at a rapid pace. She gets roles in famous films and portrays various heroines on the screen.
Star biography: Penelope Cruz
Penelope Cruz was born on April 28, 1974 in Madrid in the family of a small merchant and hairdresser. From an early age, the girl was interested in dancing, and later entered the Spanish National Conservatory, where she studied classical ballet.
From the age of 15, Penelope starred in music videos and television series. In 1991, she made her big screen debut in the film “Greek Labyrinth.” In 1993, she already played her first leading role - in the film “Rebel”. Then there were the films “Funny, but not very much”, “This is a lie” and others. But the Spanish beauty became famous only in 1997. Then she starred in a small but memorable role in Pedro Almodóvar’s film “Living Flesh.” It was Almodóvar who became Cruz’s “godfather” in cinema, and she became one of his wonderful muses.
Also in 1997, the film “Open Your Eyes” was released with Penelope in the title role. And the following year, the actress began to participate in international projects - the films “Don Juan” by Jacques Weber, as well as “The Man with Rain in His Boots.” In 1999, Penelope again became Almodóvar’s heroine, starring in his film “All About My Mother,” which won the Oscar for best foreign film.
After that, she began to slowly but surely conquer Hollywood. She was not always lucky - for example, for her role in Cocaine, Cruz was nominated for a Golden Raspberry. The actress also did not forget about Spanish cinema - for example, she starred in the bright film “No News from God.” Successful American projects in Cruz's career began in the 2000s - these are the films "Untamed Hearts", "Captain Corelli's Choice" and Cameron Crowe's "Vanilla Sky".
On the set of Vanilla Sky, Penelope met Tom Cruise. Tom subsequently divorced his wife Nicole Kidman and dated Cruz for three years. However, the long-awaited wedding never happened - Tom married Katie Holmes, and Penelope took up her own career even more closely. For example, in 2004 she got a role in the beautiful film “Head in the Clouds,” where she played a lame Spanish dancer.
In Cruz's career, intellectual films easily gave way to action and adventure. In 2005, she played one of the leading roles in the film “Sahara” along with her boyfriend Matthew McConaughey, and in 2006, together with her friend Salma Hayek, in the film “Bandits.”
In 2006, Cruz received one of the most prestigious awards - the Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actress. It went to her (and two other actresses from the same film) for her role in Almodóvar’s film “The Return.”
2008 was one of the most successful years in Penelope’s work - she starred in two interesting films at once. The first is “Elegy” - the story of the relationship between a professor and a young Cuban woman, who at first glance seems to be the purest creature. The second is Woody Allen’s acclaimed film “Vicky Cristina Barcelona.” Her impulsive Maria Elena brought the actress the long-awaited Oscar (Penelope won in the Best Supporting Actress category). The actress was nominated for this award the following year for her work in the musical “Nine.”
Also in 2009, another joint creation of Pedro Almodovar and Penelope was released - the drama "Broken Embraces", nominated for the Palme d'Or, Golden Globe and BAFTA.
In addition to her main activity, Pe is also a model - before Scarlett Johansson, she was the face of Mango.
As for her personal life, Penelope Cruz has long been romantically involved with Spanish actor Javier Bardem.
Personal life
Penelope rarely talks about her personal life. It is known that she has been on friendly terms with director Pedro Almodóvar for more than 20 years.
Cruz's best friend is Salma Hayek. Women often met on film sets and in the company of mutual friends. Friendships began easily. After filming the film “Vanilla Sky,” a story appeared in all printed publications in which Penelope’s relationship with her co-star Tom Cruise was described. The affair lasted about three years. After the separation, the actress filed a lawsuit against one of the print publications, claiming that the journalists incorrectly presented information about her relationship and breakup with Tom Cruise.
After this, Penelope dated Matthew McConaughey for about a year, but the romance also did not culminate in a wedding. In an interview in 2007, Cruz said that she dreams of having a child and also wants to adopt several children.
In 2007, it became known about the beginning of Penelope’s relationship with Javier Bardem (an actor originally from Spain), who took part in several films in which Cruz also played. In 2010, the couple got married in the Bahamas. The following year the couple had a son, and 2 years later a daughter was born.
