Antonio Banderas

The Television & Movie Wiki: for TV, celebrities, and movies.

Image:Z2 Poster I.jpg Antonio Banderas (born August 10, 1960), is a Spanish actor who was born José Antonio Domínguez Bandera in Málaga, Andalucía, Spain to Jose Domínguez, a State Department worker, and Ana Bandera, a teacher.

As a child, Antonio Banderas wanted to play soccer professionally but his dream ended when he broke his foot at age 14. As a young man, he travelled, penniless, to Madrid in order to make a career in the Spanish film industry. He first gained wide attention through a series of films with La Mancha-born film director Pedro Almodóvar between 1982 and 1990. He divorced his Spanish wife Ana Leza and, in 1996, married Melanie Griffith, whom he had met during the shooting of Two Much.

They have a daughter, Stella del Carmen Banderas Griffith (aka simply Stella Banderas), who is included in Internet Movie Database as a child actress. With his roles in such films as Interview with the Vampire, The Mask of Zorro, and Frida, Banderas is probably the most famous Spanish actor in America. His role as Puss in Boots in Shrek 2 made him even more popular on the family film circuit, and a spin-off movie starring his character is scheduled for release in 2008. Banderas's sole directing effort was the poorly-received Crazy in Alabama, starring Griffith.

Banderas has invested his movie earnings in businesses marketing Andalusian products, which he promotes in Spain and the USA.

In 2003, he appeared to great acclaim in the Broadway revival of Maury Yeston's musical Nine, in the prime role originally played by the late Raul Julia. He won both the Outer Critics Circle and Drama Desk awards, as well as being nominated for the Tony Award for best actor in a musical. (He lost to Harvey Fierstein, star of the musical Hairspray.) Banderas' performance is preserved on the new Broadway cast recording released by PS Classics.

When speaking Spanish, he has an Andalusian accent, but he usually substitutes it with a standard Castilian one when acting.

He is a fan of the spanish soccer club Real Madrid.

[edit]