Antonio Banderas, one of Spain's most famous faces, was a soccer player until breaking his foot at the age of fourteen; he is now an international film star known for playing Zorro in the eponymous film series. He was born JosÃf© Antonio DomÃfÂnguez Banderas on August 10, 1960, in MÃf¡laga, Andalusia, Spain. His father, Jose Dominguez, was a policeman in the Spanish civil guards. His mother, DoÃf±a Ana Banderas Gallego, was a school teacher. Young Banderas was brought up a Roman Catholic. He wanted to play soccer professionally and made much success playing for his school team until the age of 14, albeit his dream ended when he broke his foot. At that time he developed a passion for theatre after seeing the stage production of 'Hair'. Banderas began his acting studies at the School of Dramatic Art in MÃf¡laga, and made his acting debut at a small theatre in MÃf¡laga. He was arrested by the Spanish police for performance in a play by 'Bertolt Brecht' and the couple have one daughter Stella born in 1996. Outside of his acting profession, Banderas has been a passionate soccer fan and a staunch supporter of the Real Madrid Football Club. He shares time between his two residencies, one is in the United States, and one in the South of Spain.
Chosen by Empire magazine as one of the 100 Sexiest Stars in film history (#24).
Attended and graduated from the School of Dramatic Art in Mlaga, Spain.
Ex-stepfather of Alexander Bauer and Dakota Johnson.
Has one younger brother: Francisco Banderas.
Chosen by People magazine as one of the 50 Most Beautiful People in the World.
Became a father for the first time at age 36 when his second wife Melanie Griffith gave birth to their daughter Stella del Carmen Banderas Griffith (aka Stella Banderas ) on September 24, 1996.
Married Ana Leza at the Church of San Nicolas in Madrid. Among those who attended were Carmen Maura and Pedro Almodvar.
Ex-son-in-law of Tippi Hedren and Peter Griffith. Ex-son-in-law of Concha Leza.
In Spanish, his surname means "flags".
Is a supporter of the Mlaga soccer team.
Has his own perfume/cologne brand for men - "Blue Seduction Woman".
Was nominated for Broadways 2003 Tony Award for Best Actor for a revival of the musical "Nine".
Had to learn English phonetically and completely from scratch when he arrived in the United States to make a risky attempt in Hollywood.
Despite being raised Catholic, Banderas described himself as an agnostic in a People magazine interview but added that whatever spiritual beliefs his kids may or may not have is fine with him.
(May 2000) Received an honorary doctorate from Dickinson College in Carlisie, Pennsylvania.
Received an honorary doctorate from the University of Malaga in Malaga, Spain.
Formed his own touring theater group in Spain where he met director Pedro Almodvar.
Became a huge fan of his wife, Melanie Griffith , long before he met her. He had first seen her in the film Something Wild and thought she was beautiful and later told a Spanish magazine in 1989 that he would love to meet her. In 1995, when she first arrived on the set of Two Much , he sprinted out of his trailer like a starstruck schoolboy to introduce himself. Nervously, he asked her how old she was. She cursed, laughed, and finally answered she was 37. They soon became a couple and stayed together for 19 years.
Ex-brother-in-law of actress Tracy Griffith and production designer Clay A. Griffith.
Lives in Los Angeles, California, Aspen, Colorado and Marbella, Spain.
Contrary to false claims, he is not the first Spanish actor to portray Zorro. Spanish actor Jos Surez portrayed Zorro several decades earlier in the film La montaa sin ley , who is followed by another Spanish actor Carlos Quiney in the films La ltima aventura del Zorro , El Zorro de Monterrey , and Zorro il cavaliere della vendetta . Banderas is also not the first Latino to play Zorro; other Latinos have preceded him such as Rafael Bertrand , Rodolfo de Anda , and Henry Darrow (1980s).
Has appeared with Salma Hayek in five films: Desperado , Four Rooms , Frida Spy Kids 3: Game Over and Puss in Boots .
Has also provided the Spanish voice-over for Puss in Boots since his first appearance in the sequel Shrek 2 .
He was awarded a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6801 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, California on October 18, 2005.
He listed his two favorite movies as Orson Welles The Magnificent Ambersons and Touch of Evil .
(November 2015) Attended a Friends of the Israel Defense Forces gala in Beverly Hills, California, which raised more than $31 million.
I get more attention as "the pussycat" in Shrek the Third (2007),than I ever did as Zorro.
There is nothing in the world that cannot be cured by love. That is the,most thing.
I never believe anything that is happening to me, probably because I am,very insecure.
[1995] Everything here in Los Angeles is masks, metaphors, unreality.
In Europe, you can feel the weight of many years of history. In a,village eight kilometers away from another village, people speak a,different language, have their own culture that they want to preserve.
I feel content. I am 51 years old and I see a lot of work, a lot of,people, a lot of faces, a lot of souls. And I feel like I am in the,middle of the game. The match is not over and I may score some goals.
I love the diversity of America. I love the plain, normal sense of humor Americans have. It is not wicked, like in some countries. And I also love how new America is.
It was an honor and privilege to arrive to this country 16 years ago with almost no money in my pocket. A lot has happened since then.
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