TMS Muse of the Week: Penélope Cruz

(Mario Testino)

Most countries have local celebrities who make it globally, especially in America and Asia. For actresses, there are countless French and Italian movie stars; a few Swedish and German; and of course, the Brits are sprinkled everywhere in Hollywood productions. But surprisingly, there aren’t many superstar actors from Spain with the same ratio. One might assume maybe it’s because we already have a lot of Latino-Americans, Mexicans, Cubans and Puerto Ricans throughout the US, so there wouldn’t be any need to import anyone all the way from Spain. Of course, some Spaniards have still had their moments to shine on screen. Paz Vega was a Euro it girl for a minute with Julio Medem’s Sex & Lucia (2001) and James L. Brooks’ Spanglish (2004). Elsa Pataky is a locally popular actress from Madrid who is more famous these days for her relationships with ex-boyfriend Adrien Brody and current husband Chris Hemsworth. Spanish-Cuban starlet Ana de Armas has been doing very well for herself in recent years between hits like Denis Villeneuve’s Blade Runner 2049 (2017) and Rian Johnson’s Knives Out (2019). But I think most agree that the big, modern screen legend from Spanish cinema is Penélope Cruz.

Next to her best friend Salma Hayek, Penélope is probably the Spanish speaking actress everyone thinks of when asked to name one. Starting her career in Madrid with flicks like Bigas Luna’s Jamón, jamón (1992)—Penélope’s introduction to future husband and frequent co-star Javier Bardem—and Pedro Almodóvar’s Live Flesh (1997), her first of many collaborations with the filmmaker; the Alcobendas native has all the natural qualities for stardom. Her first stints in the US were duds like Stephen Frears’ The Hi-Lo Country (1998), Billy Bob Thornton’s All the Pretty Horses (2000) and Fina Torres’ Woman on Top (2000). But things fared better when Cameron Crowe hired her to play the female lead in Vanilla Sky (2001), his remake of Alejandro Amenábar’s Abre los ojos (1997)—which also co-starred Penélope. Vanilla Sky was divisive with critics, but still spent two weeks at no. 1 at the box-office because of lead star Tom Cruise, who Penélope also consequently dated until 2004.

(Samuel Goldwyn Films / Sony Pictures)

That same year as Vanilla Sky, the Spanish actress also appeared in Ted Demme’s Blow (2001), where she coined a friendship with another mega famous co-star, Johnny Depp. Soon enough, Penélope was getting plenty of meaty material in both Hollywood and Spain. Besides Pedro, she was briefly a muse to Woody Allen with his romcoms Vicky Cristina Barcelona (2008) and To Rome with Love (2012); the former of which co-starred Javier again and won Penélope the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress. Her first nomination—for Best Actress—was two years earlier with Pedro’s Volver (2006) [my favorite film of hers, by the way]. Her Supporting Actress win also marked the first time an actor from Spain won an Academy Award.

With the exception of a dip in 2014-16, Penélope’s career has mostly continued to thrive artistically and commercially, even as the face of brands like L’Oréal, Chanel and Ralph Lauren over the years. After marrying Javier in 2010, the couple now have a son Leo [b. 2011] and daughter Luna [b. 2013], and are pretty much the biggest power couple of western Europe. Last we saw of Penélope, she just gained her fourth Oscar nomination and second for Best Actress with Pedro’s Parallel Mothers (2021). Looking at both their resumes, there’s just something about the combo of the star and the director that makes them shine. Whether it’s an ensemble drama like All About My Mother (1999) or a period piece like Broken Embraces (2009); the duo bring out the best in each other cinematically.