Antonio Banderas (born August 10, 1960), is an actor who was born José Antonio Domínguez Bandera in Málaga, Andalusia, Spain.
As a young man, he went penniless to Madrid to make a career in the Spanish film industry. He first gained wide attention through a series of films with director Pedro Almodóvar between 1982 and 1990, and is one of the stars of the three Spy Kids movies (2001-2003). 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. 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' sole directing effort was the poorly-received Crazy in Alabama, starring Griffith.
In 2003 he appeared to great acclaim in the Broadway revival of Maury Yeston's musical Nine, in the 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.
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