An honour like no other

Penelope has proven herself to be one of the most versatile actresses by playing a variety of compelling characters, and most recently, becoming the first actress from Spain to win an Oscar.

First introduced to American audiences in the Spanish films ‘Jamon, Jamon’ and ‘Belle Epoque’, in 1998, she starred in her first English film, ‘The Hi-Lo Country’, for director Stephen Frears opposite Woody Harrelson, Patricia Arquette and Billy Crudup.

In 1999, Cruz won the Best Actress Award at the ‘13th Annual Goya Awards’ given by the Spanish Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences for her role in Fernando Trueba’s ‘The Girl Of Your Dreams’.

Confirming her status as an international actress, Cruz landed a series of coveted roles. She appeared in Billy Bob Thornton’s ‘All the Pretty Horses’, Fina Torres’ ‘Woman on Top’, Alejandro Amenabar’s ‘Open Your Eyes’ to name a few.

Next up for Cruz was a role opposite Johnny Depp in ‘Blow’ for director Ted Demme and ‘Captain Corelli’s Mandolin’ opposite Nicolas Cage. After that, Cruz starred opposite Tom Cruise in Cameron Crowe’s thriller ‘Vanilla Sky’.

Her recent credits include ‘Elegy’ opposite Sir Ben Kingsley and Woody Allen’s ‘Vicky Cristina Barcelona’, opposite Javier Bardem and Scarlet Johansson, for which she won an Oscar, a BAFTA, a New York Film Critics Circle and a National Board of Review Award for Best Supporting Actress.

She will soon be seen in  ‘Pirates Of The Caribbean — On Stranger Tides’,
opposite Johnny Depp, which hits the theaters on May 20.