The 50 best spanish actors
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He abandoned his studies of law for the universitary theater. His debut in cinema was in 1962. During the 60's and 70's he participates mainly in not very good comedies. But in the 80's he has revealed as one of the best spanish actors with films like The Holy Innocents (1984) or The Enchanted Forest (1987).- Actor
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Francisco Rabal -- Paco to everyone -- was born in the mining camp where his father worked. His mother owned a small mill. At the age of six, with the Civil War breaking out, the family emigrated to Madrid and he started working as a street salesman and later in a chocolate factory, which later led to him working as an electrician in the Chamartín Film Studios. It was here he started in his first films in crowd scenes and so on. However, following advice from people like Dámaso Alonso, he found his way into the theatre and in 1950 started working with José Tamayo where he met Asunción Balaguer, who was to become his wife and inseparable companion for the rest of his life. One of the plays he starred in was a Spanish version of Arthur Miller's "Death of a Salesman." The big breakthrough came when he met Luis Buñuel, one of the greatest of Spanish film directors. They became great friends, in part due to their similar philosophies on life. Nazarín and Viridiana remain as hallmarks of that early period. However, with maturity and the passing of the Franco Régime, Rabal's best work was yet to come, and indeed culminated with his exceptional rôle in _Santos Inocentes, Los (1984)_, one of the best three or four Spanish films of all time. In 1987 he made a wonderful TV series called Juncal (1989) which was probably the character which mostly resembled the real-life Paco Rabal: a veritable "truhan" -- a roguish rascal. However, he has played the character of the Aragonese painter Francisco Goya in three different films, a personage who he became heavily identified with. It is in this period that he received his highest awards in Spain, Cannes, Montreal, etc. He is the only Spanish actor to have been given a Doctor Honoris Causa by the University of his native Murcia. Returning from the XXV Montreal Festival where he was homaged for a lifetime's work, he died over the English Channel aboard the aeroplane bringing him from London to Madrid and, despite the emergency landing in Bordeaux, nothing could be done for him. The pressure inside the plane aggravated his chronic bronchitis and started a fit of coughing which he was not able to overcome. He has published a few books which he called "some little things of mine," but most notably his collection of verses and "coplas" in 1994 and a little later collaborated with Agustín Cerezales on his biography "Si yo te contara" (If I told you all about it). His daughter, Teresa Rabal, is a successful actress, singer and TV presenter, while his son, Benito, also works as film director.- José Bódalo was born on 24 March 1916 in Córdoba, Argentina. He was an actor, known for Django (1966), Estudio 1 (1965) and El crack (1981). He died on 24 July 1985 in Madrid, Spain.
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Spanish actor. He started his career in theatre in 1939, when he was only 17, with the support of the director Modesto Higueras and the painter José Caballero. His first works were as actor, set decorator and costume designer in non-commercial amateur theatre plays, basically at the 'Teatro de las Organizaciones Juveniles (TOI)' and at the TEU. In cinema, he started as a costume designer in films mostly directed by José López Rubio and Rafael Gil and as an assistant director to Pío Ballesteros and Enrique Herreros.
His debut as a professional actor was in 1946 at the 'Teatro María Guerrero' theatre in Madrid, playing roles in plays like 'El Anticuario', 'El vergonzoso en palacio' or 'La dama boba'. Later he formed part of the companies owned by Conchita Montes and Alberto Closas. His debut as a cinema actor was also in 1946 with a little role in _María Fernanda la Jerezana (1946)_. In 1951, in the film _Esa pareja feliz (1951)_, he appeared in the credits together with two debutant key directors in Spanish cinema: Juan Antonio Bardem and Luis García Berlanga.
His first roles were comic roles in general, and increasingly important. In 1958 he started to have his first successes ('Una muchachita de Valladolid' in theatre together with 'Elisa Montes' and Alberto Closas, and The Little Apartment (1958) in cinema together with Mary Carrillo and Concha López Silva).
Since that moment on, he acted in the best theatre companies and also became an almost indispensable figure in Spanish cinema in the following two decades. Some of his best films from this stage are El cochecito (1960), Placido (1961), Robbery at 3 O'clock (1962) and The Executioner (1963). He met film-makers like Marco Ferreri, Juan Antonio Bardem, José María Forqué and Luis García Berlanga, who were able to extract from his funniness amazing nuances like tenderness, dirtiness, meanness, absurd and even nonsense. His popularity raised dramatically after he worked together with Gracita Morales in several films of less importance under the direction of Mariano Ozores and also performed the main role in the TV series "Tercero izquierda".
In the early 70s he surprisingly started to do good dramatic performances in films like _Peppermint frappé (1967)_, The Garden of Delights (1970), _Bosque del lobo, El (1970)_ (Best Actor Award in the 1971 Chicago Film Festival), _Mi querida señorita (1971)_ (Best Actor Award in the 1972 Chicago Film Festival), _Cabina, La (1970) (TV)_ (winner of an Emmy Award), or Habla, mudita (1973). He made a great success with these films which even got stronger after the international effects caused by his TV film 'La cabina' and his contribution to George Cukor's Travels with My Aunt (1972). And this success set the rest of his career, full of successful films both dramatic and comic (_Escopeta nacional, La (1978)_, _Verdad sobre el caso Savolta, La (1979)_, La colmena (1982), _Corte del faraón, La (1985)_, Mi general (1987), _Largo invierno, El (1991)_...
In 1985 he received the 'Medalla de Oro de las Bellas Artes' (Arts Gold Medal).- Actor
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Spanish actor and director of cinema and theater. Son of the actress Carola Fernán Gómez. When he was three years old he returned to Spain from Argentina. He wrote comedies, novels and poetry, and played a wide repertoire of roles from comedy to drama. He was a prolific actor and director, and received numerous awards in various countries. Married twice, he had a son and a daughter.- Actor
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Luis Tosar was born on 13 October 1971 in Lugo, Galicia, Spain. He is an actor and producer, known for Cell 211 (2009), Sleep Tight (2011) and Take My Eyes (2003). He has been married to María Luisa Mayol since 10 August 2015. They have two children.- Antonio Ferrandis was born on 28 February 1921 in Paterna, València, Comunitat Valenciana, Spain. He was an actor, known for Verano azul (1981), Tiempo y hora (1965) and ¿... Y el prójimo? (1974). He died on 16 October 2000 in València, València, Comunitat Valenciana, Spain.
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Fernando Rey, the great Spanish movie actor primarily known in the United States for his role as "Frog One" in The French Connection (1971) and its sequel, was born Fernando Casado D'Arambillet on September 20 1917, in A Coruña, Galicia, Spain, the son of Colonel Casado Veiga. Originally, the young Fernando intended to become an architect. However, when the Spanish Civil War erupted in 1936, his architectural studies were interrupted, and he gained employment as a movie extra. He took the stage name "Fernando Rey" at the beginning of his career, equivalent, in English, to "Fernando King". Eight years after his movie debut, he was cast in his first major speaking role, as the Duke de Alba in José López Rubio's 1944 movie "Eugenia de Montijo".
Rey enjoyed a long and prosperous career as an actor in movies, the theater, radio, and television. He also was a major voice-over artist in Spain, narrating films and dubbing the voices of actors in foreign films. Rey's most fruitful collaboration was with the great director Luis Buñuel, which began during the 1960s and continued thought the 1970s. The films that Rey appeared in for Buñuel' made him an international star, the first produced by the Spanish cinema. By the early 1970s, Rey's career reached its high point, with his co-starring role in "The French Connection" (Best Picture Oscar Winner for 1971) and his starring role in Buñuel's The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie (1972) ("The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie", Best Foreign Language Film Oscar winner for 1972). Rey followed up these successes by appearing in The French Connection (1971) in 1974, and Buñuel's tandem That Obscure Object of Desire (1977) ("That Obscure Object of Desire"), an art-house hit that was nominated for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar. Ironically, in the film, Rey's voice was dubbed into French by Michel Piccoli. That same year, he won the Best Actor prize at Cannes for Carlos Saura' Elisa, My Life (1977).
Many honors came to Rey in the twilight of his career, during the 1980s and 1990s. He was awarded at San Sebastián and Cannes, and was presented with the gold medal of the Spanish Art and Movie Sciences Academy. He became the president of that Academy from 1992 till his death from cancer two years later.- Actor
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Javier Bardem belongs to a family of actors that have been working on films since the early days of Spanish cinema.
He was born in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain, to actress Pilar Bardem (María del Pilar Bardem Muñoz) and businessman José Carlos Encinas Doussinague. His maternal grandparents were actors Rafael Bardem and Matilde Muñoz Sampedro, and his uncle is screenwriter Juan Antonio Bardem. He got his start in the family business, at age six, when he appeared in his first feature, "El picaro" (1974) (A.K.A. The Scoundrel). During his teenage years, he acted in several TV series, played rugby for the Spanish National Team, and toured the country with an independent theatrical group. Javier's early film role as a sexy stud in the black comedy, Jamón, Jamón (1992) (aka Ham Ham) propelled him to instant popularity and threatened to typecast him as nothing more than a brawny sex symbol. Determined to avert a beefcake image, he refused similar subsequent roles and has gone on to win acclaim for his ability to appear almost unrecognizable from film to film. With over 25 movies and numerous awards under his belt, it is Javier's stirring, passionate performance as the persecuted Cuban writer, Reynaldo Arenas, in Before Night Falls (2000) that will long be remembered as his breakthrough role. He received five Best Actor awards and a Best Actor Oscar nomination for his portrayal.- Actor
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Sergi López is a Spanish actor, whose specialty is villains of all types but whose range also includes dramatizing romantic and comedic roles with equal mastery. He was born outside of Barcelona in the seaside town of Villanova i la Geltrú on December 22nd, 1965. As a youth he was inclined towards the performance arts and headed to France for further studies in the field. In 1991 he auditioned for French director Manuel Poirier who was so impressed with Sergi that he gave him the lead role in "Western." Poirier and López continued to collaborate on "La Petite-Amie d'Antonio," "La Campagne," "Attention Fragile," and "Marion" in subsequent years. Sergi often played the charming Spanish immigrant lost in France in Poirier's films.
Sergi's career was actually cemented in France that catapulted him to public recognition, while Spain was still relatively oblivious to her talented son until 1997. In 1997 Sergi appeared in Catalan auteur Ventura Pons' "Caricies" that also showcased Spain's finest actors. He spoke Catalan in the role. After "Caricies" Sergi appeared in Spanish cinema more frequently such as in "Entre las piernas" with Spanish mega-stars Javier Bardem and Victoria Abril and in "Lisboa" with Spanish legend Carmen Maura. Sergi was then offered plum roles both in France and Spain and split time traveling back and forth between his adopted nation and native motherland.
In 2001 he won the César for his role in Dominick Moll's "Harry, Un Ami Qui Vous Veut du Bien." This role came to define his mastery on villainous roles which continued in "Solo Mia" with Paz Vega as his battered wife, Stephen Frears' "Dirty Pretty Things" with Chiwetel Ejiofor and Audrey Tautou as his scared pawns, and Guillermo del Toro's "El Laberinto del Fauno" with post-Civil Spain as playground for his Vidal's sadism.
However, not all is dark villainy in Sergi's most recognized and praised thespian filmography. Sergi also displayed his comedic talents in "Hombre Felices" and "Janis et John."
With such range, talent, and skill, it is no wonder horror master and aficionado Guillermo del Toro said he is "in love" with Sergi's work and insisted on casting him as the stone-cold killer Captain Vidal despite Spanish producers' misgivings. Let us hope that, despite wider international exposure, Sergi continues to retain his unique avant-gardeness and participate only in projects that do his talent justice.- Actor
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Eduard Fernández was born on 25 August 1964 in Barcelona, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. He is an actor and producer, known for El nino (2014), Everybody Knows (2018) and Biutiful (2010).- Celso Bugallo was born in 1947 in Vilalonga, Pontevedra, Galicia, Spain. He is an actor, known for The Sea Inside (2004), El grifo (2010) and The Good Boss (2021).
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Juan Diego was born on 14 December 1942 in Bormujos, Seville, Andalucía, Spain. He was an actor and producer, known for Los hombres de Paco (2005), Cabeza de Vaca (1991) and El triunfo (2006). He was married to Maria Ruiz. He died on 28 April 2022 in Madrid, Spain.- Actor
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Fernando Cayo was born on 22 April 1968 in Valladolid, Valladolid, Castilla y León, Spain. He is an actor and writer, known for The Orphanage (2007), Mi vida es el Cine (2014) and Money Heist (2017).- Actor
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Carmelo Gómez was born on 2 January 1962 in Sahagún, León, Castilla y León, Spain. He is an actor and writer, known for Between Your Legs (1999), Cows (1992) and The Method (2005). He was previously married to Esperanza de la Vega.- Actor
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This actor started learning singing and dancing. Then he had very different occupations, including boxing, and even become to be the light weight amateur champion of Castilla, Spain. Later he entered the theatre in 40s, acting in the companies of Revista of Martín and and Celia Gámez, there coincided as a dancer with another dancer, Nati Mistral famous actress later. His entry in cinema was with little and secondary roles (Los últimos de Filipinas (1945) was his first film), many of them as what in spanish is said to be the 'chulo madrileño' (the typical classic Madrid city man, with his genuine verbal accent and special behaviour). With this type of roles he got great success in the 50's. Once he had become a known actor, he started his career as director and producer. He created his own production company and produced three films, but had no success at all with it and the company went to bankrupt. Finally, he decided to continue as an actor. In 1993 he was paid reverence in the Goya Awards Ceremony for his whole career. His wife Concha Paez dead in August 2017.- Arturo Fernández was born on 21 February 1929 in Gijón, Asturias, Spain. He was an actor, known for Truhanes (1983), Los cuervos (1961) and ¡Cómo sois las mujeres! (1968). He was married to Carmen Quesada and María Isabel Sensat Marqués. He died on 4 July 2019 in Madrid, Spain.
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Jose Coronado was born on 14 August 1957 in Madrid, Madrid, Spain. He is an actor, known for The Body (2012), No Rest for the Wicked (2011) and The Vault (2021).- Actor
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Paco León was born on 4 October 1974 in Seville, Seville, Andalucía, Spain. He is an actor and writer, known for Kiki, Love to Love (2016), Carmina or Blow Up (2012) and Carmina y amén. (2014).- Actor
- Director
- Casting Director
Juan Echanove was born on 1 April 1961 in Madrid, Spain. He is an actor and director, known for Madregilda (1993), The Flower of My Secret (1995) and Las chicas de hoy en día (1991). He has been married to Cuchita Lluch since 14 May 2015.- Actor
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José Sacristán was born on 27 September 1937 in Chinchón, Madrid, Spain. He is an actor and director, known for La colmena (1982), Madrid, 1987 (2011) and El diputado (1978).- Actor
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Agustín González was born on 24 March 1930 in Madrid, Madrid, Spain. He was an actor, known for Belle Epoque (1992), Estudio 1 (1965) and The Grandfather (1998). He died on 16 January 2005 in Madrid, Madrid, Spain.- Actor
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In his almost 50 years as an actor, Emilio Gutiérrez Caba has worked continuously in theater, film, and television. He has worked with renowned directors on the big screen and has become a legend of the theater. Since his debut in the sixties, he has brought over a hundred characters to life in dozens of series, plays and more than 80 films. Emilio Gutiérrez Caba was born in Valladolid in 1942 into an iconic entertainment family. He is the son of Emilio Gutiérrez and Irene Caba Alba, and the brother of the actresses Irene Gutiérrez Caba and Julia Gutiérrez Caba. The actor spent his childhood and adolescence in an environment marked by acting and the arts, so it did not take long to awaken his vocation. Gutiérrez Caba studied philosophy, but his interest in acting was consolidated at university. He made his debut in the theater in 1962 when he joined Lilí Murati's company and he won his first film role in 1963 in Jesus Franco's 'El llanero'. He went on to join forces with actress María José Goyanes to create their own company in 1968. Since 1979, he has starred in works by classical authors such as Gil Vicente, Calderón, Shakespeare, Joyce, and Juan Ruiz de Alarcón; and pieces by contemporary playwrights such as Álvaro del Amo, Jorge Díaz, Fermín Cabal, and Juan García Larrondo. His interpretation of Don Diego in 'The Maidens' Consent' by Moratín in 1996 is legendary. In 2003, he was nominated for a Best Actor Spanish Actors Guild Award for 'The Prince and the Showgirl'. His performance in 'Mourning Becomes Electra' was recognized with a Max Award for Best Supporting Actor. Although Gutiérrez Caba's career has played out mainly on stage, making him a true theatrical legend, he has combined stage with screen in the literary adaptations: 'The Beehive', 'Werther', 'Requiem for a Spanish peasant' and 'La sombra del ciprés es alargada'. He has also participated in 'Bicycles are for the Summer' by Jaime Chávarri, and worked with Pedro Almodóvar in 'What Have I Done to Deserve This?' On television he has given life to characters such as San Juan de la Cruz in the successful series 'Teresa de Jesús' and Don Vicente Cortázar in 'Gran Reserva', for which he received the Best Actor Ondas Award and another Spanish Actors Guild Best Actor Award. Emilio's other credits include 'The First Night of my Life' and 'Goya in Bordeaux.' His work in 'Common Wealth' is especially noteworthy and earned him the Goya Award for Best Supporting Actor, and the CEC and Spanish Actors' Guild Awards in the same category. Shortly thereafter he received a second Goya for 'Ten Days Without Love'. Among his more recent work is Julio Medem's 'The Tree of Blood', Jaume Balaguero's 'Way Down', 'Despite Everything' directed by Gabriela Tagliavini, Juan Jose Alfonso's play 'After The Rehearsal' and the series 'La Templanza,'for Amazon Prime.- Actor
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Andrés Pajares was born on 6 April 1940 in Madrid, Spain. He is an actor and writer, known for Oh, Carmela! (1990), Makinavaja, el último choriso (1992) and Bwana (1996). He was previously married to Chonchi Alonso.- Actor
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Imanol Arias began his career with a traveling theatre group in Spain performing in Euskadi (Basque Country). After minor roles on stage, he travels to Cuba to shoot Cecilia (1982) directed by Humberto Solás. In 1987 he won the Concha de Plata of the San Sebastian Film Festival for the biography of Eleuterio Sánchez, El Lute: Run for Your Life (1987) directed by Vicente Aranda.