April 28 is a date marked on Penélope Cruz's calendar. The most international actress in Spanish cinema turns 50. Professionally, there is little left for her to achieve - if there is anything left - since she has the recognition of the entire industry.
A performer who has been nominated four times for the Oscars, winning the statuette on one occasion for her brilliant performance in Vicky Cristina Barcelona (2008); She is recognized in the most prestigious festivals, she is also awarded with the biggest awards in the industry.
Some would say that little remains of that teenager who became the protagonist of a music video in which she did not utter a single word, but precisely all of her remains, almost four decades later. She is still at the top, thanks to her efforts, and she has achieved everything without having to live in Hollywood.
Almost 43 years ago one of the bands that would mark an era was created: Mecano. With it, some of the songs in Spanish that would last for all eternity; among them, The Force of Destiny, which also marked the end and the beginning of Nacho Cano's love life.
The end, because he wrote about his ex-girlfriend, the writer Coloma Fernández Armero; and the beginning, because there enters the scene what would be a new couple years later, Penélope Cruz. The then teenager made her first foray in front of the camera in this music video at the request of Coloma Fernández herself because of her resemblance to herself. The actress was only 14 years old, but the screenwriter did not miss the chemistry between her and Cano.
A chemistry that crossed the camera, who fell in love with Penélope Cruz at first sight. Since then, the opportunities have not ceased and, after a small role in the television series Crónicasurbanas (1991), his first major film role would come with Bigas Luna with Jamón Jamón (1992).
A film that would mark his destiny. Not only because there she would meet the man who would become her husband several decades after her, Javier Bardem; but because the film continues to be one of the most transgressive and surprising films in the history of Spanish cinema.
Few can boast of receiving an avalanche of awards practically in their film debut. However, Penélope Cruz lived that magical experience with Fernando Trueba's masterpiece: Belle Époque, in 1993. The film, in which Cruz starred at only 19 years old along with other great names in our cinema such as Maribel Verdú, Miriam Díaz-Aroca, Ariadna Gil or Jorge Sanz; It won nine Goya awards and the Oscar for Best International Film in 1994.
These were the actress's first in Hollywood, her second successful film. The night of the 1994 Oscars would be the first time she stepped on the red carpet, but not the last. After starring in several legendary films of Italian cinema such as Alegre ma non troppo (1994); The actress would return in style with adaptations such as La Celestina (1997) or Abre los Ojos (1997).
However, it would be her love affair with Pedro Almodóvar that would give her the most joy in her career. The actress is the "Almodóvar girl" par excellence, and it is not surprising, since she, together with the director from La Mancha, has starred in her best works. From her first film, Flesh Trémula (1997), they made it clear that they were a team with a unique harmony.
Together they demonstrated this in Todo sobre mi madre (1999) and Volver (2006), whose character of Raimunda earned her consolidation as an internationally renowned actress and earned her her first Oscar nomination for Best Actress; Broken Embraces (2009), Passenger Lovers (2013), Pain and Glory (2019) or, finally, Parallel Mothers (2021), with which the actress once again obtained recognition from the film industry and an Oscar nomination for Best actress.
Almost a hundred titles from a track record that has not stopped growing since he first dazzled the camera in 1989. His latest project, 313, the music video by the artist Residente, with fellow actress Silvia Pérez Cruz. In 2025, two new films: Days of Abandonment and The Bride.
Penélope Cruz turns 50, but we have a legend for a while.
