Penelope Cruz

Penélope Cruz Sánchez (born 28 April 1974) is a Spanish actress. Active in both Spanish and English-language films, she has received an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, a David di Donatello, and three Goya Awards.

Cruz began her television acting career at age 16 and made her feature film debut the following year in *Jamón Jamón* (1992). Her early roles included *Belle Époque* (1992), *Open Your Eyes* (1997), *Don Juan* (1998), *The Hi-Lo Country* (1999), *The Girl of Your Dreams* (2000), and *Woman on Top* (2000). She worked with Spanish director Pedro Almodóvar on *Live Flesh* (1997), *All About My Mother* (1999), *Volver* (2006), *Broken Embraces* (2009), *I'm So Excited!* (2013), *Pain and Glory* (2019), and *Parallel Mothers* (2021).

Cruz won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in Woody Allen's romantic drama *Vicky Cristina Barcelona* (2008). She received other Oscar nominations for her roles in *Volver* (2006), *Nine* (2009), and *Parallel Mothers* (2021). Other film appearances include *Vanilla Sky* (2001), *Blow* (2001), *Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides* (2011), *The Counselor* (2013), *Murder on the Orient Express* (2017), *Everybody Knows* (2018), *Official Competition* (2022), *L'immensità* (2022), and *Ferrari* (2023). For her portrayal of Donatella Versace in the miniseries *The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story* (2018), she received a Primetime Emmy Award nomination. She is the only Spanish actress to have won an Academy Award and to have received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. In 2007, she won the David di Donatello for her leading role in *Don't Move*.

Cruz has also modeled for Mango, Ralph Lauren, and L'Oréal, and has designed clothing for Mango with her younger sister, Mónica Cruz. She has been a house ambassador for Chanel since 2018. She volunteered in Uganda and India, where she spent one week working with Mother Teresa, and donated her salary from *The Hi-Lo Country* to help fund the now-deceased nun's mission.