Antonio Banderas, one of Spain's most famous faces who was a soccer player until he broke his foot at age 14, is now an international film star best known as Zorro in the eponymous film franchise.He was born José Antonio Domínguez Banderas on August 10, 1960, in Málaga, Andalusia, Spain. His father, Jose Dominguez, was a policeman in the Spanish civil guards. His mother, Doña Ana Banderas, was a school teacher. Young Banderas was brought up a Roman Catholic, but eventually had liberated himself from a religious indoctrination. He wanted to play soccer professionally and made much success playing for his school team until the age of 14, albeit his dream ended when he broke his foot. At that time he developed a passion for theatre after seeing the stage production of 'Hair'. Banderas began his acting studies at the School of Dramatic Art in Málaga, and made his acting debut at a small theatre in Málaga. He was arrested by the Spanish police for performance in a play by Bertolt Brecht, because of political censorship under the rule of General Francisco Franco. Banderas spent a whole night at the police station, he had three or four such arrests while he was working with a small theatre troupe that toured all over Spain and was giving performances in small town theatres and on the street.In 1981, at the age of 19, he moved to Madrid in pursuit of an acting career. Being a struggling young actor, he also worked as a waiter and took small modeling jobs. At that time he joined the troupe at the National Theatre of Spain, becoming the youngest member of the company. Banderas's stage performances caught the attention of film director Pedro Almodóvar, who cast the young actor in his film debut Laberinto de pasiones (1982). Banderas and Almodovar joined forces in making innovative and sexually provocative movies during the 1980s. In 1984 Banderas made headlines in Spain with his performance as a gay man, making his first male-to-male on-screen kiss in Almodovar's La ley del deseo (1987). Banderas's long and fruitful collaboration with Pedro Almodóvar eventually prepared him for international recognition that came with his work in the Academy Award-nominated film Mujeres al borde de un ataque de nervios (1988). In 1991 he appeared as an object of Madonna's affection in Madonna: Truth or Dare (1991).In 1992 Banderas made his Hollywood debut with The Mambo Kings (1992). Because he did not speak English at that time, his dialogue for the film was taught to him phonetically. Banderas shot to international fame with his sensitive performance as a lover of Tom Hanks' AIDS-infected lawyer in Philadelphia (1993), then played opposite Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt in Interview with the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles (1994). Banderas further established himself as one of Hollywood's leading men after co-starring in Evita (1996) opposite Madonna in the title role. In 1998 he won acclaim for his portrayal of Zorro, opposite Anthony Hopkins and Catherine Zeta-Jones, in The Mask of Zorro (1998). For the role as Zorro Banderas took training with the Olympic national fencing team in Spain, and practiced his moves with real steel swords, then he used the lighter aluminum swords in the movie. He also took a month-long course of horse-riding before the filming. He later returned to the role in The Legend of Zorro (2005). In 1999 Banderas made his directorial debut in Crazy in Alabama (1999), starring his wife, Melanie Griffith. He received critical acclaim for his portrayal of Mexican artist David Alfaro Siqueiros opposite Salma Hayek in Frida (2002). He reprises his role as Puss in Boots in the next installment of the 'Shrek' franchise.Antonio Banderas established himself as internationally known Latin heartthrob with charismatic looks, and was chosen as one of the 50 most beautiful people in the world by the People magazine in 1996. He won numerous awards and nominations for his works in film, including three ALMA awards and three Golden Globe nominations, among many other. Since 1996 Banderas has been married to American actress Melanie Griffith and the couple has one daughter. Outside of his acting profession, Banderas has been a passionate soccer fan and a staunch supporter of the Real Madrid Football Club. He shares time between his two residencies, one is in the United States, and one in the South of Spain.

1. Black Gold (2011) - Nassib 2. The Big Bang (2011) - Ned Cruz

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3. The skin that I live in (Pielea în care trăiesc) (2011) - Robert Ledgard

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4. Haywire (Cursa pentru supravieţuire) (2011) - Rodrigo 5. Puss in Boots (Motanul încălţat) (2011) - Puss in Boots (voice)

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6. Spy Kids: All the Time in the World in 4D (Spy Kids 4D: Safirul Timpului) (2011) - Gregorio Cortez (uncredited)

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7. Shrek Forever After (2010) - Puss in Boots (voice)

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8. The 82nd Annual Academy Awards (2010) - Himself - Audience Member (uncredited) 9. Scared Shrekless (2010) - Puss in Boots (voice) 10. You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger (Vei întâlni străinul din visele tale) (2010) - Greg

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11. Shrek Forever After: The Game (2010) - Puss in Boots 12. Aliens in the Attic (Extratereştrii din mansardă) (2009) - Zorro (archive footage) (uncredited) 13. Thick as Thieves (2009) - Gabriel Martin 14. My Mom's New Boyfriend (2008) - Tommy Lucero / Martinez 15. The Other Man (2008) - Ralph

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16. Shrek the Third (2007) - Puss in Boots (voice) 17. Shrek the Halls (2007) - Puss in Boots (voice) 18. Confessions of a Superhero (2007) - Himself 19. Take the Lead (2006) - Pierre Dulaine 20. El camino de Antonio Banderas (2006) - Himself 21. The Legend of Zorro (2005) - Don Alejandro de la Vega / Zorro 22. Behind the Mask of Zorro (2005) - Himself 23. The Music of Shrek 2 (2004) - Himself 24. Shrek 2 (2004) - Puss In Boots (voice) 25. Meet the Cast of Shrek 2 (2004) - Himself 26. "Ellen: The Ellen DeGeneres Show" (2003) - Himself (5 episodes, 2004-2011) 27. Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over (2003) - Gregorio Cortez 28. Once Upon a Time in Mexico (2003) - El Mariachi 29. Spy Kids 2: Island of Lost Dreams (2002) - Gregorio Cortez 30. Frida (2002) - David Alfaro Siqueiros 31. "American Idol: The Search for a Superstar" (2002) - Himself / ... (2 episodes, 2007-2010) 32. Spy Kids (Joaca de-a spionii) (2001) - Gregorio Cortez 33. All About Desire: The Passionate Cinema of Pedro Almodovar (2001) - Himself (also archive footage) 34. The Body (2001) - Father Matt Gutierrez 35. Original Sin (2001) - Luis Antonio Vargas 36. Play It to the Bone (1999) - Cesar Dominguez 37. The 13th Warrior (1999) - Ahmed Ibn Fahdlan 38. Crazy in Alabama (1999) - Regizor 39. The Mask of Zorro (1998) - Alejandro Murrieta / Zorro 40. Premio Donostia a Anthony Hopkins (1998) - Himself 41. Four Rooms (1995) - Man (segment "The Misbehavers") 42. Two Much (1995) - Art 43. Desperado (1995) - El Mariachi 44. Assassins (1995) - Miguel Bain 45. Interview with the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles (1994) - Armand

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46. Philadelphia (1993) - Miguel Alvarez 47. "Late Show with David Letterman" (1993) - Himself (5 episodes, 1998-2006) 48. The House of the Spirits (1993) - Pedro Tercero García 49. "Late Night with Conan O'Brien" (1993) - Himself (3 episodes, 2003-2007) 50. Una mujer bajo la lluvia (1992) - Miguel 51. Átame! (1990) - Ricky 52. Mujeres al borde de un ataque de nervios (1988) - Carlos 53. Laberinto de pasiones (1982) - Sadec 54. Als twee druppels water (1963) - Gregorio Cortez

1. Chosen by Empire magazine as one of the 100 Sexiest Stars in film history (#24). [1995]

2. Education: School of Dramatic Art, Málaga, Spain

3. Stepfather of Alexander Bauer and Dakota Johnson.

4. Siblings: One younger brother, Francisco

5. Chosen by People (USA) magazine as one of the 50 most beautiful people in the world [1996]

6. Father of Stella Banderas.

7. Married Ana Leza at the Church of San Nicolas in Madrid. Among those who attended were Carmen Maura and Pedro Almodóvar.

8. Son-in-law of Tippi Hedren and Peter Griffith.

9. In Spanish, his surname means "flags".

10. Was nominated for Broadway's 2003 Tony Award for Best Actor (Musical) for a revival of "Nine The Musical."

11. Spanish citizen.

12. Shares a birthday with Rosanna Arquette and Nicoletta Braschi.

13. Support Real Madrid soccer team.

14. Received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame [18th October 2005].

15. Has his own perfume/cologne brand for men.

16. He had to learn English phonetically and completely from scratch when he arrived in the US to try his luck in Hollywood.

17. Ex-son-in-law of Concha Leza.

18. Despite being raised Catholic, Banderas described himself as an agnostic in a People magazine interview but added that whatever spiritual beliefs his kids may or may not have is fine with him.

19. Received an honorary doctorate on May 2000 from Dickinson College, Pennsylvania.

20. Listed his favorite 2 movies as Orson Welles' The Magnificent Ambersons (1942) and Touch of Evil (1958).

21. Formed his own touring theater group in Spain where he met director Pedro Almodóvar.

22. Became a fan of his wife, Melanie Griffith, long before he met her in 1995. He had first seen her in the film Something Wild (1986) and thought she was beautiful and later told a Spanish magazine in 1989 that he would love to meet her.

23. Brother-in-law of actress Tracy Griffith and production designer Clay A. Griffith.

24. Lives in Los Angeles, California, Aspen, Colorado and Marbella, Spain.

25. Is the only Spanish actor to portray Zorro.