Among mature and young actors, real men are increasingly rare, true to their word and not wasting themselves on unpromising roles and unloved women. However, there are exceptions. For example, Javier Bardem today is considered one of the most exemplary family men, talented actors and producers. The artist’s career did not begin as loudly as that of many of his colleagues, but after a while viewers and film critics appreciated his talent and aspirations.
Childhood and youth
The biography of Javier Bardem is of interest to many cinema fans. He was born in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria on March 1, 1969. The settlement is located on the Canary Islands, which belong to Spain.
The future actor's mother, Pilar Bardem, was an actress. The father's name was Jose, he was of Cuban descent, was a businessman and worked in the environmental field. Javier's nationality is Spanish, despite his father's origins. There were quite a lot of creative personalities in the boy's family, so it is not surprising that he chose the profession of an actor and took part in his first film in early childhood.
Javier's maternal grandfather was a director, and his grandmother became famous as a talented actress. Representatives of printed publications had no doubt that it was for this reason that the boy was interested in cinema.
Bardem's parents divorced shortly after his birth. The boy's mother was forced to raise three children alone. In addition to Javier, she had a son, Carlos, and a daughter, Monica. There were no opportunities for development in the small town, so after some time the family moved to the capital of Spain for permanent residence.
In early childhood, Bardem spent a lot of time on the set , watching the actors play, the work of producers, directors and screenwriters. Perhaps it was during this period that his interest in his future profession awoke, but the boy did not understand this immediately. As a child, he was interested in painting and rugby, even taking part in competitions as part of the Spanish national team.
Despite his creative relatives, the boy did not see himself as an actor for a long time. After graduating from high school, he entered an art and industrial school, but after a while he was unable to pay for his studies, so he was forced to start acting in little-known films in order to earn money. Bardem later admitted that he gave up the idea of painting because he was a bad artist.
Javier Bardem
Javier Bardem is a Spanish actor, born in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, on the Canary Islands. His mother Pilar Bardem was an actress, and his father José Carlos Encinas Doussinage was an environmental businessman. Almost immediately after Javier was born, his parents divorced. There are a lot of people in the Bardem family associated with the world of cinema: the actor’s grandfather Rafael Bardem was a director, his grandmother Matilda Muñoz Sampedro was an actress, and his uncle Juan Antonio Bardem was a director and screenwriter. His sister Monica and brother Carlos also became actors. In his early years, Javier spent a lot of time in theaters and on film sets. At the age of 6, he made his television debut when he appeared in Fernando Fernan Gomez’s series “The Dodger.”
Bardem didn't always want to become an actor. Before following in the footsteps of his mother and other relatives, he was a member of the Spanish national rugby team and enjoyed painting. It was painting that became his first passion, and he entered an art and industrial school, and to pay for his studies, he began a career as an actor. Later he realized that he would not be an artist and abandoned this idea.
Movies with Javier Bardem
Viewers first noticed Javier in 1990 in the film “The Ages of Lulu” by Bigasa Luna. Two years later, the actor played in the black comedy Love, Sex and Ham, and this role not only made him popular, but also brought him several awards. After such films as “Golden Eggs”, “Mouth to Mouth”, “Between the Legs” and “Ecstasy” were released one after another with Bardem’s participation, the image of a sexy and brutal Spanish macho was assigned to him. However, in 1994, Javier brilliantly portrayed a terrorist in the film “A Few Days” by Imanol Uribe, was named best supporting actor and received the national Goya Award. Two years later, the actor received his second award for his role in the film “Face to Face,” winning in the “Best Actor” category. After successfully playing the roles, Bardem was noticed by Hollywood directors.
In 2002, Javier Bardem appeared on screens in John Malkovich's directorial debut Dancer Upstairs and the Spanish-language film Sunny Mondays. Two years later, the actor came under close attention from the press after his role in Alejandro Amenábar’s film “The Sea Within,” which received many prestigious international awards, including the prize for best actor at the Venice Film Festival. Javier can also be seen in an episode of Michael Mann's Collateral, starring Tom Cruise and Jamie Foxx. In 2006, Bardem appeared in the title role in Milos Forman's film Goya's Ghosts, and a year later he brought to life the merciless killer Anton Chigurh in the film No Country for Old Men. She was a stunning success, was awarded 8 Oscar nominations, winning 4 victories, and Javier himself received the Oscar, Golden Globe and BAFTA awards for Best Supporting Actor. He portrayed a maniac so realistically on screen that critics proclaimed his hero a standard negative character.
Another striking project in Bardem’s filmography was Woody Allen’s romantic comedy “Vicky Cristina Barcelona” (2008), for which the actor received a Golden Globe nomination. In 2010, Javier was awarded the Cannes Film Festival for Best Actor in the Mexican film "Beautiful", and also received Oscar and BAFTA nominations for it. In the same year, Bardem played in the melodrama Eat, Pray, Love, a film adaptation of the autobiographical work of the same name by Elizabeth Gilbert, where the main role went to Julia Roberts. In 2012, the actor played the role of the main villain in the next part of the Bond film “007: Skyfall” and in the same year received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Javier can also be seen in the films “To the Wonder” (2012), “Scorpio in Love” (2013), “The Counselor” (2013), “The Last Face” (2015) and “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales” (2017) .
Personal life of Javier Bardem
In 2010, Bardem married actress Penelope Cruz, whom he had previously dated for three years. The actors knew each other for many years, but their relationship always remained friendly, and the passion between them flared up only on the set of the film “Vicky, Christina, Barcelona.” The couple have two children - son Leonardo Encinas Cruz and daughter Luna Encinas Cruz.
Carier start
Javier's film debut took place when he was about 20 years old. He played a small role in the film “The Ages of Lulu.” There were rumors in the press then that the guy got the role only at the request of his mother, who also starred in this movie. However, the director highly appreciated Bardem’s acting abilities, so immediately after filming ended he offered him a role in his new film “Ham, Ham.”
The role was not minor or episodic, but the main one. Penelope Cruz starred in the film together with the young actor. The director's next film also could not do without Bardem's participation. The painting was called "Golden Eggs". In it, the artist reincarnated as an eccentric builder who surprised those around him with his bold ideas . The actor’s further growth and development were rapid:
- Already in 1997, John Malkovich expressed a desire to work with Javier, as he saw him in one of the main roles in his new film. However, the young man did not know English well at that time, so he was forced to refuse.
- In the same year, Bardem took part in the American film “Perdita Durango”. He had already learned enough of the language and was able to play a practicing religious fanatic who was an adherent of a strange and not very common religion. The film earned good reviews from viewers and film critics.
- After this, there were several works that did not receive worldwide recognition (for example, the film “Westwood”), but the actor does not stop there.
For the next three years, Javier works in Spain and does not take part in the filming of American films.
International recognition
Since 2000, Javier Bardem's filmography began to quickly expand with various films, where he played supporting roles, as well as leading ones. The Spaniard's youth and ambition became the key to the best films of the time. Javier's career developed rapidly:
- In 2000, Bardem played a role in the film Before Night Falls. The audience saw the Spaniard in the image of a Cuban poet. Film critics and ordinary people praised the film, but what the actor remembers most is that he received praise from his idol Al Pacino. He left him a message on his answering machine. The Spaniard later said that this was the best gift for him as an actor.
- After filming ended, Steven Spielberg offered Bardem the leading role in his famous film Minority Report. The actor refuses for unknown reasons, so Colin Farrell plays the role.
- The next offer for Bardem was from John Malkovich, who at that time was planning to shoot the film “Dancer from Above,” which became his directorial debut. By this time, Javier had learned a decent amount of English and was able to accept the offer. The director later said that he saw only a Spaniard in the role of a detective.
- In 2004, Bardem took part in the filming of The Sea Within, where he plays the role of a paralyzed man who is trying to fight for the legalization of euthanasia. The film greatly touched viewers and film critics, and received positive reviews in the press.
Further, the list of Bardem's achievements only grows. He plays in films with the star of “Leon the Killer” Natalie Portman, Julia Roberts, Brad Pitt, Cameron Diaz. The film “007: Skyfall,” in which Javier played the role of a human monster or the main villain, received high praise. Some said he was a James Bond doppelgänger and the film became 007's main rival.
Javier was also invited to film Grey's Anatomy, but declined. Later he played alongside Ben Affleck in the drama To the Wonder. Bardem's next work was a role in the film "Scorpio in Love", which was based on the book of the same name by his brother Carlos, which became a bestseller. Next was the film “The Counselor,” where Bardem also played one of the main roles, receiving high marks from film critics and famous actors.
In addition, he starred in the film “Pirates of the Caribbean” (part of “Dead Men Tell No Tales”). The role of Captain Armando Salazar was received by the audience as enthusiastically as the image of Jack Sparrow. This film is now popular on Kinopoisk, as well as many other films with the participation of the Spaniard.
Filmography
- "Ham, Ham" - (1992)
- "Golden Eggs" - (1993)
- "Living Flesh" - (1997)
- "Until Night Falls" - (2000)
- “The Sea Inside” - (2004)
- "Accomplice" - (2004)
- "Ghosts of Goya" - (2006)
- “No Country for Old Men” - (2007)
- "Vicky Cristina Barcelona" - (2008)
- "Beautiful" - (2009)
- “Eat, Pray, Love” - (2010)
- "007: Skyfall Coordinates" - (2012)
- “To the Miracle” - (2012)
- "Advisor" - (2013)
- “Scorpio in Love” - (2013)
- "Insurer" - (2014)
- "Gunman" - (2014)
- "The Last Face" - (2016)
- "Mom" - (2017)
- "Escobar" - (2017)
- "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales" - (2017)
Actor Awards
Javier Bardem was one of the first Spanish actors to be nominated for an Oscar. The star’s list today includes quite a few different awards, which he undoubtedly deserves:
- the Silver Shell Award for Best Actor was awarded in 1994;
- in 1996 he received the Goya Award for Best Leading Role;
- in 2004 - nomination for the Golden Globe;
- in the same year - Goya Award for Best Actor;
- in 2004 - Oscar for best foreign film;
- 2007 - Golden Globe Award;
- Cannes Film Festival Prize for Best Actor.
In 2012, Bardem was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The ceremony was attended by many famous actors and Javier's partners on the set. Francis Coppola spoke positively and even enthusiastically about Bardem's performance, comparing him with Al Pacino, Robert De Niro and Jack Nicholson. This comparison became popular and generally accepted, because the Spaniard did not want to rest after receiving another award or leading role, but wanted to create, do something useful.
Movies
The twenty-year-old actor’s serious debut was his work in the film “The Ages of Lulu,” where he was invited under the patronage of his mother. The young artist impressed the director of the film, Bigas Luna, and he invited Javier to star in his next film, “Ham, Ham.” The comedy gained fame not only in Spain: at the Venice Festival its father.
Javier Bardem in his youth
Interestingly, it was on the set of this film that Javier met Penelope Cruz for the first time. But then their romance did not work out: the girl was only 16 years old, and she was just starting her acting career.
After the first films, Javier began to be invited to extravagant and provocative films: “Golden Eggs”, “Mouth to Mouth”, “Between the Legs”, “Ecstasy”. But in order to enter the world stage, the young Spaniard needed to master the English language perfectly and star in an English-language film. And such a moment came in 1996, when his Hollywood compatriot called Bardem to his project “Perdita Durango”.
In his youth, the actor worked to create an on-screen image of a womanizer, a passionate lover, but later he managed to get out of this role.
Javier is noticed in Hollywood, and on the eve of the Millennium, the actor receives an invitation to the film, which discovered a great dramatic actor in him. For his role as fugitive Cuban homosexual poet Reynaldo Arenas in Julian Schnabel's drama Before Night Falls, Bardem was nominated in 2001 for an Oscar and a Golden Globe for Best Actor, but he never received the award.
Javier Bardem in the movie No Country for Old Men
After the premiere of this film, Al Pacino himself called the promising Spaniard and expressed his admiration for his performance. Javier still keeps this recording of his idol’s voice.
The actor continues his creative growth, starring in such films as the tragicomedy “Mondays in the Sun,” the drama “The Sea Inside,” and the historical drama “Ghosts of Goya.” For each job, Javier prepares a lot; he does a lot of internal work on transformation. Therefore, each film does not go unnoticed by film critics, and Bardem’s awards regularly include either the national Goya Award or a statuette from the Cannes Film Festival.
Javier Bardem at the Oscars
The artist's finest hour was his work in the Coen brothers' 2007 thriller No Country for Old Men, where Javier played a villainous killer. The artist, at first delighted with the script, discovered that it contained many scenes of violence, blood, and murder. In addition, Bardem was still not fluent in English and did not know how to drive a car at all. But the producers convinced him to play in the film, which ultimately brought Javier his first Oscar.
Bardem became the first Spaniard to receive such an honor from the Cinematographers Guild. The artist also received a personal star on the Walk of Fame in Los Angeles.
Javier Bardem and Julia Roberts
Javier’s subsequent striking works can be considered his filming in the romantic melodrama “Eat, Pray, Love,” in which he played together with Julia Roberts and Brad Pitt. The film was shot in Bali and brought a lot of positive emotions to all participants.
Bardem also successfully appeared in the famous Bond movie. In 2012, he starred in the James Bond film 007: Skyfall, which was released to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the popular franchise. Javier played James Bond's rival - his dark double. By profession, Javier's hero is also a retired agent who, for personal reasons, takes revenge on Agent 007.
Personal life
Bardem does not want to talk about his personal life; he considers himself shy and overly timid. It is known that he had a common-law wife, Christina Pales, for about 10 years. Everything was smooth in the relationship; nothing was known about scandals or other juicy details. After breaking up with Cristina, Javier began an affair with a married woman, Maria Belen. She was 4 years older than Bardem and had four children.
Colleagues and journalists learned about the novel because it began on the set of the film “The Sea Inside.” However, the relationship did not continue; after finishing work on the film, the couple broke up. Javier was left alone, Maria returned to her family.
Bardem's next and true love is actress and model Penelope Cruz. He has been faithful to her for about 10 years. The romance began on the set of a film in which both took part. After a short period of time, colleagues began to notice that the friendly relationship between Penelope Cruz and Javier Bardem had grown into something more.
The couple tried to hide their romance for quite a long time. In 2010, the lovers got engaged in the Bahamas. In 2011, the couple had a son, Leo, and a daughter, Luna, in 2013.
Interesting facts about Bardem
Javier Bardem is a rather interesting and unusual person. Sometimes he is rude and hot-tempered. This gave rise to a fight in one of the taverns. When a tipsy man approached the actor to find out his name, he responded discourteously, for which he received a blow to the nose. This became the reason for his only plastic surgery in his life to correct the septum.
Bardem's sister Monica is the owner of a prestigious restaurant , and for some time Javier was one of the co-owners. He was interested not so much in business as in new opportunities to demonstrate his talent.
Bardem is not indifferent to the ecology of the whole world. In 2021, he visited Antarctica as part of the Greenpeace expedition. The purpose of the trip was to attract public attention to the problem of pollution of the world's ocean waters, as well as to organize a protected area.
Javier claims that he is a hypochondriac. The actor constantly invents illnesses for himself, and is also afraid of contracting various infections. The Spaniard often wonders about his real calling. If Bardem is to be believed, he wants to help those in need in Africa, not stand on set.
The actor is very embarrassed when he sees his photograph on the covers of glossy magazines. He argues that most provocative headlines are simply made up. Bardem is a very shy person, which sometimes prevents him from working correctly and professionally on camera. Despite this, many argue that it is acting that the Spaniard does best.
