Javier Bardem (full name Javier Angel Encinas Bardem) is a Spanish actor and producer, winner of many nominations and awards, including Oscar, Golden Globe, Goya, Cannes and Venice Film Festivals. One of the highest paid representatives of the film industry.
In the creative biography of Javier, there are already more than a hundred roles in television and film projects. He also participated in several awards ceremonies: Guild of Actors, Oscars, British Film Academy, Venice Film Festival, Cannes Film Festival, Golden Globe as one of the presenters. He starred in entertainment and show programs popular on American television, as well as in documentaries about the film industry.
short biography
Javier was born in Spain in the Canary Islands. His mother was a famous theater actress, his father was a businessman. The boy's parents divorced when he was two years old, and his mother was engaged in raising children.
Many of Bardem's relatives worked in the arts and entertainment industry. His maternal grandparents were actors, and his uncle was a famous Spanish screenwriter and director. Not surprisingly, Javier eventually chose the path that led him to the cinema. Javier has a brother and sister who also chose the acting profession.
Javier got his first role at the age of six, starring in the Spanish film "El picaro". He got the small role of a negative character. Then, during his school years, he appeared more than once in television series. But, even being surrounded by creative personalities, starting to play in films from early childhood, Bardem was not going to become an actor.
Even as a teenager, Bardem decided that he did not want a life for himself like that of his closest circle. In the profession of an actor, he saw many dangers, believing that a large percentage of creative people are left without work and it is difficult for them to survive in society.
In an interview, Javier said that if popularity comes, you practically cease to belong to yourself and you cannot be free from those images that you constantly perform on stage or on the screen. To remain yourself, you need to have a persistent character, courage and the ability to distinguish gold from dirt, and this can not be everyone.
Therefore, in his childhood, Bardem decided that he was not ready to devote himself to the acting profession, and took up painting. Sports became another hobby of the boy. He started playing rugby, gradually achieving good results and even playing for the Spanish national team.
For five years, Bardem studied drawing at the Escuela de Artes y Oficios school in Madrid. Ultimately realizing that he would never become a talented artist, he decided to quit his studies and start making money. He had to work as a bouncer, construction worker and even a stripper. Soon, Javier again decided to try his luck in cinema and starred in a television project, for the role in which he received quite good money. After a little reflection, Javier decided to pursue a creative career and preserve family traditions.
Creative way
The role that opened the way for Javier to great cinema, he played in the Spanish film "Age of Lulu", where he got on the recommendation of his mother. The actor made a good impression and was soon invited to shoot the next film. It was the comedy picture "Ham, Ham". The film was well received by the audience and highly praised by film critics, receiving a special prize at the Venice Film Festival.
An interesting fact is that it was on the set of this film that Bardem first met his future wife, Penelope Cruz. True, then she was only sixteen, and Javier did not show any interest in the young actress.
In the following films, Javier constantly appeared in the form of a womanizer and macho, with a piercing gaze and a low velvet voice that can charm the fair sex. Gradually, this stereotype began to bore him. He decided that he needed to move on and change his usual image.
To gain fame in world cinema, the actor had to play in an English-language film. And such an opportunity soon presented itself to him. Some of his old friends worked in Hollywood. It was he who suggested that Bardem audition for the role in the film "Perdita Durango". From that moment, Javier's career in the United States began.
The representatives of Hollywood drew attention to the young actor. Soon he gets a role in the film "Until Night Falls." For this work, Bardem was nominated for two prestigious film awards at once: "Oscar" and "Golden Globe".
Interestingly, immediately after the nomination, Al Pacino called the actor to express his admiration for his performance. Unfortunately, Javier was not at home, congratulations were left on the answering machine. They say that the actor still keeps this record, which has literally become a relic for him.
Bardem became a real star in 2007, when he played in the film "No Country for Old Men." After reading the script, he was not sure if he could handle the role. He spoke English poorly and practically did not know how to drive a car. But the producers managed to convince the actor to start acting.
As a result, he not only perfectly coped with the task, but also became the first Spanish actor who was awarded an Oscar. He dedicated the award to his mother, who was present at the ceremony.
Today Bardem is one of the most sought-after actors in Hollywood, acting in films of a completely different genre. In an interview, he said that for many years he has had an acting teacher who teaches him to transform every time after filming and get rid of the character he had to play. Otherwise, gradually the remaining image can completely take over the actor. It will be very difficult to get rid of him in order to play a completely different role.
Therefore, every time after a shooting day, Javier literally throws off the accumulated energy from himself. He's lying on the floor, screaming, waving his arms and legs, hitting pillows and doing all sorts of stupid things to fully recover. Perhaps this is part of the secret of his professionalism and ability to get used to any role.
Awards, fees
How much Javier Bardem now earns for his roles is difficult to say. It is known that for shooting in one of the television series, he was offered a fee of 1.2 million dollars per episode.
Javier himself believes that money is not the main thing for him, but, according to him, any actor should have a certain price. If you buy a tomato on the market, then choose the one that you like and pay for it exactly as much as you are asked. An actor is the same "tomato" who has a price and must be paid.
Bardem is the recipient of four prestigious film awards and a nominee for nine film awards.
In 2012, Bardem won a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at number 6834.
Together with his family, he owned a restaurant in Spain called "La Bardemcilla". The manager was Javier's sister, Monica.
In 2007, according to Empire magazine, Bardem entered the list of the sexiest stars in cinema history.
