Javier Bardem

Cast

Born

March 1, 1969 · Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Gran Canaria, Canary Islands, Spain

Birth name

Javier Ángel Encinas Bardem

"It's possible that success can take you places you don't want to go. It's up to you to move forward or be true to your roots." Javier Bardem belongs to a family of actors who have been working in films since the early days of Spanish cinema, he is the son of actress Pilar Bardem and businessman José Carlos Encinas Doussinague. His maternal grandparents were actors Rafael Bardem and Matilde Muñoz Sampedro, and his uncle is screenwriter Juan Antonio Bardem. He started in the family business at the age of six, when he appeared in "El pícaro" (1974-1975) TV series directed by Fernando Fernán Gómez. During his teenage years, he acted in more TV series, played rugby with the Spanish national team and toured the country with an independent theater group. His first film role was in "Las edades de Lulú" (1990) by Bigas Luna, director with whom he would work again several times, highlighting "Jamón jamón" (1992) as the one that catapulted them to success. He gained recognition and prestige in the Spanish cultural scene starring in films such as "Perdita Durango" (1997) by Álex de la Iglesia or the challenging role in "Carne Trémula" by Pedro Almodóvar, the same year. His acting career has been a constant improvement, taking on diverse and committed roles in and out of his native country under the guidance of elite directors. In 2003 he received his first Goya for Best Actor for Fernando León de Aranoa's "Los lunes al sol", a year later he was awarded at the Venice Film Festival as Best Actor for his role in Alejandro Amenabar's fourth film "Mar Adentro" and in 2008 he won the BAFTA, Oscar and Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in the Coen brothers' "No Country for Old Men". Until 2022 he continued collecting Goyas for Best Actor, with six to date.