Salma Hayek has appeared in more than thirty films since her early beginnings as an actress in her native Mexico. She has performed as an actress not only in Hollywood, but also in Mexico and Spain. She is also one of only three Latin Americans to receive an Academy Award for Best Actress nomination and the first Mexican national to achieve the feat. She has also branched out into the directing and producing aspect of show business.
She started out in Mexico, playing small roles and eventually landing the title role of the popular telenovela “Teresa”. Her role as Teresa made her a star in Mexico. In 1994, she starred in the film “El Callejon de los Milagros” (Miracle Alley). The movie went on to win more awards than any other movie in the history of Mexican cinema and Salma was also nominated for an Ariel Award for her performance in the film. But she wanted more, and decided to move to Los Angeles to pursue her dream of a Hollywood career.
She got her first big break in Hollywood when director Robert Rodriguez and his producer wife Elizabeth Avellan cast her as the female lead opposite Antonio Banderas in 1995’s “Desperado”. The movie was well-received in Hollywood and Salma caught the viewers’ attention, dazzling them with her trademark smile and sexy Mexican looks. She followed this up with a short performance as a vampire queen in “From Dusk Till Dawn”, dancing provocatively in a scene of the movie. That scene cemented her as one of Hollywood’s upcoming sexy actresses. She also appeared in the big-budget but box office flop “Wild Wild West”, opposite Kevin Kline and Will Smith. She had small roles in the award-winning Benicio del Toro starrer “Traffic” and director Kevin Smith’s controversial “Dogma”. She showed her loyalty to Robert Rodriguez, continuing her role in the final film of the Mairachi trilogy, “Once Upon a Time in Mexico”, co-starring with Antonio Banderas again and Johnny Depp. Her film repertoire continued to expand with roles in “Fair Game”, “Fled”, and “Fools Rush In”, a romantic comedy starring Matthew Perry as her leading man.
In 2002, Salma Hayek starred in and co-produced “Frida”, a biopic of the Mexican artist Frida Kahlo. Her role as the artist earned her Best Actress nominations by the Academy Awards, BAFTA Awards and Golden Globe Awards. She took home Best Actress trophies at the Imagen Foundation Awards and the Golden Camera (Best International Actress) for her performance. In 2004, the buxom actress added “After the Sunset”, “Paint” and “Murphy’s Law” to her resume. She also lent her voice in the animated film “Sian Ka’an”. The following year she starred in “Ask the Dust”, this time starring opposite Hollywood bad boy Colin Farrell and Val Kilmer.
She appeared in the film “Bandidas” in 2006 with best friend Penelope Cruz. This is the first time the two actresses worked together. She has also added more television work to her career by producing and co-starring in the Golden Globe-winning “Ugly Betty”. The TV series is her own creation; the actress is the executive producer of the show. In 2007, the movies “Keep Coming Back” and “Across the Universe” were added to her now extensive resume and Hollywood career.
