Penelope Cruz is a spanish actress born April 28, 1974. Cruz had no ambition to be an actress and focused on dance, having studied classical ballet for nine years at Spain's National Conservatory. She received three years of Spanish ballet training and four years of theater at Cristina Rota's New York school. She made her acting debut at 16 on television, though she was signed by an agent at the age of 15. Her debut feature film was released in the following year Jamón, jamón (1992). Subsequently she appeared in the movies of 1990s and 2000s included Open Your Eyes (1997), The Hi-Lo Country (1999), The Girl of Your Dreams (2000) and Woman on Top (2000). Penelope Cruz achieved recognition for her lead roles in Vanilla Sky and Blow. Both films were released in 2001 and were commercially successful worldwide.
In 2006, she became spokesmodel for the French beauty company, L'Oréal, to promote products such as the L'Oréal Paris hair dye Natural Match and L'Oreal mascara products. Cruz appears in television and print ads for the company. She receives $2 million a year for her work for the company.
In 2010, Cruz was a guest editor for the French Vogue magazine, focusing on larger-size models in a provocative photo shoot. Cruz ranked as No. 58 in Maxim's Hot 100 of 2007 list, and was chosen by Empire magazine as being one of the 100 Sexiest Movie Stars in the world. Penelope was also ranked on Askmen.com's Most Desirable Women of 2008 at No.26, in 2009 at No. 25, and in 2010 at No.7. In April 2010, Penelope Cruz replaced Kate Winslet as the new face and ambassador of Lancôme's Trésor fragrance. Lancôme has signed Cruz as the brand’s third superstar spokesmodel, along with Julia Roberts and Kate Winslet. The campaign was shot by Mario Testino at Paris's Hotel de Crillon and will debut fall 2010. Is on the cover of Spanish Vogue's December 2010 issue. It was reported that she agreed to be photographed by fashion photographer Peter Lindbergh only if her pregnancy not be shown.
Cruz began dating co-star Javier Bardem in 2007. They married in early July 2010 in a private ceremony at a friend's home in the Bahamas. After photos emerged of Cruz with a baby bump on the set of Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, representatives said the couple expect a child in March 2011. Previously Penelope Cruz had dated Tom Cruise and Matthew McConaughey.
