Penelope Cruz Stars in New Films Opposite Seth Rogen, Olivia Wilde and Johnny Depp

Penélope Cruz (born Penélope Cruz Sanchéz) glides into her seat at a press junket for Woody Allen’s film, “Vicky Cristina Barcelona,” wearing a caramel satin blouse and long tan dress slacks that seem to propel the 5’6” actress into model territory. With a sapphire and diamond ring glinting off her water glass—a gift from husband, and nine-time costar, Javier Bardem—the Spanish bombshell radiates a reserved if almost Renaissance appeal. A far cry from her typical acting roles, which beg her to be nude, nutty and explosively female. Cruz is celebrated as much for her Spanish accent, which Josh Brolin jokes, “is fake,” as the kiss with Scarlett Johansson in the aforementioned film; a role that yielded Cruz an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. With dark hair beyond her shoulders and warm espresso-colored eyes, this modern-day Sophia Loren appears she could charm a snake and kill a burglar in the same fair swoop.

Cruz has been on everybody’s radar every side of the Pacific, with several films in production, including comedy-drama, “The Invite,” starring Seth Rogen, Edward Norton and Olivia Wilde, and the thriller, “Day Drinker,” starring Johnny Depp. Plus, a rumored reunion with Allen in “WASP.”

Wilde will direct “The Invite,” a provocative date night comedy inspired by the Spanish film, “Sentimental.” According to the official synopsis, “The Invite” is about “a couple who invites the neighbors over, igniting an evening full of unexpected twists and turns, revealing deeply repressed emotions and unexplored sexuality.”

“Day Drinker” tells the tale of a private yacht bartender who encounters an enigmatic onboard guest (Depp). They soon find themselves entangled with a criminal figure (Cruz) and connected in ways nobody foresees. The project represents the fourth time Depp and Cruz have starred together in a movie after “Blow,” “Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides” and “Murder on the Orient Express.”

When Penélope smiles, it’s as though she’s resigned herself to being beautiful. Accepted it the way you surrender to an overly sunny or overcast day. A line at the supermarket or flirtation with the cute barista that will never manifest into anything more. In this case, it’s the growing attention Cruz has received since beginning as a young actress in Spain at 16. She first began her work with two-time Oscar-winning director, screenwriter and friend, Pedro Almodóvar, and has worked with him steadily ever since.

However, she seems equally at home in the States. Of director Allen, she remarks, “There is no bullshit with Woody, which I love. He’s the most honest person I know. When I said, “I would love to work with you,” he said, “Well, of course.”

She’s unleashed when it comes to her affection for directors Almodóvar and Allen, describing both as “geniuses.”

But what about that thing that happened between her and the very hot Scarlett in a darkened room about halfway through the film “Vicky Cristina Barcelona”? When the two voluptuous stars became ensconced… How was that?

“It was exciting to play ‘the trio,’” Cruz expresses breezily at the press junket, describing the three lovers in “Vicky Cristina Barcelona”: Maria Elena, Cristina and Juan Antonio. In fact, she and Johansson joked most of the day on set, and between takes, while prepping for lip-locks.

Cruz reveals, “I knew it was going to get a big reaction. We always had good stories to tell about what happened that day on the set because of Woody. We were able to laugh about it, Scarlett and I.”

Allen, who was famously more concerned with an emergency dermatology appointment to inquire about a possible skin condition, added to the fun and frenetic buzz on set that day. Still, that little kiss in Maria Elena’s darkroom had big consequences, causing such a frenzy in mainstream media that even Penélope must have been a little surprised. Right? “It’s fine,” she reassures, “I knew it was going to be like that.”

As a forthright photographer vying for the same man as a much-younger, blonder and whiter Johansson, Cruz as Maria Elena charmed not only director, Woody Allen, but America, too.

With a best friend in fiery Salma Hayek, who portrayed bisexual Mexican artist-icon Frida Kahlo in “Frida,” it’s not surprising that the multilingual Cruz “tries not to judge” a role she is offered.

“I try to have an open mind. See how I feel. If I can’t stop thinking about a script after I finish it, I know I need to be part of it. It doesn’t happen a lot,” Cruz reveals to Collider. 

She’s been nude and engaged in sexual situations, starting at 16, with her breakthrough performance in 1992’s erotic powerhouse, “Jamón jamón,” and continuing her whole career. However, Cruz tells Esquire UK, “I’m not comfortable talking about it. Doing it is fine. Talking about it makes me uncomfortable.”

Having grown up in the spotlight, with over three decades to her name, Cruz is now considering directing, though not just yet. “I bug the director and when he gets sick of me, I go talk to the DP, then script. I love learning on set. But, I’ve got so much on my plate right now. Maybe in 10 to 15 years.” Surely, she will take cues from Almodóvar. “I’ve changed a lot since I met him,” she explains of Pedro. “Nothing is ever the same with him. He’s honest and demanding and I appreciate that.”

Considering that the disarming Taurus earned $2 million per year representing L’Oreal cosmetics alone, add to that her acting fare of $2-$5 million per film, and you realize how lucky and successful the “Spanish Enchantress”—as she’s been nicknamed by fans, truly is. “It’s science fiction where I come from,” Cruz admits, “to grow up and be an actress.”

The 51-year-old and husband Bardem, the only other Spanish actor to win an Oscar for acting, share two children. A 14-year-old son, Leo, and 12-year-old daughter, Luna. She and Bardem began dating in 2008 while filming with Allen.

Cruz, who admits she’s “strong and opinionated,” does not limit herself to acting, or riding camels for that matter. She co-founded a non-government organization called Sabera Foundation with Nacho Cano and other Spanish entertainers. Before the now defunct org faltered over differences in opinion among the founders, they had set up a home, a school and a clinic for homeless girls and people suffering from tuberculosis in Calcutta.

In 2008, Cruz and her sister Monica got into some hot water when the two sis’s appeared in a lesbian lip-lock in their younger brother’s music video, “Cosas Que Contar.” And according to a media source, “the lesbian lip-lock between the Spanish siblings was the idea of their brother, Eduardo, who was obviously seeking controversial PR.”

However, the “Vanilla Sky” actress, who has humbly remarked that her model/actress sister is “more beautiful” than she, seems to have matured beyond PR schemes, into a private and fearless actress, unburdened by the expectations of others, and excited about her future in American cinema.

While she doesn’t seem to model her career after anyone, Cruz enamors that Audrey Hepburn is to her an ultimate belle époque. “She was a great actress, admired and unique.”

But what does the raven-haired icon think of the term ‘feminist’? Has she ever mentored a younger woman? Does she feel pressure to be something in particular?

“I’ve had a lot of strong, beautiful women in my life,” Cruz tells me. “And I’m grateful for that. I don’t feel comfortable giving advice, unless it’s to people very close to me. I don’t consider myself a role model or a feminist, no. I’m kind of allergic to labels. You cannot live your life looking at yourself from someone else’s point of view.”

This interview originally appeared in DIVA Magazine but was updated today with the latest news.