Penélope Cruz would like nothing more than to feed me ham. So much so that these are her first words when I meet her at her production company, 30 minutes north of Madrid: "Hello.
Nice to meet you. Ham?" Her iconic accent, so enticing to Americans she could have a robust side career in sleep stories, turns the word to "hum." I had not factored in this scenario, three decades ago, when I decided to give up meat. "Oh, well," she says, eyes on her office door, pulling out a chair. "Ham is coming in about 20 minutes." The 49-year-old Academy Award-winning star of countless films (well, IMDb can count them, but even the most avowed Cruzphile would have trouble rattling them off), including All About My Mother, Volver, Vicky Cristina Barcelona, Parallel Mothers, and Vanilla Sky (twice, if you include Open Your Eyes) is disarmingly easygoing. True, this combination of mystique and personability is well-calibrated. She'll be the first to admit that "I'm programmed to protect myself," but it can't possibly have any bearing on her fly being open.
"Ah," she says, looking down past her chunky pink Chanel sweater and belt, buttoning her jeans. "Always, always, I don't know the answer to that. I don't do it on purpose." Cruz's warm demeanor-she's a natural comic, her smile takes up a greedy amount of real estate on her face, and she speaks with real tenderness about the last time she saw Karl Lagerfeld, when he convinced her to take a late-night stroll through Central Park-exists in sharp contrast to her latest role of Laura Ferrari, the hardened wife of Enzo Ferrari (played by Adam Driver) in Michael Mann's breakneck biopic Ferrari.
This story is from the February 2024 edition of ELLE US.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the February 2024 edition of ELLE US.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Hollywood Rising
Our annual mustknow list of emerging talents we'll all be watching (and obsessing over) this year.
There's Something About Julie
Whether it's acne products or emergency contraception, Julie Schott is upending industries and erasing stigmawith her trademark sense of humor.
Goodnight Meme
An internet It Girl logs offfor good.
SCENTS OF PLACE
For Fendi, a major move into fragrance meant looking inward.
SEEING INFRARED
The celeb-favorite treatment claims to grow your hair and youth-ify your skin. Could it outshine LED?
FOLLOW THE STARS
With the northern lights peaking this year, celestial-obsessed travelers can watch the skies in luxury.
MUSIC OF THE SPHERES
Van Cleef & Arpels's Perlée collection is a continuation of a long-standing house motif delicate, playful beading that dates back more than a century.
ON POINTE
Gabriela Hearst lends her design ingenuity to a Latin-powered production of Carmen that provides a fresh twist on the classic.
The Language of Flowers
Young designers are falling for the subversive power of a classic motif.
THE MAX FACTOR
Ferragamo creative director Maximilian Davis is carrying on the brand's Old Hollywood legacy with some of New Hollywood's biggest talents.