Antonio Banderas

HARRISON FORD AND ANTONIO BANDERAS REALLY LIKE EACH OTHER

Nice to see Antonio Banderas and Harrison Ford greeting each other with a big hug on the Italian set of Indiana Jones 5 when Antonio arrived for his first day of shooting. The film had a big setback when Ford injured his shoulder in June and he had to take a few months off. Back at work, he was happy to see Antonio, with whom he costarred in that ultra-macho movie Expendables 3 a few years ago. (Expendables 3 starred chest-thumpers Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Jason Statham, plus almost every other tough guy in Hollywood.) The highly secretive plot for this new Indiana Jones story has the daredevil archeologist supposedly time traveling and fighting nazis as well as visiting the 1960’s during the space race.

Photo Credit: BACKGRID-USA,

ANTONIO BANDERAS HAS A PERCEPTIVE GIRLFRIEND

Antonio Banderas’s girlfriend Nicole Kimpel keeps a tight grip on her boyfriend when they’re out at big events. Actually she’s no slouch- Nicole is a former investment banker who speaks five languages and now has her own fashion company with her twin sister. Nicole, 39, and Antonio, 60, have been together since 2014 when he divorced Melanie Griffith. Nicole probably knows how Melanie Griffith managed to steal Antonio from his first wife Ana, while they were costarring in Two Much in 1995, so she keeps an eye on him…

Photo Credit: BACKGRID-USA – Antonio and Nicole at the Venice International Film Festival

WHEN MADONNA HAD HER EYE ANTONIO BANDERAS

Right before Antonio Banderas got up to introduce his film Pain and Glory in Spain, he heard about his Oscar nomination, so he can’t help but smile in this photo. In an interview recently Antonio admitted that Madonna had hotly pursued him in the early 90’s, and we almost FORGOT about that interesting tidbit! In her Truth or Dare documentary Madonna moaned about her unrequited crush on Antonio. A few years later he was cast as her costar in Evita (coincidence? We think not) and she tried her best to steal him away from Melanie Griffith (Melanie claims Madonna had her banned from the set!) but she had no luck – Antonio and Melanie got married.

Photo Credit: BACKGRID-USA

DAKOTA JOHNSON’S LITTLE SISTER HAS HER EYE ON HOLLYWOOD

Antonio Banderas was honored at the Vanity Fair Awards in Madrid, and his daughter Stella del Carmen Banderas, 23, (with ex Melanie Griffith) was there to cheer him on. Cute Stella is the younger half-sister of Dakota Johnson – she was born in Spain and speaks Spanish, and aspires to an acting career like Dakota. She’s got a good start – Stella is dating Eli Meyer, the son on Ron Meyer, who happens to be Vice Chairman of NBC Universal.

Photo Credit: BACKGRID-USA

PRETTY BOY ANTONIO BANDERAS SHAVED IT ALL OFF

Of course, Antonio Banderas’ makeunder was for a good reason – he’s starring as Pablo Picasso in National Geographic’s new Genius series and Pablo was no beauty. Antonio and Picasso were both born in the same town in Spain, and Antonio remembers often walking past Picasso’s house. Banderas plays the rather unattractive womanizing painter from the age of forty until his death. (Picasso’s habitual pick-up line was “I want to paint you!”) Antonio’s role as Picasso starts with an unfortunate comb-over in middle age, leading to total removal of his hair and eyebrows. If Picasso were alive he’d be quite flattered by the casting.

Photo Credit: BACKGRID-USA

MELANIE GRIFFITH’S DECLARATION OF INDEPENDANCE

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Melanie Griffith walked into an LA skin care salon with her “Antonio”heart tattoo fully exposed on her right arm and she walked out of the place with a big bandage where the tattoo was. (Above) Presumably, it is in the process of being removed – it takes a number of visits. Actually Melanie looks a lot better without it. Neither tattoos OR relationships are permanent. Now Melanie is officially back in circulation.
Photo Credit: AKM-GSI

SHARON STONE AND ANTONIO BANDERAS : SUDDENLY MORE THAN FRIENDS?

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We won’t be the LEAST bit surprised if those rumors about Sharon Stone and Antonio Banderas dating are true. Melanie Griffith filed for divorce on June 6, but it’s said that she and Antonio drifted apart months before. While Antonio and Sharon were in Cannes they were photographed flirting outrageously with each other. Sharon, 56, and Antonio, 53, have known each other for two decades. The photo above is from a European champagne ad they did together years ago. Now they’re both single and looking for a good time. Why not?

MELANIE GRIFFITH AND ANTONIO BANDERAS: EVERYBODY SAW IT COMING

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No, it’s NOT a shock that Melanie Griffith and Antonio Banderas split up, but we do feel badly for Melanie, who tried desperately to hold her marriage together. At the end she had no choice but to file for divorce. We’ve heard stories about Antonio cheating when he was away on location filming. We had the feeling that Melanie did NOT want to know about his flings. She ignored the rumors. We have to point out here that as problematic as some of Melanie’s behavior can be, she IS a nice person and really well-liked in the industry. Her trips to rehab and chain smoking didn’t help the marriage. Nor did her plastic surgery – the inflated lips really bothered Antonio. Stella, the child they had together, turns 18 this year so hopefully the divorce will be civilized. But we do feel sad for Melanie. (Above, the couple in March)

Photo Credit: Pacific Coast News

MELANIE AND ANTONIO: FRESH FROM THE BAHAMAS

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Antonio Banderas and Melanie Griffith are holding hands at the airport upon returning from a ten day vacation in the Bahamas. Antonio picked up quite a tan – Melanie, not so much. This couple defied all tabloid predictions by keeping their marriage together – they celebrate their 18th anniversary in May. Antonio just finished filming “The 33”– about the Chilean mining disaster where 33 miners were trapped underground for 69 days.

Photo Credit: Pacific Coast News

MELANIE GRIFFITH MADE A MOVIE IN SPAIN WITH ANTONIO BANDERAS

Melanie Griffith looks cute in several shades of grey as she arrives at the Jimmy Kimmel show. She still has that amazing body. Melanie costarred with her husband Antonio Banderas in a movie made in Spain called Automatica. It’s a sci-fi thriller about robot problems in the future, set to be released next year.

Photo Credit: Pacific Coast News