Famous Mexican Film & Theater Personalities

Hailing from Mexico, Salma Hayek moved to Hollywood and attained fame with films like Desperado, From Dusk till Dawn, Wild Wild West, Dogma, Tale of Tales, Grown Ups, and Grown Ups 2. Her breakthrough role was the film Frida in 2002 for which she received critical appreciation. She works to raise awareness about violence against women and discrimination against immigrants.

Lupita Nyong'o is one of the most popular black actresses of all time. The first Kenyan-Mexican actress to receive the prestigious Academy Award, Lupita Nyong'o has often been named in lists, such as the world's most beautiful woman. In 2020, she was named by Forbes magazine as one of Africa's 50 Most Powerful Women.

Guillermo del Toro is one of the most popular Mexican filmmakers of all time. Along with Alejandro Iñárritu and Alfonso Cuarón, he is known as one of the Three Amigos of Cinema. He also played a major role as a former special effects makeup artist. In 2018, he was named in Time's 100 most influential people in the world list.

Mexican singer-actor Anahi began her entertainment career with the show Chiquilladas as a toddler. She later soared to fame as Mia Colucci from the popular telenovela Rebelde and was also part of the hit pop group RBD. She is best known for her Billboard-topping track Rumba.

Diego Luna is a Mexican actor, singer, producer, and director. The son of a popular set designer, he was exposed to show business as a young boy. He started acting when he was just seven and appeared in many telenovelas. He then moved to films and has appeared in many hit films, including Open Range and The Terminal.  

Mexican filmmaker, Alejandro Gonzalez Inãrittu, is known internationally for his films about the human condition. Beginning his entertainment career as a radio host, he started composing music and producing films as the years went by. The recipient of many prestigious awards, he is the first Mexican filmmaker to win an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay.

Mexican American actor, singer, and songwriter Sara Ramirez is the recipient of several awards, including a Tony Award. Born in Mexico, they moved to America as a child. They became interested in acting in their teens and acted in school plays before taking up roles in theater plays. Soon, they ventured into TV and films as well.

Alfonso Cuarón is a Mexican filmmaker who works in a wide range of genres. He has multiple romantic, action, drama, and fantasy movies to his credit. The son of a doctor and a biochemist, he chose an unconventional profession for himself. After completing his studies, he began working as a director. He has received four Academy Awards. 

Being the son of actor Patricia Bernal and director José Ángel García, Gael García Bernal was no stranger to entertainment as a kid. The Mexican actor-director is known for dealing with taboo relationships in his films and for his Golden Globe-winning role in the series Mozart in the Jungle.

Kate del Castillo is a Mexican-American actress. One of the most popular actresses in the world of telenovela, del Castillo was named in People en Español magazine's Stars of the Year list in 2007. Also a humanitarian, Kate del Castillo helped launch an international anti-trafficking program called the Blue Heart Campaign to fight human trafficking.

Ricardo Montalbán was a Mexican actor who achieved immense popularity in Hollywood during his illustrious career that spanned 70 years! He was the recipient of several prestigious awards including an Emmy Award and Screen Actors Guild's Lifetime Achievement Award. Ricardo Montalbán is credited with establishing the Nosotros Foundation where he served as the first president.

Eugenio Derbez is a Mexican actor and filmmaker best known for co-creating and starring in the family sitcom La familia P. Luche. After establishing himself in the Mexican film industry, he ventured into American films and TV series as well. His feature film Instructions Not Included became the most successful Spanish-language film in US. 

Karla Souza is a Mexican-American actress best known for her portrayal of Laurel Castillo in the popular legal thriller television series, How to Get Away with Murder. An acclaimed and prominent actress in the Mexican film industry, Karla Souza is the recipient of the Premios Luminus, ACE Award, and Pantalla de Cristal Film Festival Award.

Starting her entertainment career at age 5, Dulce María was seen in countless commercials before she began performing in music groups and telenovelas. She soared to fame as Roberta Alexandra from the popular series Rebelde. She also released hit singles such as No Sé Llorar and worked with PETA.

Demián Bichir is a Mexican actor who was once nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor. The son of two popular acting professionals, he developed an early interest in acting. He attended the Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute before beginning his film career. He is also an American Civil Liberties Union Ambassador for Immigration Rights. 

Luis Buñuel was a Spanish-Mexican filmmaker with a brilliant career spanning almost half a century. He worked in France, Mexico, and Spain and directed films spanning various genres. His filmmaking technique was strongly influenced by mise-en-scène. He was hailed as a leader of avant-garde surrealism and is considered one of the top directors of the 20th century.  

Best known for his performance as Diego Hargreeves in The Umbrella Academy, David Castañeda is an American-born actor who was raised in Mexico. While initially aspiring to be a civil engineer, he later switched to studying film production. He has also been part of films such as El Chicano and The Guilty.

Cantinflas was a Mexican actor, comedian, and filmmaker. Dubbed the Charlie Chaplin of Mexico, Cantinflas is best remembered for playing Passepartout in Around the World in 80 Days, for which he won a Golden Globe Award. Regarded as one of the most popular Mexican comedians of all time, Cantinflas is celebrated as a popular icon throughout Spain and Latin America. 

Jaime Camil is a Mexican singer, actor, and TV personality best known for his portrayal of Rogelio de la Vega in the popular American romantic comedy-drama telenovela Jane the Virgin. His performance in the telenovela earned him a couple of nominations at the Critics' Choice Television Awards. He also won three successive Teen Choice Awards starting from 2017.

Actor Tony Dalton began his career with off-Broadway productions such as A Streetcar Named Desire. The American-born Mexican actor was more of a Mexican movie and TV star till he starred in the American crime drama Better Call Saul. He also played Robert Avila in the Emmy-winning series Sr. Avila.

Mexican actor Yalitza Aparicio is best known for her Academy Award-nominated debut performance as Cleo in the film Roma. Though initially aspiring to be a school teacher, she later switched to acting. She is also a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador and has graced the cover of Vogue México.

Laura Harring is a Mexican-American actress best known for playing Camilla and Rita Rhodes in the neo-noir mystery film Mulholland Drive, for which she won an ALMA Award. Before establishing herself as an actress, Laura Harring achieved popularity by entering beauty pageants; in 1985, she was crowned Miss USA, becoming the first Hispanic woman to win the title.

Ana de la Reguera is a Mexican actress best known for her appearance in the comedy film Nacho Libre. The daughter of a famous TV personality, she started taking dance lessons as a young girl and went on to study performance arts. She began her acting career with telenovelas and gradually made her way into films. 

Manuel Garcia-Rulfo is a Mexican actor known for playing important roles in films like Bless Me, Ultima and Cake. Garcia-Rulfo, who had learnt horse riding during his growing up days in a ranch in Jalisco, had to take up gun training later in his life when he was playing an outlaw named Vasquez in the 2016 western film Magnificent Seven.

Once a matinee idol in Mexico, Pedro Infante is remembered for his blockbuster hits such as Nosotros los pobres and Los tres García. He loved flying planes, using the pseudonym Captain Cruz and eventually died in a plane crash. He was posthumously awarded the Silver Bear for his performance in Tizoc.

Mexican singer and actor Diego Boneta rose to prominence starring in the 2012 American jukebox musical comedy film Rock of Ages. Boneta then furthered his acting career featuring in several films and television series, particularly playing the titular character in the Spanish-language American biographical television series Luis Miguel: The Series. Boneta has also released the studio albums Diego and Indigo.

Known as the king of Mexican rodeo, for performing in concerts on horseback, Mexican singer Joan Sebastian won the highest number of Grammy awards from his country. Over 20 of his songs made it to the Billboard Hot Latin Songs chart. An actor, too, he was seen in the telenovela Tú y yo.

Mexican singer-songwriter and actress Belinda Peregrín, tagged as "Princess of Latin Pop" by international press is best known for her commercially hit studio albums like Belinda and Utopía and singles like Vivir, which made her the third best-selling female Mexican act. She also had screen success with films like The Cheetah Girls 2 and Mexican telenovelas like Amigos x siempre.   

Mexican comedian Roberto Gómez Bolaños became a cultural icon with his show Chespirito, which also starred him as the titular character and thus made him adopt Chespirito as his stage name later. He was a boxer before venturing into entertainment and had even dropped out of an engineering course.

Emmanuel Lubezki is a Mexican cinematographer best known for his innovative uses of continuous uninterrupted shots and natural lighting in cinematography. A member of the American Society of Cinematographers, Lubezki has worked with acclaimed American directors like Tim Burton, Mike Nichols, and Michael Mann. Emmanuel Lubezki is the first person to win three consecutive Academy Awards for Best Cinematography.