Salma Hayek

Selma Hayek

Salma Hayek Jiménez (born September 2nd, 1966) is a Mexican actress, director and producer.

Career

Mexico

At the age of 23, Hayek landed the title role in Teresa (1989), a successful Mexican telenovela that made her a star in Mexico.

To further her home country stardom, in 1994, she went on to star in the film El Callejón de los Milagros (Miracle Alley), which won more awards than any other movie in the history of Mexican cinema. For her performance, Hayek was nominated for an Ariel Award.

Hollywood

Hayek moved to Los Angeles, California in 1991 to study acting and build a career in Hollywood. Despite her limited fluency in English, Hayek got the break she needed starring opposite Antonio Banderas in 1995's Desperado.

Hayek followed her success in Desperado with roles in From Dusk Till Dawn (1996), Wild Wild West (1999) and Dogma (1999) that saw her climb the ranks of global celebrity.

In 2003, she reprised her role from Desperado by appearing in Once Upon a Time in Mexico, the final film of the Mariachi Trilogy.

Personal life

Hayek dated actor Edward Norton between 1999 and 2003 and then Josh Lucas in 2003.

In 2007, Hayek confirmed she was expecting her first child with fiancé - PPR CEO François-Henri Pinault. On September 21st, 2007, she gave birth to daughter Valentina Paloma Pinault.

On July 18th, 2008 she and François-Henri Pinault announced the end of their engagement.

Hayek is also heavily involved in charitable work, which includes increasing awareness of violence against women and discrimination against immigrants.

Triva

Hayek is an executive producer of popular television series - Ugly Betty.

She is the first Mexican national to be nominated for a Best Actress Oscar.

Hayek has a tattoo on her left arm of the word 'Asbestos', attributing it to an awareness campaign aimed at the dangers of asbestos water pipes.

Before acting she was an accomplished gymnast aspiring to compete in the Olympic Games, but her father prevented her from being recruited by the Mexican national team.

A 2007 MSNBC poll found Hayek to be the "sexiest celebrity" out of a field of 3,000 celebrities (male and female). According to the poll, "65 percent of the U.S. population would use the term 'sexy' to describe her".