With decades of career in the movie industry, Ana Leza is easily identified as a notable Spanish actress. She has played many roles in both Spanish and Hollywood movies, turning herself into an international act. Despite the fame she has gathered on her own through her long-standing career, she is mostly remembered for being the first wife of Spanish actor Antonio Banderas.
Beyond being Antonio’s ex-wife, Leza is also known for being responsible for translating Atonio’s first Hollywood film. Alongside her ex, she appeared in films such as Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown, Of Love and Shadows (1994), and Philadelphia (1993). Other films she has featured in include, Hay que zurrar a los pobres (1991), Lorca, muerte de un poeta (1987), and Teresa de Jesús (1984).
The Actress was Born into Fame
Ana Arana Leza was born in 1962 as the daughter of famous actress and voice actress Conchita Leza Nunez. She was born in Madrid – the capital and most populous city of Spain.
Her mother had a career in the radio in the 1950s and later started acting in the 1960s.
The same year Ana was born, her mother, Conchita Leza appeared in Bahia de Palma (1962). Still, in Ana’s early life, her mother played roles in Los Guerilleros (as Amiga da Teresa 1963), La pandilla de los once (1963), and Valiente (as Maria Consuelo Alcala 1964).
The actress’ mother also played roles in Hands of a Gunfighter (1965), Aventura en el labiratorio (1967), and Los extremenos se tocan (1970). Conchita died on June 26, 2009.
All to Know About Her Extensive Acting Career
Antonio Banderas’ ex-wife started her professional career as an actress in her 20s. In 1984, she appeared in two episodes of Teresa de Jesus. The same year, she appeared in an episode of Fragmentos de interior.
She appeared in many other films and series in Spain before she extended her career to Hollywood where she appeared in Philadephia, alongside her ex-husband, Tom Hanks, and Denzel Washington.
How Ana Leza and Benderas Met and Married After a Few Months
Leza and her ex-husband Banderas met in Spain where they were both pursuing their acting careers. A few months later, the former couple married on July 27, 1987, at the Church of San Nicolas in Madrid.
They had an intimate wedding in the presence of family and friends. Famous people such as actors Carmen Maura and Pedro Almodovar.
The same year they were married, Leza appeared in Lorca, muerte de un poeta where she featured in two episodes.
While the famous actors were married, they featured in the same films such as Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown, Philadelphia, and Of Love and Shadows.
At the time, Leza was already fluent in English while Banderas was struggling with the language. Hence, Leza became his English and encouraged him to take the script of one of his famous works. She translated the script for him and helped him succeed in Hollywood.
It also led to his being featured in several other Hollywood films.
Her Ex met his Future Wife While They Were Still Married
Leza’s ex-husband Antonio saw American actress Melanie Griffith at the 1989 Academy Awards. At the time, the Philadelphia star Banderas was married to Leza and Melanie was married to Don Johnson.
In 1995, Griffith and Banderas featured in the rom-com Two Much where they played a couple. Still, they didn’t start dating at the time and Banderas spoke of their relationship as:
It was very, very fast and very compulsive, but at the same time, we were tied at the time, we tried as much as we could to be respectful. We just thought this may be one of those, you know, infatuation moments that we have when we shoot movies because we got to play together a couple, so let’s just go home.
On May 14, 1996, Griffith and Banderas were married. The same year, they welcomed their only child, a daughter, Stella del Carmen Banderas Griffith.
Griffith and Banderas divorced in 2014, citing irreconcilable differences.
See Also: Raphael Acloque: Is He Married? Other Facts About The Actor
The Truth About Ana and Benderas’ Divorce
Antonio and his ex-wife Ana Leza were divorced in 1996. This left Leza with the home the former couple owned in Madrid, 570 million pesetas (3.4 million euros), alimony of 2.4 million pesetas a month (just over 12,000 euros), and the life right to 50% of all profits from the films that Antonio had starred in during their marriage.
Of the many things Ana got from their marriage, Vanity Fair reports that the actor recalled in 2004 that:
They left me worse than … There were eight days of trial. It’s a business. What the judge wants to know is how much you are going to pay your partner. They grab you by one foot, they shake you and, when the last one runs out dollar, they leave you. That’s what they did with me.
Ana Leza is Married to Dharma Villareal and They are Practicing Buddhists
The Madrid-born actress Leza is a Buddhist. She married editor and documentary filmmaker Dharma Villareal on November 26, 2000, in Santa Barbara, California. Villareal is famed for working as an assistant editor on the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers series (1993-1996).
The couple are parents of two daughters, Clara María and Sofía Macarena. The family practices Buddhism and all of them have Buddhist alter egos: the eldest, Clara María, calls herself Clara Priya, and the youngest, Sofía Macarena, is Sophia Sindhu.
Leza’s children lead quiet lives and are away from fame. Whatever the case, Leza and her family have lived in both Spain and the US. She was said to have started a business in Madrid with her husband before they moved to New York.
