# Paz Vega

María de la Paz Campos Trigo (born 2 January 1976), known professionally as Paz Vega (Spanish:), is a Spanish actress and filmmaker. She became popular for her performance in comedy television series 7 vidas. Her film credits include Sex and Lucia (2001), Mine Alone (2001), The Other Side of the Bed (2002), Carmen (2003), Spanglish (2004), 10 Items or Less (2006), Theresa: The Body of Christ (2007), Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted (2012), All Roads Lead to Rome (2015), Acts of Vengeance (2017), and Rambo: Last Blood (2019). She played the role of Catalina Creel in the 2019 television series Cradle of Wolves (Cuna de lobos).

## Early life

Vega was born in Seville, Andalusia, in 1976 to a housewife mother and a father who was a former bullfighter. Vega's younger sister has performed as a flamenco dancer. Vega has described her family as "traditional" and Catholic. She took her stage surname of 'Vega' from her grandmother. Vega decided to become an actress after attending a performance of Federico García Lorca's play, Bernarda Alba's House (La casa de Bernarda Alba), when she was 16.
After completing compulsory education at 16, Vega was accepted at the Andalusian Theater Center (Centro Andaluz de Teatro) stage school. She studied there for two years and took another two years studying journalism. She next moved to Madrid to seek her future.

## Screen career

Vega made her television debut in the Spanish TV series, My Father Is So Nice (Menudo es mi padre), which starred rumba singer El Fary. She appeared in two other series in 1997; More Than Friends (Más que amigos) and Companions (Compañeros).
In 1999, she made her film debut in Zapping. The same year, she also had a minor role in the David Menkes movie I Will Survive, alongside Emma Suárez, and Juan Diego Botto.
Vega found success in 1999's TV series 7 Lives (7 Vidas). The series was billed as a Spanish Friends and became one of the country's best-loved domestic sitcoms. Vega played Laura, a perky Andalusian girl who had come to stay with David, who had recently come out of a coma. The series was broadcast on Telecinco and finished on 12 April 2006, albeit without Vega.
In 2001, she starred in Julio Médem's film Sex and Lucia, which brought her to the attention of a larger audience. However, she received prominent exposure, particularly to American audiences, when she appeared in the 2004 James L. Brooks American film Spanglish opposite Adam Sandler. In 2006, she co-starred with American actor Morgan Freeman in the independent film 10 Items or Less, directed by Brad Silberling. In 2008, she co-starred with Gabriel Macht, Samuel L. Jackson, and Scarlett Johansson in The Spirit. In 2011, Vega had a role in Michele Placido's film Vallanzasca – The Angels of Evil.
Vega also works as a model; she is signed to 1/One Management in New York City. In May 2011, Vega replaced Penélope Cruz as the face for L'Oreal Spain.
In 2018, she participated in the third season of the reality cooking show MasterChef Celebrity.
In 2019, Vega appeared in Televisa to portray the lead character Catalina Creel in the miniseries Cradle of Wolves (Cuna de Lobos), based on the 1986 original telenovela of the same title. The same year, she portrayed an independent Mexican reporter in Rambo: Last Blood, in which she co-starred with Sylvester Stallone.
In 2023, Vega announced in Cannes the beginning of filming of her directorial debut, Rita, a feature film set in 1980s Seville billed by Vega as a "costumbrista and nostalgic" story. The film premiered at 2024 Locarno Film Festival and earned her a nomination for the Goya Award for Best New Director.

## Personal life

Vega and her Venezuelan husband, Orson Salazar, had their first child, a son, in May 2003. Their second child, a daughter, was born in July 2005. Their third child, another son, was born in August 2006. They married in 2002.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Roles | Notes |
| 1999 | Zapping | Elvira | Feature film debut |
| 1999 | I Will Survive (Sobreviviré) | | |
| 1999 | Nobody Knows Anybody (Nadie conoce a nadie) | Ariadna | |
| 2001 | Sex and Lucia (Lucía y el sexo]]) | Lucía | |
| 2001 | Mine Alone (Sólo mía]]) | Ángela | |
| 2002 | Talk to Her (Hable con ella]]) | Amparo | |
| 2002 | The Other Side of the Bed (El otro lado de la cama) | Sonia | |
| 2002 | Novo | Isabelle | |
| 2003 | Carmen | Carmen | |
| 2004 | Say Yes (Di que sí) | Estrella Cuevas | |
| 2004 | Spanglish | Flor | |
| 2006 | 10 Items or Less | Scarlet | |
| 2006 | The Borgia (Los Borgia) | Caterina Sforza | |
| 2006 | Fade to Black | Lea Padovani | |
| 2007 | The Lark Farm (La masseria delle allodole) | Nunik | |
| 2007 | Theresa: The Body of Christ (Teresa, el cuerpo de Cristo) | Santa Teresa | |
| 2008 | The Human Contract | Michael | |
| 2008 | The Spirit | Plaster of Paris | |
| 2009 | Not Forgotten | Amaya | |
| 2009 | The Six Wives of Henry Lefay | Verónica | |
| 2009 | Triage | Elena Morales | |
| 2010 | Burning Palms | Blanca Juárez | |
| 2010 | Angel of Evil | Antonella D'Agostino | |
| 2011 | Cat Run | Catalina Rona | |
| 2012 | Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted | Esmeralda, Esperanza and Ernestina | Voice role |
| 2013 | I'm So Excited! (Los amantes pasajeros) | Alba | |
| 2013 | Demon Inside | Marta | |
| 2014 | Grace of Monaco | Maria Callas | |
| 2014 | Paulo Coelho's Best Story | Luiza | |
| 2014 | Kill the Messenger | Coral Baca | |
| 2014 | The Ignorance of Blood (La ignorancia de la sangre) | Consuelo | |
| 2015 | All Roads Lead to Rome | Giulia Carni | |
| 2016 | Tales of an Immoral Couple (La vida inmoral de la pareja ideal) | Loles | |
| 2017 | Acts of Vengeance | Alma | |
| 2018 | About The Train Driver Who Was looking For Love... [de] (Vom Lokführer, der die Liebe suchte…/The Bra) | Daria | |
| 2019 | Oh, my mother! (¡Ay, mi madre! | Pili | |
| 2019 | Rambo: Last Blood | Carmen Delgado | |
| 2020 | Chasing Wonders | Adrianna | |
| 2021 | American Night | Sarah | |
| 2021 | The House of Snails (La casa del caracol) | Berta | |
| 2021 | Wetland (El lodo) | Claudia | |
| 2021 | 13 Minutes | Ana | |
| 2022 | There Are No Saints | Nadia | |
| 2022 | Full Train 2 (A todo tren 2) | Clara | |
| 2024 | Rita | Mari | Also director, writer, and executive producer |
| 2024 | I Can't Live Without You (No puedo vivir sin ti) | Adela | |

### Television

| Year | Title | Roles | Notes |
| 1997 | My Father Is So Nice (Menudo es mi padre | Olga | 6 episodes |
| 1997–1998 | more Than Friends (Más que amigos | Olga | 28 episodes |
| 1998 | Companions (Compañeros) | Luz | 17 episodes |
| 1999 | Shelly Fisher | Seidy Bender | Television film |
| 1999–2006 | 7 Lives (7 vidas) | Laura Arteagabeitia | 60 episodes |
| 2008 | Lex | Rocío Janer | 4 episodes |
| 2012 | Mary of Nazareth | Mary Magdalene | Television film |
| 2012 | One Thousand and One Nights: Aladdin and Sherazade (Le mille e una notte: Aladino e Sherazade) | Namuna | Miniseries, three parts |
| 2015 | Beautiful & Twisted | Narcy | Television film |
| 2015 | Big Time in Hollywood, FL | Isabella Delgado | 4 episodes |
| 2016–2017 | The Brotherhood (La Hermandad) | Luisa Salinas | Main role (seasons 1–2); 25 episodes |
| 2016–2019 | The OA | Renata | Main role (seasons 1–2); 7 episodes |
| 2017 | Forgive me, sir (Perdóname, señor) | Lucía Medina | 8 episodes |
| 2018 | Fugitive (Fugitiva) | Magda | 9 episodes |
| 2018 | Paquita Salas | Herself | Episode: "Starting Point" ("Punto de partida") |
| 2018 | MasterChef Celebrity | Herself | Runner-Up (season 3); 11 episodes |
| 2018 | The Continental (El Continental) | Belice | 5 episodes |
| 2019 | Cradle Of Wolves (Cuna de lobos) | Catalina Creel de Larios | Lead role |
| 2020 | The House of Flowers (La Casa de las Flores) | Carmelita's mother | Episode: "LAUREL, (Symb. glory)" |
| 2020–2021 | Mask Singer: Guess Who Sings (Mask Singer: Adivina quién canta) | Catrina | Winner (season 1); 8 episodes |
| 2020–2021 | Mask Singer: Guess Who Sings (Mask Singer: Adivina quién canta) | Herself | Investigator (season 2); 9 episodes |
| 2023 | Kaleidoscope | Ava Mercer | Main role |

## Accolades

| Year | Award | Category | Work | Result |
| 2001 | 48th Ondas Awards | Best Actress | Sex and Lucia | Won |
| 2002 | 57th CEC Medals | Best Actress | Mine Alone | Nominated |
| 2002 | 46th Sant Jordi Awards | Best Spanish Actress | Sex and Lucia & Mine Alone | Won |
| 2002 | 52nd Fotogramas de Plata | Best Film Actress | Sex and Lucia | Nominated |
| 2002 | 16th Goya Awards | Best New Actress | Sex and Lucia | Won |
| 2002 | 16th Goya Awards | Best Actress | Mine Alone | Nominated |
| 2002 | 11th Actors Union Awards | Best Film Performance in a Leading Role | | Nominated |
| 2002 | 11th Actors Union Awards | Best New Performance | | Nominated |
| 2003 | 53rd Fotogramas de Plata | Best Actress | The Other Side of the Bed | Nominated |
| 2004 | 17th European Film Awards | Jameson People's Choice Award for Best Actress | Carmen | Nominated |
| 2005 | Imagen Awards | Best Actress | Spanglish | Nominated |
| 2020 | 29th Actors and Actresses Union Awards | Best Actress in an International Production | The OA | Nominated |
| 2021 | 4th Berlanga Awards | Best Actress | Wetland | Nominated |
| 2022 | 1st Carmen Awards | Best Actress | The House of Snails | Nominated |
| 2024 | 32nd Actors and Actresses Union Awards | Best Actress in an International Production | Kaleidoscope | Nominated |
| 2025 | 4th Carmen Awards | Best New Director | Rita | Won |
| 2025 | 4th Carmen Awards | Best Original Screenplay | Rita | Nominated |
| 2025 | 4th Carmen Awards | Best Supporting Actress | Rita | Nominated |
| 2025 | 39th Goya Awards | Best New Director | Rita | Pending |