# Belén Cuesta

Belén Cuesta Llamas (born 24 January 1984) is a Spanish actress. She rose to prominence for her performance as Magüi in comedy series Paquita Salas. She won the Goya Award for Best Actress for her leading performance in drama film The Endless Trench (2019).

## Early life

Belén Cuesta Llamas was born on 24 January 1984 in Seville, Spain. She moved to Málaga and her childhood and adolescence was spent in Fuengirola, where she studied at the Escuela Superior de Arte Dramático. She currently resides in Madrid.

## Career

Cuesta is mostly known as a theatre actress. She has participated in both film and television productions as well as television commercials.
She made her television debut in Cazadores de hombres. After featuring in minor roles in television series such as ¿Qué fue de Jorge Sanz? [es], Ángel o demonio, Palomitas and films such as Hierro, Operación Malaya and Perro flaco, she landed her first stable television role in 2012, when she joined period drama daily television series Bandolera to portray Elisa de Vega, a wealthy woman. She starred in comedy series Paquita Salas. Her role as Magüi Moreno, assistant to the title character in the aforementioned series, earned her great popularity with some of her lines becoming viral.
A cisgender woman, Cuesta featured in Money Heist as Manila (a transgender woman and Denver's cousin), initially passing as a hostage in the Bank of Spain, later disclosed to be a member of the band of robbers.

## Personal life

From 2012 to early 2023, Cuesta was in a relationship with actor Tamar Novas, whom she met during the filming of Bandolera.

## Credits

Key :
| † | Denotes works that have not yet been released |

### Theater

| Year | Title | Character | Director |
| 2004–05 | Ifigenia en Táuride | | Ignacio Ortiz |
| 2006 | Malditas sean por siempre Coronada y sus hijas | | Pablo Mesa |
| 2006 | Enrico V | | |
| 2007 | Una mujer sin importancia | | Hermanas Rico |
| 2007 | Me muero, me muero | | Hermanas Rico |
| 2008 | Acóplate | | Hermanas Rico |
| 2008 | Sonias | | Hermanas Rico |
| 2009 | Las fichas | | |
| 2010 | Labios | | Alejandra Nogales |
| 2011 | El imaginario de Cervantes | | Sonia Sebastián |
| 2011 | Te acuerdas | | |
| 2011 | Soy actriz | | |
| 2011 | Lo que da miedo es la muerte | | |
| 2011 | Papá se ha ido | | Sonia Sebastián |
| 2012 | Presencias | | Benja de la Rosa |
| 2012 | ¿Quién es Teodoro? | | |
| 2013–16 | La llamada | Hermana Milagros | Javier Calvo and Javier Ambrossi |
| 2016 | Los tragos de la vida | | Daniel Guzmán |
| 2017 | Universos Paralelos | Lucía | David Serrano |
| 2019 | Metamorfosis | | David Serrano |
| 2019 | El hombre almohada | Katurian | David Serrano |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2008 | Cazadores de hombres | | 2 episodes |
| 2010 | ¿Qué fue de Jorge Sanz? | Nurse | 1 episode |
| 2011 | Palomitas | | 9 episodes |
| 2011 | Ángel o demonio | | 1 episode |
| 2012 | Operación Malaya | Clara | TV movie |
| 2012 | Bandolera | Elisa de Vega | |
| 2013 | El tiempo entre costuras (The Time in Between) | Parturient | 1 episode |
| 2015 | Aquí Paz y después Gloria | Tere | |
| 2015 | Vis a vis | Yolanda Montero Fernández | 2 episodes |
| 2016 | Buscando el norte | Carolina | |
| 2016–19 | Paquita Salas | Magüi "Malu" Moreno | 14 episodes |
| 2017–18 | Ella es tu padre | Natalia | 13 episodes |
| 2018 | BByC: Bodas, bautizos y comuniones | Beatriz | 1 episode |
| 2019 | Mira lo que has hecho | | 4 episodes |
| 2019–21 | La casa de papel | Julia "Manila" | 20 episodes |
| 2023 | Cristo y Rey (Untameable) | Bárbara Rey | |
| 2023 | Romancero | Carmen | |
| 2024 | Cristóbal Balenciaga | Fabiola de Mora y Aragón | |
| 2024 | Las largas sombras (Past Lies) | Teresa | |

### Movies

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2009 | Hierro | | Feature film debut |
| 2011 | Perro flaco | Natalia | |
| 2012 | La montaña rusa | Pretty girl | |
| 2015 | Ocho apellidos catalanes (Spanish Affair 2) | Judit | |
| 2016 | Tenemos que hablar (We Need to Talk) | Yoli | |
| 2016 | El pregón | Silvia | |
| 2016 | Kiki, el amor se hace (Kiki, Love to Love) | Belén | |
| 2016 | Storks | Tulip | Voice |
| 2016 | Villaviciosa de al lado (A Stroke of Luck) | Elisa | |
| 2017 | La llamada (Holy Camp!) | Hermana Milagros | |
| 2017 | Proyecto Tiempo. Parte I: La llave | Carla | |
| 2017 | The Lego Ninjago Movie | Nya | Voice |
| 2018 | El aviso (The Warning) | Andrea | |
| 2019 | A pesar de todo (Despite Everything) | Claudia | |
| 2019 | Ventajas de viajar en tren (Advantages of Travelling by Train) | Amelia Urales de Úbeda | |
| 2019 | Litus | Laia | |
| 2019 | La frontera infinita (The Endless Trench) | Rosa | |
| 2019 | Klaus | Teacher/Fish Saleswoman | Voice |
| 2019 | Parking | María | |
| 2020 | Hasta que la boda nos separe (The Wedding Unplanner) | Marina | |
| 2020 | Sentimental (The People Upstairs) | Laura | |
| 2022 | Un novio para mi mujer (A Boyfriend for My Wife) | Lucía | |
| 2023 | El cuco (The Cuckoo's Curse) | Anna | |

### Television programs

| Year | Program | Channel | Notes |
| 2014 | En el aire | La Sexta | Collaborator |
| 2015–2019 | Pasapalabra | Telecinco | Guest |
| 2016 | El Hormiguero | Antena 3 | Guest |
| 2016 | Late Motiv | #0 | Guest |
| 2018 | Operación Triunfo | La 1 | Guest |
| 2018 | The Resistance | #0 | Guest |
| 2020 | Late Motiv | #0 | Guest |

## Accolades

| Year | Award | Category | Work | Result |
| 2015 | 24th Actors and Actresses Union Awards | Best Stage Actress in a Minor Role | La llamada | Nominated |
| 2017 | 4th Feroz Awards | Best Supporting Actress in a TV Series | Paquita Salas | Won |
| 2017 | 31st Goya Awards | Best New Actress | Kiki, Love to Love | Nominated |
| 2018 | 5th Feroz Awards | Best Supporting Actress (film) | Holy Camp! | Nominated |
| 2018 | 32nd Goya Awards | Best Supporting Actress | Holy Camp! | Nominated |
| 2018 | 27th Actors and Actresses Union Awards | Best Film Actress in a Secondary Role | Holy Camp! | Nominated |
| 2019 | 6th Feroz Awards | Best Supporting Actress in a TV Series | Paquita Salas | Nominated |
| 2020 | 25th Forqué Awards | Best Actress | The Endless Trench | Nominated |
| 2020 | 7th Feroz Awards | Best Actress in a Film | The Endless Trench | Won |
| 2020 | 7th Feroz Awards | Best Supporting Actress in a TV Series | Paquita Salas | Nominated |
| 2020 | 34th Goya Awards | Best Actress | The Endless Trench | Won |
| 2020 | 29th Actors and Actresses Union Awards | Best Film Actress in a Leading Role | The Endless Trench | Won |
| 2020 | 7th Platino Awards | Best Actress | The Endless Trench | Nominated |
| 2020 | 70th Fotogramas de Plata | Best Film Actress | The Endless Trench | Won |
| 2023 | 2nd Carmen Awards | Best Actress | A Boyfriend for My Wife | Nominated |
| 2023 | 25th Iris Awards | Best Actress | Untameable | Won |
| 2025 | 33rd Actors and Actresses Union Awards | Best Television Actress in a Minor Role | Cristóbal Balenciaga | Nominated |