# Elena Anaya

Elena Anaya Gutiérrez (born 17 July 1975) is a Spanish actress.
She garnered public recognition in Spain for her performance in Sex and Lucia (2001), which also earned her a nomination to the Goya Award for Best Supporting Actress. She starred in The Skin I Live In (2011), for which she won the Goya Award for Best Actress. She is also known for her roles as the ginger/redhaired vampire bride named Aleera in Van Helsing (2004), the Spanish tourist in Room in Rome (2010) and Doctor Poison in Wonder Woman (2017).

## Early life

Anaya was born in Palencia, Spain. She is the youngest of three children. Her mother, Elena (Nena), is a housewife who later owned a boarding house in Palencia. Her father, Juan José Anaya Gómez (1934–2011), was an industrial engineer.

## Career

Anaya moved to Cádiz to train as an actress, after which she landed roles in África and Familia.
She first received international attention in 2001 for her role in the sexually explicit drama Sex and Lucia. She also had a small part the year after in Almodóvar's Talk to Her.
Her best-known Hollywood film role was as Aleera, one of Dracula's brides in 2004's Van Helsing. That same year, Anaya was named as one of European films' Shooting Stars by European Film Promotion.
In 2006, Anaya appeared in Justin Timberlake's music video for his single, "SexyBack".
After some "quiet" years playing supporting roles in international films such as Savage Grace (2007) and Cairo Time (2009), Anaya roared back into prominence with a starring role in 2010's Room in Rome, and then a return to Almodóvar in 2011's The Skin I Live In.
In 2017, Anaya appeared as Doctor Poison in the superhero blockbuster film, Wonder Woman.

## Personal life

Anaya and director Beatriz Sanchís [es] were reportedly in a relationship from 2008 to 2013.
In November 2016, it was announced that Anaya was expecting her first child with her partner, Tina Afugu Cordero, a costume designer. In February 2017, Anaya gave birth to their son.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1996 | África | África | |
| 1997 | Familia | Luna | |
| 1998 | Grandes ocasiones | Susy | |
| 1998 | Lágrimas negras (Black Tears) | Alicia | |
| 1998 | Finisterre, donde termina el mundo | Laura | |
| 1999 | Las huellas borradas (Fading Memories) | Rosa | |
| 2000 | El árbol del penitente | Sonsoles | |
| 2000 | El invierno de las anjanas (The Winter of the Fairies) | Adelaida | |
| 2001 | Lucía y el sexo (Sex and Lucia) | Belén | |
| 2001 | Sin noticias de Dios (Don't Tempt Me) | Pili | |
| 2002 | La habitación azul (The Blue Room) | Ana | |
| 2002 | Hable con ella (Talk to Her) | Ángela | |
| 2002 | Rencor (Rencor) | Esther | |
| 2003 | Dos tipos duros (Two Tough Guys) | Tatiana | |
| 2004 | Van Helsing | Aleera | |
| 2004 | Ana y Manuel | Ana | |
| 2005 | Fragile | Helen Perez | |
| 2005 | Dead Fish | Mimi | |
| 2006 | Alatriste | Angélica de Alquézar | |
| 2006 | Stage Kiss | Natalia | |
| 2007 | Savage Grace | Blanca | |
| 2007 | Miguel & William | Leonor | |
| 2007 | In the Land of Women | Sofia Buñuel | |
| 2008 | Sólo quiero caminar | Ana | |
| 2008 | Mesrine: L'Instinct De Mort | Sofia | |
| 2009 | Hierro | María | |
| 2009 | Cairo Time | Kathryn | |
| 2010 | Habitación en Roma (Room in Rome) | Alba | |
| 2010 | Point Blank | Nadia Pierret | |
| 2011 | La piel que habito (The Skin I Live In) | Vera Cruz | |
| 2012 | Hijos de las nubes, la última colonia (Sons of the Clouds: The Last Colony) | Narrator | |
| 2013 | Pensé que iba a haber fiesta | Ana | |
| 2014 | Todos están muertos (They Are All Dead) | Lupe | |
| 2015 | Lejos del mar | Marina | |
| 2015 | La memoria del agua (The Memory of Water) | Amanda | |
| 2015 | Swung | Alice | |
| 2016 | The Infiltrator | Gloria Alcaino | |
| 2016 | Zipi y Zape y la isla del capitán (Zip & Zap and the Captain's Island) | Miss Pam | |
| 2017 | La cordillera (The Summit) | Claudia Klein | |
| 2017 | Wonder Woman | Isabel Maru / Doctor Poison | |
| 2020 | Rifkin's Festival | Jo Rojas | |
| 2022 | Jaula (The Chalk Line) | Paula | |
| 2023 | Fatum | Comisaria Costa | |
| TBA | Rosebush Pruning | | Filming |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
| 2024 | Las largas sombras (Past Lies) | Rita | | |

## Awards and nominations

| Year | Award | Category | Work | Result |
| 2002 | 16th Goya Awards | Best Supporting Actress | Sex and Lucia | Nominated |
| 2002 | 11th Actors Union Awards | Best Film Performance in a Secondary Role | Sex and Lucia | Won |
| 2009 | Sitges Film Festival | Best Actress | Hierro | Won |
| 2011 | 25th Goya Awards | Best Actress | Room in Rome | Nominated |
| 2011 | 20th Actors and Actresses Union Awards | Best Film Actress in a Leading Role | Room in Rome | Nominated |
| 2012 | 26th Goya Awards | Best Actress | The Skin I Live In | Won |
| 2012 | 21st Actors and Actresses Union Awards | Best Film Actress in a Leading Role | The Skin I Live In | Nominated |
| 2014 | 17th Málaga Film Festival | Silver Biznaga for Best Actress | They Are All Dead | Won |
| 2015 | 2nd Feroz Awards | Best Main Actress in a Film | They Are All Dead | Nominated |
| 2015 | 29th Goya Awards | Best Actress | They Are All Dead | Nominated |
| 2015 | 24th Actors and Actresses Union Awards | Best Film Actress in a Leading Role | They Are All Dead | Won |
| 2016 | 3rd Platino Awards | Best Actress | The Memory of Water | Nominated |
| 2025 | 26th Iris Awards | Best Actress | Past Lies | Nominated |