Paz Vega facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Paz Vega
Vega in 2020
Born	María de la Paz Campos Trigo (1976-01-02) 2 January 1976 (age 49) Seville, Spain
Occupation	Actress filmmaker
Years active	1997–present
Spouse(s)	Orson Salazar ​ (m. 2002)​
Children	3

María de la Paz Campos Trigo (born on January 2, 1976), known as Paz Vega, is a famous Spanish actress. She became well-known for her role in the TV comedy series 7 Lives. Paz Vega has starred in many movies, including Mine Alone (2001), The Other Side of the Bed (2002), Carmen (2003), and the American film Spanglish (2004).

She also appeared in Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted (2012), All Roads Lead to Rome (2015), and Rambo: Last Blood (2019). In 2019, she played Catalina Creel in the TV series Cradle of Wolves. Paz Vega also directed her first movie, Rita, which was released in 2024. She also wrote the story for this film.

Early Life and Education

Paz Vega was born in Seville, a city in Andalusia, Spain, in 1976. Her mother was a housewife, and her father used to be a bullfighter. Paz Vega has a younger sister who is a talented flamenco dancer. Paz Vega has said that her family was very traditional and Catholic. She chose her stage name, 'Vega', from her grandmother.

When she was 16, Paz Vega decided she wanted to be an actress. This happened after she watched a play called Bernarda Alba's House. After finishing her basic schooling at 16, she was accepted into the Andalusian Theater Center acting school. She studied there for two years. She also spent two more years studying journalism. After her studies, she moved to Madrid to start her acting career.

Her Acting Journey

Paz Vega with actor Morgan Freeman at a movie premiere in Madrid in 2007.

Paz Vega first appeared on television in a Spanish TV series called My Father Is So Nice. She also acted in two other TV shows in 1997: More Than Friends and Companions.

In 1999, she made her first movie appearance in Zapping. That same year, she had a small role in the film I Will Survive.

Becoming a Star

Paz Vega became very popular in 1999 with the TV series 7 Lives. This show was like a Spanish version of Friends and became one of the most loved TV comedies in the country. Paz Vega played Laura, a lively girl from Andalusia. The show was very successful and ran for many years.

In 2001, she starred in the film ... and Lucia, which helped her become known to a wider audience. She gained even more attention, especially in America, when she appeared in the 2004 American film Spanglish. In this movie, she acted alongside Adam Sandler. In 2006, she co-starred with the famous American actor Morgan Freeman in the movie 10 Items or Less. Later, in 2008, she acted with Gabriel Macht, Samuel L. Jackson, and Scarlett Johansson in The Spirit.

Other Work and Recent Roles

Paz Vega also works as a model. She has been the face for L'Oreal Spain. In 2018, she took part in the third season of the cooking reality show MasterChef Celebrity in Spain.

In 2019, Paz Vega played the main character, Catalina Creel, in the TV miniseries Cradle of Wolves. In the same year, she played a Mexican reporter in Rambo: Last Blood, acting alongside Sylvester Stallone.

In 2023, Paz Vega announced that she was starting to film her first movie as a director, called Rita. This film is set in Seville in the 1980s and tells a "costumbrista and nostalgic" story. The movie was shown at the 77th Locarno Film Festival in 2024. For her work on Rita, she was nominated for the Goya Award for Best New Director.

Family Life

Paz Vega is married to Orson Salazar, who is from Venezuela. They got married in 2002. They have three children together. Their first child, a son, was born in May 2004. Their second child, a daughter, was born in July 2006. Their third child, another son, was born in August 2007.

Awards and Recognition

Paz Vega and Nicole Kidman at the 2014 Cannes Film Festival.

Paz Vega has received many awards and nominations for her acting.

• In 2001, she won the Ondas Award for Best Actress for her role in ... and Lucia.
• In 2002, she won the Sant Jordi Awards for Best Spanish Actress for ... and Lucia and Mine Alone.
• Also in 2002, she won the Goya Award for Best New Actress for ... and Lucia. The Goya Awards are Spain's main national film awards.
• In 2025, she won the Carmen Awards for Best New Director for her film Rita. She was also nominated for Best New Director at the 39th Goya Awards for the same film.

Filmography

Movies

Year	Title	Roles
1999	Zapping	Elvira
1999	I Will Survive
1999	Nobody Knows Anybody	Ariadna
2001	... and Lucia	Lucía
2001	Mine Alone	Ángela
2002	Talk to Her	Amparo
2002	The Other Side of the Bed	Sonia
2002	Novo	Isabelle
2003	Carmen	Carmen
2004	Say Yes	Estrella Cuevas
2004	Spanglish	Flor
2006	10 Items or Less	Scarlet
2006	The Borgia	Caterina Sforza
2006	Fade to Black	Lea Padovani
2007	The Lark Farm	Nunik
2007	Theresa: The Body of Christ	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!	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	Consuelo
2015	All Roads Lead to Rome	Giulia Carni
2016	Tales of an Immoral Couple	Loles
2017	Acts of Vengeance	Alma
2018	About The Train Driver Who Was looking For Love...	Daria
2019	Oh, my mother!	Pili
2019	Rambo: Last Blood	Carmen Delgado
2020	Chasing Wonders	Adrianna
2021	American Night	Sarah
2021	The House of Snails	Berta
2021	Wetland	Claudia
2021	13 Minutes	Ana
2022	There Are No Saints	Nadia
2022	Full Train 2	Clara
2024	Rita	Mari
2024	I Can't Live Without You	Adela
2025	Judas' Gospel	Mary
TBD	Trinidad	Claudia

Television Shows

See also

In Spanish: Paz Vega para niños