Penelope Cruz is the cover girl for the June issue of Vogue (America). These are some low-quality shots of the Vogue shots, courtesy of The Fashion Spot. I adore Penelope’s freckles. And her post-baby body is INSANE. The photographer is Mario Testino, and her clothes in the shoot are all D&G, by the way. Nice. Here are a few more shots:
Penelope took the Vogue cover – in her first big magazine interview since giving birth to baby Leo – because she’s about to start the promotional tour for Pirates of the Caribbean 4, which comes out in two weeks. I have no idea if people are still interested in this franchise, but given the recent appetite for needless sequels (Fast & Furious, blech), this one will probably do very well. In addition to Vogue, Penelope also appears on the cover of the latest issue of The Hollywood Reporter. I’ve put some interview highlights and the cover below:
Penelope on doing an action film while pregnant: “It helped that I was a dancer for so many years and worked on the fight choreography for two months before I was pregnant. I really knew all the fights because [director] Rob [Marshall] put them together almost as a dance the way we had trained for Nine. That helped, and when we shot, I never did anything dangerous.”
Working with her ‘Nine’ director Rob Marshall: “Rob and I were eating together and he turned to me and said, ‘I have this question to ask you but I don’t know if I’m brave enough to ask as you may say ‘No’. ‘Well Rob, you have to ask me,’ I said. And he turned and asked, ‘Would you like to do ‘Pirates’ with me and Johnny?’ I heard this and screamed. A very good scream. I really love Rob and have longed to work with him again. I want to kiss his feet.”
On Johnny Depp: “Johnny is a great friend, so genuine and unique. My memories of ‘Blow’… Wow that was such an extreme period. It was a wild set, very rock ‘n’ roll. I had missed working with him.”
On taking every job when she was younger: “When I started, when I was 16 or 17, I never even considered not doing a project. I just wanted to work. I knew who some of those I would work with would be pleasant, and others would be these huge a–holes. But now, if there’s one thing I can afford to do, having worked so hard for all of these years, it’s that if I go into a meeting with someone that is offering me a movie and I can clearly see they are going to be an a–hole, I will not do the movie. No matter what it is.”
[From CTV & Music Rooms]
Nice. I know that Javier and Penelope are rumored to be major d-bags in general, but I have to say, I usually like Penelope in interviews, and I’m excited to see her career moves in the future. I was never her biggest fan… until I saw Nine. She was the best part of Nine. And now I really enjoy her. Plus, I just want to see Leo. You know that’s one hot Spanish baby.
Vogue shots courtesy of The Fashion Spot. Hollywood Reporter cover courtesy of THR online.
When last time has a real model done Voque cover?
I love the Hollywood Reporter cover!
I still can’t find her interesting.
Why cover up the freckles??? They are wonderful…remember…freckles are God’s little kisses.
very beautiful and natural!and I love the freckles too!
I used to think she was so meh until Vicky Cristina Barcelona she was f-ing brilliant in that film(which was so-so without her) I think her and Bardem are so sexy, even if they are a-holes in real life.
I’ve always thought she is insanely gorgeous and she looks better as she gets older. I do have a quibble with the photoshopping unless she’s hardcore Spanxed/corseted? Her post-baby body is gorgeous and she seems to be losing weight at a reasonable pace but I saw pics of her at the Met ball and I don’t recall her waistline looking anything like that.
@mln76: Have you seen her in “Volver”? Very good movie and I thought that performance was better than the one in VCB.
I think she’s gorgeous and has an interesting face. Lovely cover – very fresh and natural.
Same, I was initially ‘meh’ on her, but she’s grown on me a great deal the last couple of years. Anyone see Broken Embraces? She was really captivating in that.
What’s the scoop on her and Javier being dbags in real life?
@lexirei Oh I love Volver and even All about My Mother but I specifically was talking about her english language movies. I love Pedro Almodover one of my fav all-time directors.
Sunday posts! Yay!!!!
The cover doesn’t even look like her. Is it the bushy eyebrows or photoshop?
Penelope looks fantastic on that cover like a throwback to old hollywood a cross between Ingrid Bergman & Angela Lansbury Or Grace Kelly had she been a brunette
Are we ever going to see MODELS on the cover of Vogue again??? Anna Wintour is truly the devil in Prada. Ruining Vogue like she has done.
OTOH, at least Pene is model gorgeous.
@Danielle352: Exactly! They left in the freckles and screwed with the rest of her face so much she’s unrecognizable. Nose, brows, lips…
she looks good and thank your Photoshop for the body
I always mix Javier up with that other actor or with a fat Gerard Butler. What is with all the Hollywood lookalikes.
I’ve always thought that Penelope Cruz looks so much better in a photo than she does normally. I saw her in some interview the other day and she isn’t half as pretty as she is in photographs.
I’m curious to know what kind of d-bags they both are and if they’re normally rude, than what defines rude to Penelope Cruz?
I didn’t recognize her in this cover.
Weird and big lips, weird eyes.
Her body is insane (with photoshop help of course).
First of all, I love that Vogue minimized the use of photoshop. I happen to find the most beautiful photographs to be ones where you can see some tiny details, a small scar, a freckle, etc.
Second, I think Penelope has hit her stride. When she first started in Hollywood, it was clear she was not as comfortable acting in English as she was in her native Spanish. Vanilla Sky – meh, she seemed hesitant, shy. All The Pretty Horses was just not very good at all. But now – she is a perfect example of a woman peaking in her later 30s rather than in her early 20s-30s. She was the best part of Vicky Christina Barcelona. She’ll probably be the best part of Pirates 4. She’s charismatic, vivacious, and absolutely gorgeous. I hope she has a long career, I like watching her.
I love the cover!!
I didn’t recognize her on that cover either! I think these photos are the prettiest I’ve seen of her. I don’t care about her opinions and don’t find her to be the greatest actress, but she’s great to look at and seems fine enough at her job. She doesn’t annoy.
She’s so beautiful and talented – I’ve also read that she and Bardem are a-holes. She seeems nice and smart and she gives good interviewss so it’s hard to hate her.
I find Latin women gorgeous. Penelope always captures my attention on screen. I was particularly impressed by her role in the movie, “Non ti muovere” or “Don’t Move” It was a disturbing film but I got lost in her character. It is truly an amazing role and an Oscar worthy one at that.
There is something about Penelope–she has some slightly unusual features (which may on their own not be special)–but when you put them all together, she just looks stunning. I love the way she looks–she is one of the most beautiful actresses in my humble opinion. And I love her freckles!!!!
Re: the d-bag reputation: I can’t remember where this came from or find a site, but there have been rumors that Javier Bardem is not the most gracious person to journalists, waitstaff, etc. Some bloggers have written about seeing him be an ass to people on promotional tours. I think the Penelope thing is more by default- when she’s with him on these promotional/red carpet things, she acts equally douchy.
It may have first come from Lainey, who heard it from other journalists at Sundance or Cannes or someplace.
She looks great. I love all the retro-y details, the swimsuit, bigger hair, bigger brows, redder lips. Fashion has been boring the last couple decades.
She is absolutely stunning. I love her in Spanish films by Almodovar. They make a great team. Her acting is in Spanish is so emotive. Loved her in Broken Embraces.
All you have to do is look at pics from her at the MET and you know she is no where as thin as those Vogue pics make her out to be.
My husband is a fan of freckles, and he said this was the sexiest she’s ever looked. I tend to agree. She’s gorgeous.
I love the look. It reminds me of the 90s supermodels, when models used to be models because they were beautiful, healthy looking women.
I love her since Volver – great movie and she was perfect in it.
@Trillion: ITAWY.
Gorgeous pics, but in some of them they don’t really look like her lol.
Penelope is one of my fave actors. She is usually the most convincing part of her english language films. I love her spanish language films.
As far as the vogue cover, it is terrible as it does not look like her at all. As far as the body, it has been photoshopped to death since if you see her in real life, it is obvious that she still has her baby weight especially her belly. It is good to see someone in h’wood who is losing the baby weight gradually though
I sort of don’t want anyone stealing the awesome-freckled-beauty spotlight from Julianne Moore, but Penelope’s beauty here cannot be denied, even by a Moore-bian like me. She’s always been so thin and yet she radiates health. This is a great illustration of why Western Europeans make so much fun of how fat we Americans are: This kind of healthy look is normal to them.
Dear pop culture: More natural features of skin, please!
I liked her in Volver and she looks gorgeous in the photos above. As another blogger said, I’m also not really interested in what she has to say – she’s nice to look at.
This just irks me. Does Vogue think we’re stupid, blind or both? Her body is NOWHERE near what is pictured here; she is unfortunately rather boxy and matronly in general, and even more so after having her baby.
Oh yeah, and while I really like the cover, it looks NOTHING like her. If I had to guess I would have said this is a late 70s early 80s cover featuring a now-obscure fashion model.
What a beautiful photo shoot. Penelope has definitely hit her stride and will continue to receive accolades for her performances because she is the bomb! Loved her since ‘Blow’ with Johnny Depp.
@mln76: Cool, I love “All About My Mother” too. Didn’t realize you were talking about her English language films.
She looks beautiful but so very unlike herself, if that makes any sense. HAHAHA… my husband just said she looked a little like me on the Vogue cover. That’s why I love the man so. His blindness is compelling.
I didn’t like her until VCB either, and thought she was good in Nine.
Just read about Pirates 4, and it sounds like they really tried to improve it, and Johnny had an active say in story and script. I was so so on the last 2, but I think I’ll go see it.
love it! reminds me of the 90’s vogue covers.
She looks soooo beautiful! And I normally am not crazy about her features.
Hooray to having a real career and a having a person we know beyond face and bod shots being on a mag.
Sorry, if male models are Zoolander then it ain’t enough for a woman either. If they crawl up from pop stars and actresses more regularly we’ll really be talking.
Cruz has got beauty and substance. She dated some idiots but that’s very hard to avoid in life.
So after reading all of the comments stating that these amazing shots don’t look a thing like her actual body, I googled pictures of her at the Met Gala. I don’t see a real difference. If they whittled down her waist-line in photoshop, it was a small amount. She’s thinned out since I last saw a red carpet picture of her, and she looked amazing even months ago. In the cover shot, they’ve edited out her fine lines/wrinkles, like any woman in H’wood, but other than that it looks exactly like her. Here’s a little story:
So several years ago I got dragged to see that awful movie “Zaraha” starring her and Mathew M. I’d heard of her, of course, and I didn’t dread it entirely because of, well…Mathew M. I was so mesmerized by her entire persona, so much so that I didn’t spend any time analyzing the plot holes and ludicrous story-line. I was too busy watching her face and desperately thinking about how to get my own ass to look that amazing in a pair of cargo pants and boots. I came out of that hot mess completely whipped. It’s probably one of the most ridiculous movies ever made, but I ended up buying the DVD. In short, she’s breathtaking. And seeing as she’s been garnering a lot of award attention for her roles the past several years, it’s safe to say she’s talented. I haven’t heard of her being a d-bag, but if she is I’m prepared to forgive her and then some! She’s pretty much the one celeb that I find flawless in terms of looks, and she’s got the acting cred to back all of it up. I’m gonna buy this month’s Vogue for these shots alone.
She´s beautiful, has always been.
In the cover shot, she looks like a brunette giselle!! WTF! Only the last pic looks like penelope. Take it easy on the photoshop Anna!
Silly question really, considering the art work gives it all away: it’s great!
Yet another victim of facial filler & botox overload.
Vogue- bring back models (not celebs) on your covers. Its long overdue!
i dunno what she did…maybe motherhood did it but, this is the BEST! she has EVER looked.
she’s absolutely beautiful & i NEVER thought so b4.
like, wow…really.
🙂
The Hollywood Reporter cover is beautiful but the Vogue one really doesn’t look like her at all.
Just hazarding a guess here, but as for the rumors of Penelope & Javier being dbags–it might be that they’re Spanish. I’m not being critical, but I studied in Spain for a year and was rather astonished by how almost rudely the Spanish behave in public (I’m from the Pacific NW). Customer service is usually pretty abrupt & rude, and there’s a brusqueness about stranger interaction that was startling to me. Once you get to know them, Spaniards are generous, warm people, but they are generally insular and suspicious of strangers. I don’t know if it’s worse than our false friendliness here in the U.S., but it is a cultural difference.
Very pretty but not recognizable as Penelope Cruz. Nose shortened, upper lip altered – either surgery, lighting/makeup trix, or Photoshop.