Benicio Del Toro - Biography

Last Editor: sdthtzj				Benicio Del Toro Biography -   Name : Benicio Del Toro Profession : Actor Birth Details : born February 19, 1967 Height : 6' 2" (1.88 m) Nickname : Beno Personal quotes : "Before I was ever in high school, I had dark circles under my eyes. The rumor was I was a junkie. I have dark circles under my eyes, deal with it Trade mark : Slurred, mumbling voice and odd mannerisms.

Benicio Del Toro Trivia -

Son of Gustavo Del Toro and Fausta Sanchez-Del Toro, and Godson of Sarah Torres (all lawyers). Passionate about oil painting. Sent to boarding school in Pennsylvania when he was 13. Has one brother, Gustavo, who is two years older and is a physician in the US. Mother died when he was nine. Family urged him to become a lawyer because they felt there was no future in acting. Studied at the Stella Adler Conservatory of Acting on a scholarship. Dated Chiara Mastroianni Attended the University of California - San Diego (UCSD) Gained 40 lbs. for his role in Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1998). Burned himself with cigarettes repeatedly for the elevator scene in Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1998) because the real Oscar Zeta Acosta did as well. The shots of the burn were cut. Reportedly turned down the role of Frida Kahlo's husband Diego Rivera in Frida (2002) because of the weight gain that would be required, despite that earlier, for Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1998), he had gained 40 pounds for his character. Was offered the role of Reinaldo Arenas in Before Night Falls (2000) that eventually went to Javier Bardem. He turned it down to be in friend Christopher McQuarrie's The Way of the Gun (2000). Attended Mercersburg Academy (graduated in 1985). He was a basketball star and artist there, but not an actor. He badly injured his wrist during a stunt fight during the filming of William Friedkin's The Hunted (2003). He fell on his wrist as he dove for a knife and actor Tommy Lee Jones fell on top of him. He was injured so badly that he was out of work for months, even though the film was virtually completed. He required 3 hours of therapy daily and reportedly there is a question whether he will regain full use of the wrist. cousin is Joshue Del Toro. "Del Toro" means "of the bull" in Spanish. Won the 2003 Audience Award for Best Actor at the Venice International Film Festival for his role in "21 Grams". Third Puerto Rican Actor to win an Academy Award. The other two were: Rita Moreno (West Side Story (1961)) and José Ferrer (Cyrano de Bergerac (1950)). Benny Dalmau's last name (his character in Basquiat (1996)) came from Raymond Dalmau, a Puerto Rican basketball player in the 70s and early 80s. Raymond Dalmau wore the shirt Benicio wears in the film when he was in the Puerto Rican National Selection. Engaged to Valeria Golino from 1988 to 1992. Before moving to Pennsylvania, was a student at Academia del Perpetuo Socorro in Miramar, Puerto Rico. Because of his pay-or-play deal on the film, he was paid $5 million for the doomed "American Gangster" project (set to begin filming in October 2004), which was to star Denzel Washington and be directed by Antoine Fuqua. In 2001, became the fourth Oscar winner (Best Supporting Actor, Traffic (2000)) to play a character that mostly spoke in a foreign language (most of his dialogue was in Spanish). He was considered for the lead character of Eddie Kagle in _Angel on My Shoulder (2005)_ , a role that was played by 'Paul Muni' in Angel on My Shoulder (1946). Producers not only wanted him for his his amazing talent, but also for his close resemblance to Muni. Youngest person ever to portray a villain in a James Bond-movie He was originally cast as Darth Maul in Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace. After the majority of the character's lines were removed from the script by George Lucas, Benicio left the project.

Benicio Del Toro Detailed Biography -

Benicio Monserrate Rafael Del Toro Sanchez (born February 19, 1967) is an Oscar winning actor. He was born in San German, Puerto Rico and grew up in Santurce, a district of San Juan, Puerto Rico and spent his teens and attended high school in Mercersburg, Pennsylvania, outside of Pittsburgh. His parents, Gustavo Adolfo Del Toro Bermudez and Fausta Sanchez Rivera, were both lawyers. He has an older brother, also named Gustavo, who is a pediatric oncologist working in Manhattan. Benicio attended Academia del Perpetuo Socorro (The Academy of Our Lady of Perpetual Help), a Catholic school in Miramar, Puerto Rico. When he was nine years old, his mother died of hepatitis. At age 13, his father moved his family to Mercersburg, Pennsylvania, near Chambersburg, where Benicio was enrolled in Mercersburg Academy, a boarding school. After graduation, Del Toro followed the advice of his father and pursued a practical degree in business at the University of California, San Diego. Success in an elective drama course encouraged him to drop out of college and study with legendary acting teacher Stella Adler in Los Angeles, as well as at the Circle in the Square Theatre School in New York. Benicio hid his new career goals from his family until roles began to come his way. He began to surface in small television parts during the late 1980s, playing mostly thugs and drug dealers on programs like "Miami Vice" and the NBC miniseries, "Drug Wars: The Kiki Camarena Story." Work in films followed, beginning with his debut in Big Top Pee-wee and in the 007 film Licence to Kill, in which 21-year-old Benicio held the distinction of being the youngest actor ever to play a Bond villain. Although both films were considered box office disappointments, Del Toro continued to give worthy performances in movies like The Indian Runner (1991), China Moon (1991), Christopher Columbus: The Discovery (1992), Money for Nothing (1993), Fearless (1993), and Swimming with Sharks (1994). His career gained real momentum in 1995 with his breakout performance in The Usual Suspects, where he stole scenes from his more seasoned costars as the mumbling, wisecracking Fred Fenster. The role won him an Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Actor and firmly established him as "the guy to watch." The heat from Suspects led to more strong roles in independent and major studio films. He played the charming, ruthless mobster Gaspare in Abel Ferrara's The Funeral (1996) and won a second consecutive Best Supporting Actor Independent Spirit Award for his work as Benny Dalmau in Basquiat (1996), directed by his friend, artist Julian Schnabel. Benicio also shared the screen with Robert De Niro in the big budget thriller The Fan, in which he played Juan Primo, a charismatic Mexican baseball star. In 1997, Alicia Silverstone personally chose Benicio to costar with her in the quirky romantic comedy Excess Baggage, which she also produced. The film was generally panned, but critics singled out Benicio's distinctive screen presence and creative performance. Johnny Depp and Benicio Del Toro in the 1998 film adaption of Hunter S. Thompson's book Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas For Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, the 1998 film adaptation of Hunter S. Thompson's legendary book, he packed on 40+ pounds to play Dr. Gonzo (aka Oscar Zeta Acosta), Thompson's lawyer and drug-fiend cohort. Del Toro's highly immersive, uncanny performance divided critics and audiences. The negative reviews upset him, as he had fully invested himself in the role both emotionally and physically, even burning himself with cigarettes for one particular scene (later cut from the film). Even though del Toro has told interviewers this was a low point in his career, Terry Gilliam's surrealistic film has earned a cult following over the years. Returning from a self-imposed two-year hiatus after Fear and Loathing, Benicio would gain a mainstream audience in 2000 with an impressive string of performances in four high-profile films. First up was The Way of the Gun, a sardonic crime yarn that reunited him with The Usual Suspects screenwriter Christopher McQuarrie, making his directorial debut. A few months later, he stood out among a first-rate ensemble cast in Steven Soderbergh's Traffic, a complex dissection of the North American drug wars. As Javier Rodriguez -- a Mexican border cop struggling to remain honest amid the corruption and deception of illegal drug trafficking -- Benicio, who spoke most of his lines in Spanish, gave a heartfelt, multifaceted performance that dominated the film and earned him his first Oscar for Best Supporting Actor. His universally praised work swept all of the major critics awards in 2000, as well as the Golden Globe, and the Screen Actors Guild award for Best Actor. In addition to the critical accolades, Traffic was also a surprise success at the box office, bringing Benicio real Hollywood clout for the first time in his career. Benicio Del Toro as Javier Rodriguez in Traffic (2000) While Traffic was still playing in theaters, two other del Toro films were released in late 2000/early 2001. He had a brief, memorable role as the diamond thief Franky Four Fingers in Guy Ritchie's hip caper comedy Snatch, and was powerful as a mentally-challenged Native American man in The Pledge, directed by his old friend Sean Penn. All of this attention helped to cement Benicio's status as a sex symbol. His smoldering looks have led to comparisons with James Dean, Marlon Brando, and Brad Pitt, and placement on People Magazine's annual "50 Most Beautiful People" list. Although he stayed out of the limelight in 2002, Benicio had another banner year in 2003 with the release of The Hunted, an action thriller costarring Tommy Lee Jones, and the drama 21 Grams, an acting tour-de-force, costarring Sean Penn and Naomi Watts. He went on to garner another Best Supporting Actor nomination for his work in the latter. His most recent work can be seen in the film adaptation of Frank Miller's graphic novel Sin City, directed by Robert Rodriguez. He is currently working on producing a film about the life of Che Guevara, in which he will play the lead.