Latino Hollywood: The Three Best-Known Mexican Inhabitants of the Dream Factory

Hollywood is well-known for attracting talented actors and uppity wannabes from all the corners of the globe. Youngsters from all over the US - and the rest of the world - gather in Los Angeles to pursue their dreams of becoming famous actors, screenwriters or directors but most of them never manage to stand out of the crowd. The people below have, in turn, managed to find their way to fame. And there's something that's common in all of them: they are all of a Mexican origin.

Guillermo del Toro

Guillermo del Toro is a great storyteller, and one of Mexico's three best-known filmmakers. During his career behind the camera, he tried his hands in horror (Blade II, The Strain), fantasy (El laberinto del fauno), comic book movies (Hellboy), science fiction (Pacific Rim), animation (Trollhunters: Tales of Arcadia), and romantic fantasy with "The Shape of Water" that has won four Oscars, two Golden Globes, a Saturn, and a cornucopia of other awards.

Del Toro was born in 1964 in Guadalajara, Mexico.

Salma Hayek

Salma Hayek - born Salma Valgarma Hayek Jiménez in Coatzacoalcos, Veracruz, Mexico, made her big-screen Hollywood debut in Robert Rodriguez's 1995 action epic Desperado. She has the same (Mexican) director to thank for her next major movie role, too - her role as Santanico Pandemonium, the exotic dancer slash vampire queen was short but memorable. Since then, she amassed an impressive filmography, founded her production company, and collected an Oscar, Golden Globe, Primetime Emmy, and Saturn nomination, among others. She is currently involved in three projects in production.

Anthony Quinn

A legendary actor with an impressive filmography and two Academy Awards under his belt - Anthony Quinn was another famous inhabitant of the Hollywood dream factory. Born in 1915 in Chihuahua, Mexico, during the Mexican Revolution. Soon after his birth, his family moved to the United States, where his father worked as an assistant cameraman at a movie studio. Quinn initially wanted to become a priest. Over the years, he was an apprentice preacher, a professional boxer, an art and architecture student, a stage actor, and finally, a film actor. He often played "ethnic" roles - according to Wikipedia, by 1947 he played "Indians, Mafia dons, Hawaiian chiefs, Filipino freedom-fighters, Chinese guerrillas, and Arab sheiks". Yet his big break came in 1951 when he played opposite Marlon Brando in "Viva Zapata!". His performance won him an Oscar, making him the first Mexican-American actor to take a golden statue home.

During his long and successful career, Quinn won two Oscars, was nominated for several others along with Golden Globes, and BAFTA's, and even got a Golden Raspberry nomination for his performance in 1992's "Mobsters". Anthony Quinn passed away in 2001, at the age of 86.