Oscar winner, 52, reveals why she raises her kids far from Hollywood

Penélope Cruz has one of the most famous faces in the world, so she and Javier Bardem made a simple choice: raise their kids somewhere it matters less.

The Oscar winner, 52, told Perfect magazine that the couple bring up their children in Madrid because keeping their privacy is "easier" there than in the US, E! News reports.

"All our families are there, and the friends from childhood and from our teenage years," she said. "It's easier to have a normal life, you know?"

She and Bardem, 57, were both born and raised in Spain. Their Hollywood careers kept them moving between Los Angeles, New York and London for years, until they moved back to Madrid in 2013 so their children could grow up close to their Spanish roots, The Celeb Post reports.

'They completely deserve that'

The couple have a son, Leo, 15, and a daughter, Luna, 12, and Cruz is firm about keeping them out of the spotlight.

"You have to make an effort to keep a part of your life private," she said. "But I think when you have children, it's really important."

Her kids "completely deserve" that privacy, she said, and need "to not be exposed to things when they are little." She added that they can make up their own minds about careers later, according to The Celeb Post.

No phones, either

It's not the first time Cruz has talked about shielding her children. In a February 2024 Elle interview, she said they still "don't even have phones."

She's just as careful about her marriage. Cruz told People in July that she is "still learning" in the relationship, and that she is "with somebody that I've known for 33 years." The couple have been married for 16 years.

They first met making Jamón Jamón in 1992, and got together after filming Vicky Cristina Barcelona in 2008, E! notes. That film won Cruz the Oscar for best supporting actress. Bardem had already won best supporting actor, for No Country for Old Men.

They don't work together often, either. Cruz told Marie Claire in 2019 that she and Bardem team up only "once in a while," partly to protect what they have.

Bardem has his own rule for family time. Earlier this year he said he turns down roles that would keep him away too long: "The only thing I do pay attention to is, no more than two weeks away from my family." He said he feels "blessed" to have "had the chance to be at the same time, in the same place, in life" as Cruz. He also said he has no "musts in my contract that have to do with bigger trailers or luxurious suites."

Cruz is next on screen in The Invite, alongside Edward Norton and Seth Rogen.