Penélope Cruz has revealed she feared she was about to die during the filming of her new movie, after a doctor warned her of a possible brain aneurysm while she was preparing to go on set.
The actress, 52, shared the shocking story during a press conference at the Cannes Film Festival on Friday, 23 May, following an extended standing ovation for The Black Ball (La Bola Negra) at its premiere at the Grand Théâtre Lumière.
In the film, Cruz plays a cabaret entertainer performing for soldiers, and the health scare unfolded just as she was getting ready to film late-night performance scenes.
“And then when we’re about to go out, I was putting on my wig, and they said, ‘Oh, apparently you have some brain aneurysm,'” she recalled.
“I thought I was about to die. This is something that was totally surreal in my life.”
Cruz was medically cleared the following day, with a doctor confirming she was able to continue singing and dancing for the production. The relief, she said, gave her an entirely new perspective on the project.
“I thought, ‘It’s a total miracle. I have to, I must have this in me,'” she said.
She was also full of praise for the production team who supported her through the ordeal, and reflected on how the experience connected to the film’s deeper themes.
“You experience these things together, yet despite all this, despite the hardship, you can move forward in life,” she said.
The Black Ball features an ensemble cast that includes Glenn Close, Miguel Bernardeau, Lola Dueñas, Guitarricadelafuente and Carlos González.
Cruz also has The Invite on the horizon, directed by and co-starring Olivia Wilde, with Seth Rogen and Edward Norton also in the cast, due for release on 26 June.
For now, though, it is Cannes that has her full attention, and the standing ovation her film received there suggests the near-death scare was very much worth pushing through.
