Antonio Banderas Says His 2017 Heart Attack Changed His Life For The Better: "It Was Like Putting Glasses On And Seeing What Was Important"

Antonio Banderas thinks having a heart attack was "one of the best things" to ever happen to him.

The 62-year-old Spanish actor suffered a heart attack six years ago and he believes that it helped to change his life for the better.

Speaking to Radio Times (via The Independent), the Mask of Zorro actor said, "I had a heart attack six years ago. It probably was one of the best things that happened in my life. It was like putting glasses on and seeing what was important.

"I came back to Spain and started looking at my professional life from a different point of view. So I do connect to it in a personal way. I think it’s a beautiful message, and I think it was done properly.

"Since my heart attack, I’m looking only for the pleasure of acting. That’s it. I don’t care about anything else. For me, life starts when somebody says, 'Action!' — or when the curtain comes up."

After the health crisis, Banderas overhauled his lifestyle by quitting smoking.

"I was lucky after all," he said, "because a heart attack can kill you just like this ... In a way, it's one of the best things to happen in my life, to have a heart attack."

Banderas previously credited his quick-thinking girlfriend Nicole Kimpel for saving his life.

Appearing on Jimmy Kimmel Live! in 2019, Banderas said: "My girlfriend, she had a headache and we didn't have anything in the house. So she went out to buy something, a painkiller or whatever. She bought this aspirin, which is the only thing that she found and she found the maximum one, I think it was five milligrams.

"The next morning, when I started having the symptoms and I clearly knew what was going on, she put one of those aspirins inside of my tongue and that saved my life. Yeah. So I had a second chance."

Banderas is currently starring in Puss in Boots: The Last Wish, which is nominated for Best Animated Feature at the 95th Annual Academy Awards. Watch our interview with Banderas here:

— BANG SHOWBIZ

Photo: TPG News/Click Photos

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