Andy García is an American actor and director known for playing Vincent Mancini in Francis Ford Coppola's The Godfather Part III. He is also known for portraying Terry Benedict in Steven Soderbergh's Ocean's Eleven trilogy and for directing and starring in The Lost City.
Personal life
García has been married to Marivi Lorido García since September 24, 1982. They met while attending Florida International University and first saw each other in a Miami nightclub after meeting in the mid-1970s. The family divides its time between Toluca Lake in Los Angeles and Key Biscayne, Florida.
The couple have four children: Dominik García-Lorido, Daniella, Alessandra, and Andrés.
From Miami to Hollywood
García was five when his family moved from Cuba to Miami, Florida, after the failed 1961 Bay of Pigs Invasion. His mother, Amelie Menéndez, was an English teacher, and his father, René García, was an attorney. At Miami Beach Senior High School, García played basketball and later studied acting with Jay W. Jensen before attending Florida International University.
He began pursuing acting after contracting mononucleosis during his senior year of high school. After performing in regional theater, he moved to Southern California in 1978 and worked as a waiter while auditioning. In 1980, a casting agent saw him performing with an improvisational group at the Comedy Store, which helped him secure a role in the 1981 pilot episode of Hill Street Blues.
Breakthrough with *The Untouchables* and *The Godfather Part III*
García's breakthrough came with Brian De Palma's crime drama The Untouchables (1987), in which he played government agent George Stone alongside Kevin Costner, Sean Connery, and Robert De Niro. He followed it with roles in Stand and Deliver (1988), Ridley Scott's Black Rain (1989), and Mike Figgis's Internal Affairs (1990), in which he co-starred with Richard Gere.
Francis Ford Coppola cast García as Vincent Mancini, the illegitimate son of Sonny Corleone, in The Godfather Part III (1990). The performance earned him Academy Award and Golden Globe nominations for Best Supporting Actor. García became the first Cuban to receive an acting Oscar nomination.
Leading roles in the 1990s and *Ocean's Eleven*
During the 1990s, García appeared in Hero, Jennifer 8, When a Man Loves a Woman, Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead, Night Falls on Manhattan, Hoodlum, and Desperate Measures. He played Lucky Luciano in Hoodlum and starred opposite Meg Ryan in When a Man Loves a Woman.
García played casino owner Terry Benedict in Steven Soderbergh's Ocean's Eleven (2001), alongside George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, and Julia Roberts. He returned as Benedict in Ocean's Twelve (2004) and Ocean's Thirteen (2007).
Directing, Cuban heritage, and music
García's directing work includes the documentary Cachao ... Como Su Ritmo No Hay Dos, about Cuban musician Israel "Cachao" López, and The Lost City (2005). He co-wrote, directed, and starred in The Lost City, a film set against the Cuban Revolution and its aftermath, with Dustin Hoffman and Bill Murray. He also directed an episode of Cold Case and an episode of George Lopez.
In For Love or Country: The Arturo Sandoval Story (2000), García produced the HBO television film and played Cuban trumpeter Arturo Sandoval. The performance brought him Primetime Emmy and Golden Globe nominations. In 2005, he won Grammy and Latin Grammy Awards as a producer of Cuban musician Cachao's album ¡Ahora Sí!.
Later film and television work
García had four film appearances in 2018, including Fernando Cienfuegos in Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again, Mitchell in Book Club, and roles in The Mule and My Dinner with Hervé. He later played Guillermo "Billy" Herrera in the 2022 remake of Father of the Bride, returning as Mitchell in Book Club: The Next Chapter (2023).
His later credits include the films Wrath of Man, Words on Bathroom Walls, Redemption Day, Pain Hustlers, Miranda's Victim, and Expend4bles. On television, he played Julian Cruz in Rebel and Gallino in the series Landman.
Quick facts
- After contracting mononucleosis during his senior year of high school, García turned his attention from athletics to acting.
- A casting agent who saw García perform with an improvisational group at the Comedy Store helped him obtain a role in the pilot episode of Hill Street Blues.
- García campaigned to play government agent George Stone in The Untouchables rather than Al Capone's henchman Frank Nitti.
- His performance as Vincent Mancini in The Godfather Part III made him the first Cuban to receive an acting Oscar nomination.
- García received Primetime Emmy and Golden Globe nominations for playing Arturo Sandoval in For Love or Country: The Arturo Sandoval Story.
- He won Grammy and Latin Grammy Awards in 2005 for producing Cachao's album ¡Ahora Sí!.
- García co-wrote, directed, and starred in The Lost City, a film about Cuba during the revolution and the repression that followed Fidel Castro's rise to power.
- He received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1995.
- García was born as a conjoined twin, and his twin was surgically removed.
FAQs about Andy García
How many children did Andy Garcia have?
Andy García has four children with Marivi Lorido García: Dominik García-Lorido, Daniella, Alessandra, and Andrés.
Where does Andy Garcia live today?
Andy García and his family divide their time between Toluca Lake in Los Angeles and Key Biscayne, Florida.
What happened to Andy Garcia's twin?
García was born as a conjoined twin. His twin was surgically removed and, according to the account, was no bigger than a tennis ball; a scar remains on García's shoulder.
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