Eva Mendes is an Cuban-American actress. She began acting in the late 1990s, and became known after a series of roles in several major Hollywood films, including 2 Fast 2 Furious and Hitch.

She received her first big-screen break when she appeared in the award-winning and critically-acclaimed Training Day. That performance led to roles in Stuck on You, Once Upon a Time in Mexico, and as the female lead in the comedy Hitch opposite Will Smith. Her role in Once Upon a Time in Mexico also gave her a nomination at the Teen Choice Awards. Mendes costarred in Ghost Rider with Nicolas Cage, and most recently she starred alongside Joaquin Phoenix, Mark Wahlberg, and Robert Duvall in the film We Own the Night.