Alberto San Juan

He is the recipient of multiple accolades, including two Goya awards. He has also worked as a stage director and playwright, and served as the first artistic director of the Teatro del Barrio in Lavapiés.

• Birth Name — Alberto San Juan Guijarro • Born — 1 November 1968 • Birthplace — Madrid, Spain • Occupation — * Actor • theatre director • playwright • Years Active — 1990s–present

Alberto San Juan was born on 1 November 1968 in Madrid, the son of cartoonist Máximo San Juan and radio announcer Pilar Guijarro Ortiz de Zárate. He was raised in the well-off neighborhood of El Viso. He attended the Colegio Estilo and joined its theatrical group, where he acquainted with his long-term friend Guillermo Toledo. He also spent many of his childhood's summers in Cañamares, province of Cuenca. He studied journalism and worked for two years at Diario 16 before pursuing an acting career. While studying journalism, he acquainted with Antonio de la Torre. At age 24, he joined the Cristina Rota's atelier to train his acting chops.

• Illustration — San Juan in the 2000s San Juan landed his big screen debut with a bit part in You Shall Die in Chafarinas (1995). Jointly with Guillermo Toledo, Nathalie Poza and Ernesto Alterio, San Juan founded the theatre group 'Ración de oreja', which merged with Andrés Limas 'Riesgo' into the theatre company Animalario, upon the premiere of San Juan's debut as a playwright, Animalario. Bonitas historias de entretenimiento sobre la humillación cotidiana de existir. His first film success and main film role was Juanma Bajo Ulloa's Airbag (1997). For his character of Paco, a scoundrel, actors Javier Bardem and Viggo Mortensen were previously considered. In the late 1990s, together with his friends Ernesto Alterio and Guillermo Toledo, he went on to land film credits in Sleepless in Madrid, Washington Wolves, and The Ugliest Woman in the World. He gained popularity for his supporting role in the musical comedy film The Other Side of the Bed (2002), which also landed him a Goya Award nomination. For his role as an unsuccessful jazz musician returning to his hometown in Under the Stars (2007), he won the Goya Award for Best Leading Actor. He was a main promoter of the Teatro del Barrio, a project of political theatre launched in the former premises of the Sala Triángulo in Lavapiés on 4 December 2013, serving as its first artistic director. He starred alongside Mario Casas as a Conservative and homosexual monarchist maître d'hôtel in the aftermath of the Spanish Civil War in the comedy film The Dinner (2025), clinching another nomination for the Goya Award for Best Leading Actor. He starred as a repentant Catholic priest accused of sexual abuse in The Light (2026).

• Illustration — San Juan protesting against the 2011 military intervention in Libya with Gregorio Gordo and his friend Guillermo Toledo Alberto San Juan is known for his left-wing views. He publicly lent support to the United Left ahead of the 2011 Spanish general election. He also endorsed the manifesto that led to the creation of Podemos, presented at the Teatro del Barrio in January 2014. In February 2015, he became a member of the citizens' council of Podemos in Madrid. He later distanced himself from the party, lamenting its breakup due to an "authoritarian concept of internal organisation". In 2025, San Juan co-signed the manifesto promoted by FiSahara decrying the filming of The Odyssey in Moroccan-occupied Western Sahara. In 2026, he co-signed alongside other Spanish artists a text urging the United Nations and the governments of the world to actively work towards the release from prison of Palestinian leader Marwan Barghouti. Also in 2026, he co-signed a manifesto in defence of philanthropist and human rights activist Fergie Chambers, demanding the Spanish State to prevent his extradition to the United States "and grant Fergie international protection through the recognition of his right to political asylum".

• Year — Title — Role — Notes — Reference(s) • Más que amigos — Víctor • Águila Roja (Red Eagle) — Víctor • Cheers — Nicolás Arnedo • Gran Reserva: El origen — Jesús Reverte • Carlos, rey emperador — Carlos de Borbón • Cardo — Santiago • Todos mienten (You Shall Not Lie) — Beto — Season 2 • Cristobal Balenciaga — Cristóbal Balenciaga • Furia (Rage) — Roberto

* Year — Award — Category — Work — Result — Ref. Reference

* Best Supporting Actor — The Other Side of the Bed

* Best Actor — Under the Stars

* 11th Max Awards — Best Actor — Marat-Sade

* Best Film Actor in a Leading Role — Under the Stars

* 12th Max Awards — Best Adaptation of a Theatre Work — Argelino, servidor de dos amos

* Best Stage Actor in a Leading Role — Hamlet

* Best Film Actor in a Secondary Role — The Ignorance of Blood

* Best Stage Actor in a Secondary Role — El rey

* Best Stage Actor in a Secondary Role

* Best Film Actor in a Leading Role — El rey

* Best Supporting Actor in a Film — The People Upstairs

* Best Supporting Actor

* Best Supporting Actor

* Best Supporting Actor in a Series — Reyes de la noche

* 30th Forqué Awards — Best Actor in a Series — Cristóbal Balenciaga

* Best Actor

* Best Actor — A House on Fire

* Best Main Actor in a Series — Cristóbal Balenciaga

* Best Actor — A House on Fire

* Best Television Actor in a Leading Role — Cristóbal Balenciaga

* Best Actor in a Film — The Dinner

* Best Main Actor in a Film

* 81st CEC Medals — Best Actor

* Best Actor

* Best Film Actor in a Leading Role

* Best Actor