Esquire names Penelope Cruz “sexiest woman alive”

Esquire magazine devoted the cover of its November issue to Spanish actress Penelope Cruz, whom the magazine selected as this year’s “sexiest woman alive,” an honor given in the past to the likes of Angelina Jolie, Scarlett Johanssen and Rihanna, among others.

The magazine, owned by the Hearst Corp., includes an interview with the actress.

The author of the interview emphasizes the Cruz’s beauty and the details of her face and also the fact that the 40yearold mother of two ordered a large steak at the lunch she had at a Madrid restaurant.

The Spanish actress in 2009 won an Oscar for her role in the Woody Allen film “Vicky, Cristina, Barcelona,” in which she starred with her husband Javier Bardem, with whom she has two children: Leo, 3, and Luna, 14 months.

She has been nominated for an Oscar on two other occasions.

Among the highlights of the interview, presented in the magazine’s online edition, Cruz calls director Pedro Almodovar her greatest source of inspiration and the article notes that the actress speaks four languages and “dreams” in many more.

The star of “Volver,” “Sahara” and “Broken Embraces” jealously guards her private life and says that her family is the most important thing.

Cruz, Esquire reports, at times confuses the roles she plays with her real life and says that she does not consider herself “the sexiest woman,” but rather calls herself “the mother who doesn’t get enough sleep.”

The actress will appear next in the Spanishlanguage film “Ma Ma” and in “Grimsby” with Sacha Baron Cohen.

The November issue of Esquire will go on sale Oct. 21.