Salma Hayek and Danny Trejo are quite the dynamic duo. They met co-starring in Hayek’s first movie, Mi Vida Loca, and would reunite two years later for one of the greatest Mexican films, Desperado. As for the two stars’ first encounter with each other, it is quite an unusual story, but a very sweet one that ended with, “For you, I would rob another bank.”
Before becoming an actor, Danny Trejo led the life of a real badass. When he was a teen, he was in and out of prison for armed robberies. Back in 2016, Salma Hayek spoke on The Graham Norton Show (via audiobookfanatic on Instagram) about meeting the actor on her film debut, which led to a bizarre interaction:
And when he saw me for the first time and he ran towards me and ripped his shirt off. And he said, ‘I knew you before I knew you. I dreamt you before I knew you.’
That’s definitely not something you hear all the time when meeting your co-star!
Funnily enough, there’s a very good reason why Danny Trejo felt he knew Salma Hayek before starring in Mi Vida Loca. Here’s what else went down in their strange exchange with a very sweet ending:
And sure enough, there was a picture of a woman that looks exactly like me. That body was a little bit better, but let’s pretend. Exactly like me in his chest. [...] And he said, ‘I just got out of jail and I’m happy. But for you, I would rob another bank.’
I can only imagine what an abnormal experience that was for Salma Hayek to see a woman who looked just like her on Danny Trejo’s chest! And in a way, it’s a kinda…sweet proclamation to say he’d rob another bank for her. But fortunately, the actor’s armed robbery days are long over.
Trejo has since made a name for himself in film and television, owns a chain of restaurants in L.A., and has a line of upcoming movies he’ll appear in.
Plus since their first meeting, he and Hayek have starred in many great Robert Rodriguez movies like Desperado, From Dusk Til Dawn, Once Upon a Time in Mexico and Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over, they also had unforgettable cameos in Muppets Most Wanted. So, maybe it was fate for the two to meet.
Now, I really can't get over this story. Just when I thought I had heard all of the wild stories out there, I find out Danny Trejo has a large tattoo on his chest that resembles the woman he’d eventually co-star with in six movies. However, he was clearly very taken with working with Salma Hayek, feeling he’d “rob another bank” for her.
Whether the Machete actor realized it or not, his admiration for the actress had become permanently enshrined not just with the movies they made together, but also, humorously enough, in the ink on his chest. Now, you can take a look at our 2025 movie releases to see what they're each working on next while we wait and see if they collaborate again.
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