A for Antonio Banderas

Puss in Boots is projected to be one of the highest-grossing animated movies of the year at this rate. Besides Avatar 2, no other movie in the past 3 months has grabbed the attention of viewers and critics quite like this fun tale of our favourite cat about town.

Puss in Boots was not the apparent breakout star when the original Shrek movies came out runs a Google search 22 years ago — how time flies! A teenage me would have put my money on Donkey. Such is the nature of spinoffs, you never know which character will take off. On the one hand, you have the Penguins of Madagascar, who even eclipsed the original main characters to score various movies and series chronicling their wild, wacky adventures. On the other hand, you have Joey that failed to capture the imagination after trying to continue where Friends left off.

Antonio Banderas — who voices the titular character of Puss in Boots — has been a staple of the Hollywood scene for as long as I have been alive yet now, in what should feel like the twilight of his career, he stars not only in a global smash hit but in a genre he would have never guessed will so perfectly suit him. From a desert and a mysterious guitar case in the classic action title Desperado to animated tales set in the land of fairy tales? I would not have seen it coming either.

I am reminded, once again, that success is the result of increasing your chances of being lucky. I often go back to this classic article by Scott Young on the value of being prolific. Thomas Oppong also has a great write-up on the topic here. Imagine if Antonio Banderas stopped working, or only chose the most ‘surefire’ projects he could find once every three years. He may have never stumbled upon this franchise and found a new avenue of expression. Thankfully, he has a very long filmography and every so often he happens upon a project that makes it all worthwhile. Opportunity knocks often if you grind long enough.

Puss. In boots.

So here I go again. Grinding.