Antonio Banderas refuses to refer to Dakota Johnson as his stepdaughter even after divorce
Topics: Celebrity, Film and TV
Jess Hardiman
Featured Image Credit: Everett Collection Inc/AFF/Alamy Stock Photo
Topics: Celebrity, Film and TV
Antonio Banderas refuses to refer to Dakota Johnson as his stepdaughter, having come up with a much more personal alternative.
Bear with us here, as this family tree’s about to get quite complicated... Not Nick Cannon complicated though, so you’ll be fine.
Let’s take it back to the mid 1990s, when Banderas, now 62, and Melanie Griffith, 65, were one of Hollywood’s hottest power couples.
They were married for almost 20 years, having tied the knot in 1996 before confirming their divorce in 2015.
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During that window, they welcomed daughter Stella, 26, who even went on to feature in her dad’s 1999 film Crazy in Alabama, which also starred her famous mother – AND her half-sister, actor Dakota Johnson.
Johnson was Griffith’s daughter from her previous marriage to Don Johnson, but was just six years old when her mum married the Puss in Boots star, meaning he was very much around as she grew up.
However, Banderas never referred to her as his stepdaughter, insisting that she calls him ‘Papi’ even after divorcing from Griffith.
When Johnson presented an award to Banderas at the 2019 Hollywood Film Awards, she said: "I come from a family of many a marriage and I got very lucky.
"I got a bonus dad who I realized that, over time, is actually one of the most influential people in my whole life.
"When I was six years old, my mother married a man who brought an unbelievably bright light and a whole new world of creativity and culture - and one remarkably magical little sister into our family."
Johnson said Banderas was ‘vibrant and so fun’, adding: “He loved my mother, and my siblings and I so big, and so fiercely and so loud, that it would change all of our lives together."
As he accepted the award, Banderas then dedicated the accolade to Johnson and her stepsister Stella.
"I want to dedicate this to two people that I love, one is right here, Dakota, for something very simple, because you always call me Papi, and still now you call me Papi and I love that!" he said.
"You have no idea how much I love that!"
Banderas also previously told Us Weekly that he thinks of Johnson as his daughter.
“She was 5 when I met her, when she became my family,” he said, continuing: “She’s my daughter, I love her. I’ve been with her on my shoulders, traveling all around the world.”
And as she grew up, Johnson even gave her ‘bonus dad’ a sweet nickname.
Banderas explained to Vulture: "Dakota called me Paponio, which is a mixture between Papa, which is 'Daddy' in Spanish, and Antonio.
"I am her Antonio Papa, so Paponio."