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The world knows Salma Hayek as a Mexican-American actress, producer, and director who has won several awards throughout her career. However, not much is known about her parents - Sami Hayek Dominguez and Diana Jiménez Medina - who significantly shaped her personality and career.
In this article, we’ll delve deep into the story of Salma Hayek’s parents and shed light on their background, achievements, and their impact on Salma’s life.
Salma spent her childhood in a wealthy and devout Catholic family
Salma Hayek was born in Coatzacoalcos, Veracruz, Mexico. Her father, Sami Hayek Domínguez, is an oil company executive and owns an industrial-equipment firm. He is of Lebanese descent, and his ancestors can be traced back to Baabdat in Lebanon. In 2015, Salma and her father visited Baabdat to promote her movie, Kahlil Gibran’s The Prophet.
On the other hand, her mother, Diana Jiménez Medina, is a well-known opera singer and talent scout. She is of Spanish descent. During an interview with Un Nuevo Día in Madrid in 2015, Salma described herself as fifty percent Lebanese and fifty percent Spanish. She shared that her grandmother/maternal great-grandparents were from Spain.
The Hayek Jiménez’s share two children
In addition to Salma, Mr. Hayek and Mrs. Jiménez welcomed a son named Sami Hayek. During an interview, Salma shared details of her childhood.
“I was privileged to grow up in Coatzacoalcos, Mexico, with my parents and my younger brother, Sami,” Salma told The Guardian in 2013. “It was a close community; we lived near the ocean, and we would be outside all the time with the neighbors‘ kids, running free, playing football on the streets and at the beach.”
Sami and Diana spoiled their kids
Salma revealed in her 2015 biography Salma Hayek: Actress, Director, and Producer by Kerrily Sapet that she grew up in a lavish environment and thought her family was royalty. “I thought I was a princess,” she said in the book. “I lived in a castle, and my father was a king, I wore tiaras. I was born diva-ish.”
According to People, Salma Hayek also told the New York Post that Mr. Hayek allowed her and her brother to keep a pet tiger named Rambo in the house.
Salma’s parents knew she would be successful
Our 2017 cover featured Salma and her mom, Diana. At the time, Salma’s mom told HOLA! USA that while she knew the actress would be successful. “I always knew that Salmita would be something big in her life because of her personality, her way of always working for what she wants, but she surprises me — because Salma is unstoppable,” Diana said. “She continues to surprise me more and more.”