From Douglas Fairbanks to Antonio Banderas, all the actors who played Zorro had unique takes. The charming vigilante was introduced as the savior of the New Spanish commoners of California in pulp writer Johnston McCulley’s 1919 novel The Curse of Capistrano. The nobleman Don Diego de la Vega embraced this alter ego to defend the rights of his people from tyrannical officials and a corrupt law-enforcement system. A trendsetter in the swashbuckler genre, Zorro’s all-black costume turned him into an early blueprint for future superheroes. The consensus remains that Zorro even inspired the creation of Batman.
Following the immense popularity that Zorro accumulated, the “fox of California” made the jump to other media, such as movies, serials, comics, and video games. Starting with The Mark of Zorro in 1920, Zorro became a cinematic staple in the adventure and fantasy genres. Within the next few decades, the mythos of the masked avenger reached filmgoers even beyond America. Mexico, Italy, Spain, and India had their own renditions of Zorro, transporting the horse-riding swordsman from the New Spanish regions of California to more localized settings. In every case, the actors who played Zorro got their moment to shine.
Why Hollywood Hasn’t Made A Real Zorro Movie In 80 Years
There have been several Zorro films over the years, but Hollywood hasn’t actually produced a proper Zorro movie since 1940’s Mark of Zorro.
10 Frank Langella – The Mark Of Zorro (1974)
Langella Was Still In His Formative Years
A TV remake of the 1940 movie of the same name, The Mark of Zorro is an entertaining showcase of Zorro’s adventures with Oscar-nominated genre actor Frank Langella as its lead. But considering he was just starting in movies at the time (Langella’s iconic take on Dracula debuted five years later), his performance wasn’t as memorable as the actors who played Zorro before him. The repetitive origin Zorro story of how Don Diego turned from a wealthy military cadet to a champion of the downtrodden is executed in an earnest but ultimately lackluster performance by a young Langella.
9 Naveen Nischol – Zorro (1975)
A Campy Portrayal In A Formulaic Hindi-Language Movie
Naveen Nischol’s melodramatic spin on Zorro in this Bollywood revenge drama serves as a campy but amusing throwback to the character, bearing testimony to Zorro’s universality. Nischol played a vigilante who must protect a kingdom from his unjust father and stepbrother. With a love interest by Zorro’s side and familial drama at the center, the Hindi-language Zorro movie is too formulaic. Nevertheless, the campiness works in Nischola’s favor, as he emulates Zorro’s heroic energy even when the action is on par with a B-movie. His over-the-top performance proves that Zorro can go against his own familial ties to uphold justice.
8 Robert Livingston – The Bold Caballero (1936)
Livingston Gives The Most Gleeful Portrayal Of Zorro
The first-ever Zorro talkie The Bold Caballero stars Robert Livingston as its masked crusader, who is heavily moralistic but not as dashing as predecessors like Douglas Fairbanks. Even still, he adds his own touch to the character by bringing a certain level of humanity to the caped crusader. Livingston’s Zorro can inspire fear in the hearts of his enemies, but Livingston also layers the characterization with a smiling persona. When Zorro gloriously wins a swordfight, saves innocent civilians, or just rides his horse Tornado, Livingston adds a smile, showcasing how Zorro actually enjoys being a hero of the masses.
Where to Watch The Bold Caballero
7 Rodolfo De Anda – The Great Adventure of Zorro (1976)
De Anda Brought An Excitingly Rebellious Energy To The Sword Fighter
Rodolfo de Anda took up the mantle of Zorro in this Spanish-language classic. The actor brought a revolutionary spirit to Zorro, as well as his alter ego, Diego De La Vega. The Mexican actor is fiery when fighting with his sword and when indulging in ideological debates as Diego. While other Zorro movies have featured actors who added a mild-mannered touch to Diego, de Anda brought a rebellious energy to Zorro as he made a stand against oppressive military regimes. What de Anda’s Diego cannot do, he allows the sword-wielding Zorro to achieve in The Great Adventure of Zorro.
6 Alain Delon – Zorro (1975)
Delon Expertly Balances Ballet-Like Smoothness With Slapstick Comedy
1975’s Zorro is one of the best Spaghetti Westerns featuring the character. The Italian movie Zorro featured French actor Alain Delon in the titular role. While Delon had mostly portrayed intensely passionate action heroes, he balanced Diego’s heroic responsibilities with an occasional light-hearted demeanor. His fighting skills may not be top-notch, but when Delon leaps and bounds with a ballet-like smoothness, he adds a near-slapstick routine to Zorro’s duels. The humor aside, Delon also anchors a prolonged but heavily engaging duel-to-the-death with the antagonistic Colonel Huerta in a thrilling third act that moviegoers mostly associate this Italian-French production with.
Where to Watch Zorro
5 Duncan Regehr – Zorro (1990-1993)
Regehr Was A Great Zorro In An Underwhelming TV Series
Duncan Regehr starred as Zorro in The Family Channel television series Zorro, which doesn’t hold a candle to the superior Disney show from the 1950s. Nevertheless, Regehr still made up for the show’s technical limitations with his own unique take on the character. Utilizing his well-built frame, Regehr added a brawny supremacy to Zorro’s sword fights and hand-to-hand combat that most of his agile but weaker predecessors could not. If physical dominance wasn’t enough, his Zorro was equally brainy, relying on gadgets like a Leonardo Da Vinci-inspired hang-glider and investigative methods to solve crimes.
Where to Watch the 1990 Zorro TV Series
4 Guy Williams – Zorro (1957-1959)
Williams’ Rousing Monologues Make Him The Best TV Zorro
When it comes to depicting the swordfighter on television, Guy Williams is the undisputed champion. Starring as Zorro for Disney’s ’50s-era serial, Williams managed to effortlessly portray the duality of the character. Just like the Superman-Clark Kent binary, the swashbuckler genre veteran could be dashing with the black mask in one scene and quite naive and unremarkable as Diego in the next. Williams’ rousing monologues as Zorro are effective enough for the show’s socio-political setting in Los Angeles in the 1820s. This rendition of Zorro not only saves those in need; it also inspires Hispanic settlers to reclaim their identity.
Where to Watch the 1957 Zorro TV Series
3 Douglas Fairbanks – The Mark Of Zorro (1920)
The Very First On-Screen Portrayal Of Zorro
Dashing, athletic, and unabashedly dramatic in his performances, Douglas Fairbanks is one of Hollywood’s most glorious heroes with his impact still felt (he even inspired Brad Pitt’s Jack Conrad in Babylon). Fairbanks’ overzealous personality and characters made him a perfect fit to helm the live-action debut of Zorro in the 1920 silent-era classic The Mark of Zorro. The film was released a year after Zorro’s literary debut, and Fairbanks breathed new life into the masked hero with his exceptional athleticism and nimble swordplay. Fairbanks’ usual brand of overacting worked to make Zorro a truly spectacular figure beyond human realities.
Where to Watch The Mark of Zorro
2 Tyrone Power – The Mark Of Zorro (1940)
Power’s Swordfighting Choreography Made For A Nail-Biting Remake
Tyrone Power was already a charismatic swashbuckler veteran, but The Mark of Zorro remake allowed him to add some intensity that was never present in the character before. While Fairbanks turned Zorro into the stuff of legends, Power humanized him through relatively realistic action sequences and a passionate chemistry with Lolita Quintero (Linda Darnell). Even though Fairbanks’ action was enthralling enough, the sword choreography that Power indulged in led to more nail-biting moments. The biggest case in point is the exceptional sword duel between him and Sherlock Holmes actor Basil Rathbone, who played the villainous Captain Esteban Pasquale.
1 Antonio Banderas – The Mask Of Zorro (1998) & Legend Of Zorro (2005)
The quintessential Zorro for many audiences, Antonio Banderas’ casting was not just accurate to the character’s Spanish origins, but the Desperado action star was also dynamic enough to make Zorro proficient as both a swashbuckling hero and a vigorous lover. His second outing as the swashbuckler, Legend of Zorro, drew polarizing responses. However, his origin with The Mask of Zorro set his arc perfectly, as Banderas captured Zorro’s physical and mental transformation from being an everyman to a symbol of courage.
By playing an entirely new character in the Zorro mythos, Banderas carved his own niche for new-age audiences. The Spanish actor takes the spotlight, but The Mask of Zorro and Legend of Zorro also rank among Catherine Zeta-Jones’ best movies. Banderas and Zeta-Jones share an electrifying romance as Zorro and Elena Montero. With Elena not being reduced to a damsel in distress like other Zorro heroines, she also spars Zorro in some memorable duels. The way Elena’s love shapes Zorro only adds more depth to Banderas’ take on Zorro.
Where to Watch The Mask of Zorro
