Spanish heart-throb JAVIER BARDEM credits his mother with helping him stay grounded in Hollywood, because she showed him how to appreciate the simple things in life.

Bardem, 38, comes from a long line of actors, and despite garnering critical acclaim in movies such as No Country For Old Men, he'd rather call himself a "worker" than a star.

He says, "We all like success. But if you buy into all that it's dangerous, because you are looking for it all the time. The most important thing is to do the job. "I saw my mum, a huge theatre actress, unemployed for years, and that's why I don't buy into the shiny stuff, the gold - if it happens, great, but tomorrow somebody could say ‘I'm tired of him, hire somebody else.'"