Michael Pena

The Lions for Lambs star is no crash in the pan.
By Ben Detrick | Photography by Emily Shur

Michael Pena, a veteran of two Oscar-winning films (Million Dollar Baby and Crash) who is set to appear alongside Tom Cruise, Meryl Streep, and Robert Redford in next month's war drama Lions for Lambs, has some advice for those looking to make it in Hollywood. "Join a YMCA," he says. "You can shower, brush your teeth, and wash your clothes there." No, Pena isn't touting the Y for its networking opportunities, nor is he the lost member of the Village People. As a 19-year-old, the Southside Chicagoan moved to L.A. on the strength of his role as an extra on USA Network's To Sir, With Love 2. Soon after, he found himself living in a van, using the Y's "facilities" to keep fresh. "You have to be ultra-clean, especially for meetings," Pena says. "You'd hate for somebody to say, «What's wrong with that guy, does he live in a van or something?»"

Of course, Pena's moved on to better digs. Last year, the 31-year-old secured his first leading role, in Oliver Stone's 9/11 epic World Trade Center. And it seems that rubbing elbows with Hollywood's elite is going to Pena's head- sort of. "Calling Robert Redford «Bob» was uncomfortable at first," Pena says of his Lions for Lambs co-star and director. "It didn't seem quite natural." But it beats living out of a van.