Born in Havana, Cuba, Garcia’s family fled in exile to Miami Beach, Florida as a result of Fidel Castro’s takeover of his homeland at the age of five. As a youth, he performed in community theatre productions and variety shows. Garcia attended Florida International University as a theater major. He performed in regional theater productions in the Miami area before moving to Los Angeles to pursue a film career in the late 1970s. His first break came as a gang member on the very first episode of the popular TV series Hill Street Blues. His film acting debut came in 1983 in Blue Skies Again, but he really caught the critics attention three years later as a drug dealer in 8 Million Ways to Die. Brian De Palma’s The Untouchables brought Andy his major break. From then on he has never looked back.
Garcia’s most recent film credits include Lions Gate Films’ Confidence and Warner Bros.’ Ocean’s Eleven. He wrapped, production last fall on the independent feature The Lazarus Child, starring with Angela Bassett and Frances O’Connor, and also completed Modigliani, another independent in which he portrays painter and sculptor Amedeo Modigliani, which he also produced in association with Philippe. Andy Garcia has established himself as one of today’s most talented and versatile actors. Because he has worked so successfully with many of the industry’s most respected and celebrated directors, he has become known as a director’s actor. He has also established himself as a producer, composer/musician and humanitarian - and as a director in his own right. He formed his own production company, CineSon Productions, in 1991. Garcia starred in the independent films The Unsaid and The Man From Elysian Fields (released by IDP), both of which he also produced. He is currently developing his directorial debut The Lost City, which was written by Guillermo Cabrera Infante: