Hand-holding Antonio reduced to tears by Shrek 2

Antonio Banderas related so closely to the animated character he plays in Shrek 2 that he ended up sobbing and holding the hand of pop superstar Justin Timberlake at the premiere.

The sultry Spanish actor was watching the animated film at France’s Cannes Film Festival last week as he sat between Timberlake and the singer’s girlfriend Cameron Diaz, who also lent her vocals to the film.

Banderas says: "I was kind of crying at the end of the thing. It was kinda funny because there is a very romantic moment at the end of the movie. My character says, 'I wanna cry,' and I was crying.

"Cameron Diaz was (to the left) and Justin Timberlake was (to the right), and he said to me, 'I'm crying too!' so we held hands for a while. Cameron was just looking over there (thinking), 'These guys, what are they doing?'"