Roberto Benigni's Real Name: Roberto Remigio Benigni

Quick answer: Roberto Benigni's real name is Roberto Remigio Benigni. He was born on October 27, 1952, in Manciano La Misericordia, a village in Castiglion Fiorentino, Tuscany, Italy. He works under his birth name.

Roberto Benigni's real name

Benigni was born Roberto Remigio Benigni and has always performed as Roberto Benigni (Britannica). He grew up in a poor farming family in Tuscany.

Early life and comedy

As a young man Benigni moved to Rome and began performing in experimental theater in the early 1970s. He became famous in Italy through the TV show Onda libera (1976–77) and the film Berlinguer ti voglio bene (1977). His rapid-fire, anarchic comedy and irreverent public stunts made him a star, and he soon began writing and directing his own films (Britannica).

International breakthrough

American director Jim Jarmusch introduced Benigni to international audiences in Down by Law (1986), with Tom Waits and John Lurie, and later in Night on Earth (1991) and Coffee and Cigarettes. In Italy, films he directed and starred in, including Johnny Stecchino (1991) and Il mostro (1994), were huge box-office hits. He also starred in Blake Edwards' Son of the Pink Panther (1993).

Life Is Beautiful

Benigni co-wrote, directed and starred in La vita è bella (Life Is Beautiful, 1997), playing Guido, a Jewish Italian father who uses humor to shield his young son from the horrors of a Nazi concentration camp. The film won the Grand Prix at Cannes in 1998.

At the 1999 Academy Awards it won three Oscars: best foreign language film, best original dramatic score for Nicola Piovani, and best actor for Benigni, who became the first man to win best actor for a non-English-language performance. His joyous reaction, climbing over seats on his way to the stage, is one of the most famous moments in Oscar history (Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences).

Pinocchio and Dante

Benigni directed and starred as the title character in Pinocchio (2002) and later played Geppetto in Matteo Garrone's Pinocchio (2019). He is also celebrated in Italy for his televised readings and lectures on Dante's Divine Comedy. He received the Golden Lion for lifetime achievement at the 2021 Venice Film Festival.

Personal life

Benigni married actress Nicoletta Braschi in 1991. She has co-starred in many of his films, including Life Is Beautiful.

Life Is Beautiful (1997) Blu-ray Down by Law (1986), Criterion Collection