The Madrid-born actress passes away at the age of 42, leaving behind a legacy of talent, authenticity, and passion that defined a generation of Spanish cinema.
By Jorge Alonso Curiel
HoyLunes – Spain is in shock over the unexpected passing this past Sunday, August 24, in her hometown, of actress Verónica Echegui (Madrid, 1983–2025), at only 42 years old, due to cancer that she chose never to make public. With her, the world of acting loses a vocational actress brimming with talent, passion, magnetism, warmth, and naturalness—one of the most important and outstanding actresses of her generation.
A versatile actress who combined film, theater, and television, with five Goya Award nominations, she also successfully debuted as a director and screenwriter, winning the 2022 Goya for Best Fiction Short Film with “Tótem Loba”, a feminist version of Little Red Riding Hood.
With more than 30 works on the big screen, she began her career with roles in short films and small appearances in Spanish television series such as “Paco y Veva”. After her stage debut at Madrid’s Teatro María Guerrero in 2005, in ·Infierno” by Tomaz Pandur, Catalan director Bigas Luna chose her to star in “Yo soy la Juani” (2006), the film that catapulted her to stardom and established her as one of the essential young actresses of Spanish cinema. For this role, she was also nominated for the 21st edition of the Goya Awards as Best New Actress and won her first Gaudí Award (Catalan Film Academy) as Best Actress in a Spanish Film.
From then on, she never stopped working, and her presence continued to shine in theater (The Lover, by Harold Pinter, in 2018), television series (Cuéntame, 3 Caminos, Apaches, Paquita Salas, and the British production Fortitude), and in cinema, where she received Goya nominations as Best Actress for “El Patio de mi Cárcel” by Belén Macías in 2009; for her work in 2012 in Kathmandu, A Mirror in the Sky by Icíar Bollaín, for which she also won the Gaudí in the same category; and for the romantic comedy My Heart Goes Boom! (Explota, Explota) in 2020, a joyful film that earned her the Feroz Award as Best Actress. Also in 2012, she collected the Zonacine Award for her unforgettable leading role in Six Points About Emma, directed by Roberto Pérez Toledo, where she starred alongside actor Álex García, with whom she began a relationship that lasted more than a decade.
As a supporting actress, she also achieved great success. In 2007, she won the Silver Biznaga for El Menor de los Males, directed by Antonio Hernández. She was nominated again for the Goya in 2020 for her role in the romantic “Explota, Explota” comedy My Heart Goes Boom!, the same performance that won her the Feroz Award. That same year, she also received another Gaudí for “La Ofrenda”.
In addition, she built an international career in countries such as Argentina, Mexico, Italy, and the United States. Her last work was, fittingly, the series A Muerte, directed by Joan Amargós, which premiered on Apple TV+ in early 2025, and which reflects on what awaits after life.
With her loss, an irreplaceable actress departs—one who stood out for the humanity, authenticity, warmth, and strength she gave her characters, and who embodied exemplary vocation and love for her craft. An actress who filled the screen and the stage with her mere presence, and who leaves behind a great void in Spanish culture. May she rest in peace.
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