Alejandro González Iñárritu turns 63 with Asturias as refuge: building his own home near Llanes

Mexican filmmaker Alejandro González Iñárritu, winner of four competitive Oscars and one special Oscar, celebrates his 63rd birthday with Asturias as a personal refuge.

The director has spent the last several summers in Llanes and is now building his own home near Nueva de Llanes, with delivery expected in 2027.

His connection to the area was facilitated by the influential Concha family, who have roots in both Asturias and Mexico — a link that has transformed visits into a permanent project.

Alejandro González Iñárritu (born in Mexico City, 1963) is one of the great names in international cinema, with a career that includes Amores perros (2000), 21 Grams, Babel, Biutiful, Birdman (Oscars for Best Picture, Best Director and Best Original Screenplay), The Revenant (Best Director) and Bardo. His relationship with Asturias dates back to at least 2019, when he toured different points of the Principality with his wife, María Eladia Hagerman, visiting Llanes, Bulnes, the Picos de Europa, Niembro and Ribadesella. Over the years, those visits have gained continuity. According to sources, the Mexican has spent approximately three summers staying regularly in the Llanes area, where he has found the privacy necessary to spend long periods away from the attention his presence generates in other destinations.

Sources close to Iñárritu:It is impossible to say his arrival in Asturias was a hoax. He has been coming here for years. The house he is building will not be ready until 2027.

The director has used rented manor houses for his stays, paying approximately €25,000 per season, according to sources. But his relationship with Asturias is on the way to becoming permanent: Iñárritu is building a house of his own located about four kilometres from Nueva de Llanes, whose delivery is planned for 2027. This is how he arrives at his 63rd birthday: with a new personal project advancing in Asturias and with Llanes becoming one of those places to which he returns when the cameras, premieres and red carpets disappear.

The path to that refuge began far from Asturias and far from Hollywood. Before devoting himself to cinema, Iñárritu crossed the Atlantic working on a cargo ship and began his professional career as a radio host in Mexico, later taking on creative responsibilities and working as a television producer. The Concha family, founders of Promociones Turísticas Montemar, has deep roots in Asturias but also a strong connection to Mexico, where the patriarch Amable Concha Morán emigrated as a young man. Those dual ties allowed Iñárritu to find in Llanes something especially valuable for an international personality: trust, accommodation, local knowledge and discretion.

TOM CRUISE AND THE ASTURIAN CONNECTION

The director has been friends with Tom Cruise for decades. Cruise was one of the first major Hollywood figures to be fascinated by Amores perros when Iñárritu was still taking his first steps in the international industry. The actor would screen the film at his own house. They met years later at Paramount studios and have maintained a close friendship since. In the summer of 2024, they were together in Mallorca, sailing and enjoying days on the Mediterranean.

This summer, Cruise had planned to visit Asturias at Iñárritu's invitation. According to security sources, Cruise's team had previously travelled to the area to analyse access, property perimeter, nearby roads and available communications, including tests of Starlink connections. The actor had reportedly visited the area before. The planned stay was at the director's rented house, not at the new one under construction. The plans activated the usual security apparatus that accompanies the American star, although it has not been confirmed whether the visit ultimately took place.

Security sources:The artist from Hollywood was already here in the Llanes area a few months ago. He stayed at the Mexican director's rented house.

The friendship between the two also extends to their professional collaboration: Iñárritu directs Cruise in Digger, a black comedy that marks the Mexican's return to an English-language feature after The Revenant. The film is scheduled for release on 2 October 2026, and presents the actor in a very different register from the action hero with which he is usually identified.

The decision of a filmmaker of Iñárritu's stature to build a home in Llanes confirms the region's appeal for high-profile international figures seeking privacy, natural beauty and a connection to place. InasTour, acting exclusively as a buyer's agent, assists international clients in identifying properties in precisely these sought-after areas — from Llanes' coastal locations to the surrounding parishes — ensuring that those who seek their own refuge in Asturias can find it with the right local guidance.

Alejandro González Iñárritu enters his 63rd year with a career that continues to advance in multiple directions. Mexico has just recognised him by incorporating him into El Colegio Nacional, Hollywood awaits his new work alongside Tom Cruise, and, several thousand kilometres away, a house continues to rise near Nueva de Llanes. Asturias represents the most private part of this moment — a refuge where the cameras are absent, where the red carpets are left behind, and where the director has chosen to build something permanent. For international buyers, this choice is a powerful signal: Asturias is not only a destination for visitors but a place where those who have seen the world choose to stay.