Banderas had fun in 'Shrek 2'

LOS ANGELES, May 23 (UPI) -- Antonio Banderas said in Los Angeles he loved the movie "Shrek" so much he agreed to be in the sequel before he knew what role DreamWorks wanted him to play.

"I was a fan of the first one, so as soon as (DreamWorks chief) Jeffrey Katzenberg got on the phone with me and he pronounced the word 'Shrek,' I said 'yes' not even reading the script," Banderas told reporters. "I didn't know if I was going to do a cameo or (what)."

The filmmakers wanted the 43-year-old Spanish actor to play the cat Puss in Boots, a cocky, sword-wielding assassin who forces his foes to crumble using his big, beautiful eyes.

Although moviegoers may note some similarities between Puss and the hero Banderas played in "The Mask of Zorro," the actor said the "Shrek 2" character wasn't initially meant to poke fun at Zorro.

"In the beginning, I understand, the character was thought French," he said. "He was supposed to be a spoof of D'Artagnan, but obviously when they called me that disappeared in their minds for obvious reasons and so ... he was not kind of spoofing Zorro from the beginning, but as much as we were advancing, it was clear that we could go in that direction."

"It was tremendously fun," he added.