Cervantes is a highly fictionalized 1967 Franco-Spanish-Italian international co-production film biography depicting the early life of Miguel de Cervantes (1547–1616). Based on the 1937 novel A Man Called Cervantes by Bruno Frank, it was the first screen biography of the author. Directed by Vincent Sherman and filmed in color, it stars Horst Buchholz as Cervantes, Gina Lollobrigida as a prostitute with whom he becomes involved, José Ferrer as Hassan Bey, the Turk who held Cervantes in captivity, Louis Jourdan as Cardinal Giulio Acquaviva, and Fernando Rey as King Philip II. Italian actor Tiziano Cortini, who usually used the name "Lewis Jordan," appeared under his own name to avoid confusion with Louis Jourdan. Enrique Alarcón handled the production design.