Richard Gere and his wife Alejandra Silva were once again in the spotlight during their visit to Madrid. The couple presented a documentary project called “What Nobody Wants to See.” During a relaxed conversation with the press, Alejandra shared with a smile her heartfelt wish: she would like her famous husband to pledge allegiance to the Spanish flag, thus making a symbolic step towards obtaining citizenship.
In response to this statement, the Hollywood actor didn’t miss a beat and, with his trademark sense of humor, joked that his roots reach back to Galicia, hinting at his wife’s heritage. The joke drew laughter from those present, but behind it lies a genuine legal obstacle that, at least for now, makes Alejandra’s dream unattainable.
The fact is that the ceremony of pledging allegiance to the Spanish flag for civilians is strictly regulated by the country’s Ministry of Defense. There are three key requirements a candidate must meet. First, they must be of legal age, meaning 18 years old, and Richard Gere certainly meets this criterion. Second, the candidate must not have participated in a similar ceremony in the past 25 years, and there is no evidence that the actor ever has. However, the third requirement becomes an insurmountable barrier: to take the oath, one must already have Spanish citizenship.
This is where the main challenge lies. There is no dual citizenship agreement between Spain and the United States, of which Richard Gere is a citizen. This means that in order to obtain a Spanish passport, the actor would have to go through a complicated process and, most importantly, officially renounce his American citizenship. Given his status, career, and life tied to the US, such a step seems highly unlikely.
Despite this, the couple does not hide their deep affection for Spain. After returning to North America, they remain actively engaged in public life, but Alejandra has repeatedly expressed her desire to one day move back to her homeland. For now, these plans remain in the future. The couple is currently focused on charity work and joint projects. They have also shared that they plan to spend the Christmas holidays with their family on one of their favorite islands, the name of which they prefer to keep secret to protect their privacy.
Worth noting, Richard Gere is not only a world-renowned actor but also a prominent public figure. His Hollywood career spans dozens of iconic roles, including films such as “Pretty Woman,” “An Officer and a Gentleman,” and “Chicago,” for which he won a Golden Globe. However, his life goes far beyond the film set. Gere is a devoted Buddhist and one of the best-known followers of the Dalai Lama in the West. For decades, he has actively advocated for human rights in Tibet, founding The Gere Foundation and the International Campaign for Tibet. His political stance led to a lifetime ban from entering China—a move he has acknowledged impacted his career, as major studios are wary of financing his projects due to possible backlash from the Chinese market. His marriage to Spanish publicist and activist Alejandra Silva is his third. Their union, strengthened by the birth of two sons, has further deepened Gere’s ties to Spain—a country he now fondly calls his second home, even if he does not formally hold its citizenship.
