After the tremendous success of Sergio Leone's A Fistful of Dollars (1964) starring Clint Eastwood, Milian grubbed up his own image and propelled himself to stardom in like fashion in such classic "spaghetti westerns" as The Ugly Ones (1967), The Big Gundown (1966) with Lee Van Cleef, Face to Face (1967), Django Kill... If You Live, Shoot! (1967) and Run, Man, Run (1968).
Discovered by director Mauro Bolognini after appearing on stage in Italy. Tomas began in Italian features playing sensitive, spoiled bourgeoisie.
Father of Tomaso Milian Jr..
He decided to become a movie actor after seeing James Dean in East of Eden (1955).
His father was an army general under a Cuban dictatorship. In 1933 the dictatorship was overthrown and his father arrested. He committed suicide in 1945 in his home, with Tomas as an eyewitness.
In most of his Italian comedies from the 1970s, his voice was dubbed by Ferruccio Amendola, who provided a strong Roman accent. However, Milian had real knowledge of Roman slang and generally wrote his own lines.
In the 1970s he specialized in playing lone-wolf anti-heroes in giallos and crime features. He started an extremely successful series of tough, violent films as the small-time crook Er. Monnezza (3 times) and police detective Nico Giraldi (12 times).
Longtime friend of fellow actor Ray Lovelock.
Returned to the US in the late 80s and has played ethnic bad guys for the most part.