Tomas Milian was a Cuban American actor and singer with Italian citizenship, known for the emotional intensity and humour he brought to roles in European genre films. A student of Lee Strasberg, Milian studied method acting at the Actors Studio in New York City. In Italy, he was discovered by director Mauro Bolognini and appeared in supporting roles in several drama films during the late-1950s and early-1960s, including as Raphael in Carol Reed's The Agony and the Ecstasy.