United Kingdom, Aug. 5 -- Antonio Banderas' heart attack is the "best thing" to have happened to him.

The 65-year-old actor suffered a heart attack back in 2017 - but that scare prompted him to embrace a new lifestyle, including quitting smoking and relocating to Malaga in Spain.

The movie star told People: "You always have in your mind that you're going to die.

"But then when you have it so close, it's an unbelievably clear reminder of how stupid you are losing time over things that don't deserve to be in your life."

Antonio explained that the health scare prompted a long-overdue change.

He said: "My heart attack was the best thing that ever happened in my life. It was like somebody put glasses on me so I could see the reality that ...