Steven Spielberg took notice of Zeta-Jones in "Titanic" and recommended her to Martin Campbell, who was directing "The Mask of Zorro" (1998) for Spielberg's production company. Campbell cast her as the leading lady instead of Izabella Scorupco, who was his original choice for the part. Co-starring Welshman Anthony Hopkins and Antonio Banderas, the film tells the story of Zorro (Hopkins), a Spanish warrior (the film is set in Old California) who sets out to avenge the death of his wife and find his lost daughter Elena (Zeta-Jones). She found similarities between her "volatile" Celtic personality and her Latin character's temperament, and in preparation she studied dancing, riding and sword-fighting, and took diction lessons in Spanish. Filming the action and dance sequences while wearing heavy corsets in the dry Mexican desert proved to be a challenge for Zeta-Jones, but she found the experience "worth suffering for". "The Mask of Zorro" was positively received by the critics and earned over US$250 million worldwide. The role proved to be a breakthrough for her and she was nominated for the MTV Movie Award for Best Breakthrough Performance.