Salma Hayek Says Her 'Curious' Pet Rescue Owl Has Great Taste: 'She Like Good Wine, This One'

The Eternals actress appears in PEOPLE's 2021 Beautiful Issue alongside her "super cool" rescue owl Kering.

Birds are a girl best friends, or at least they are for Salma Hayek.

The actress, 54, is the proud mom of an owl named Kering, who she met around two years ago after responding to an advertisement about rescue owls. After researching the work the goes into caring for creatures, Hayek decided to adopt Kering, a southern white-faced owl.

"I gave it to my husband as a Valentine's present and named her Kering because that's the name of his company and their symbol of the owl," Hayek says in PEOPLE's 2021 Beautiful Issue, on newsstands Friday, of when Kering the owl and her husband, François-Henri Pinault, first met. "And he was like, 'Well, thank you, but I know this is your own present for yourself.'"

Hayek admits that while her entire family loves Kering, she and the owl share a special bond.

"When my husband is not in town, she sleeps in the room with me," the Eternals star says.

"We have certain routines before we go to sleep. I watch TV with my iPad, and she likes to stand on the iPad," she adds.

Mary Mcartney

Celebrity best friends and iPads aren't the only things that set Kering apart from other birds. She is more "curious" the most owls, according to Hayek, and has an unusual but "good" sense of taste.

"Even though owls don't drink liquids because they take everything from their prey, she likes good wine, this one," the star says.

Kering also enjoys getting cozy with Hayek and can often be found "on my head or my shoulder, my arms. Sometimes, when she is really close to me, I can feel her rubbing against me, which is really nice. And I feel so blessed."

"Just being in the same room [with her], there's an energy to it, and it is mesmerizing," Hayek adds of her "super cool" pet.

A lifelong animal lover, the actress says she always appreciates getting the chance to bond with each of her pets and discover their personalities.

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"Because they don't talk, you really have to be present with them, to communicate with them, to understand them. They always make you feel welcome. They never complain," she continues.

Kering and Hayek's other pets have kept her spirits lifted throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, and now the star hopes her upcoming film projects, Marvel's Eternals directed by Oscar nominee Chloe Zhao — in theaters November 5 — and The Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard — out June 16 — will help others find joy in the months ahead.

"I'm really excited about the possibility of people going to the theaters and for myself to go back to the theater. I love watching cinema in a cinema. And this is super exciting for me right now," Hayek says of the two projects.

"I'm 54, and I get to play a superhero in one movie and an action hero in the other one," she continues. "And being one of the guys, and getting to do all the stunts and feel that relevant in the story, and not just like 'the girl' ... It's very moving for me."

For all the details on Salma Hayek, Kering and more Beauty's Best Friends, pick up the latest issue of PEOPLE, on newsstands everywhere Friday, April 2.