Olivia Hussey, who starred as a teenage Juliet within the 1968 movie Romeo and Juliet, has died, her household mentioned on social media on Saturday. She was 73.
Hussey died on Friday, “peacefully at dwelling surrounded by her family members,” a press release posted to her Instagram account mentioned.
Hussey was 15 when director Franco Zeffirelli solid her in his adaptation of the William Shakespeare tragedy after recognizing her onstage within the play The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, which additionally starred Vanessa Redgrave.
Romeo and Juliet gained two Academy Awards, and Hussey gained a Golden Globe for finest new actress for her half as Juliet, reverse British actor Leonard Whiting, who was 16 on the time.
A long time later, Hussey and Whiting introduced a lawsuit towards Paramount Photos alleging sexual abuse, sexual harassment and fraud over nude scenes within the movie.
They alleged that they had been initially advised they’d put on flesh-coloured undergarments in a bed room scene, however on the day of the shoot, Zeffirelli advised the pair they’d put on solely physique make-up and that the digicam can be positioned in a method that will not present nudity. They alleged they had been filmed within the nude with out their information.
The case was dismissed in 2023 by a Los Angeles County choose, who discovered their depiction couldn’t be thought of baby pornography and the pair filed their declare too late.
Whiting was amongst these paying tribute to Hussey on Saturday. “Relaxation now my lovely Juliet no injustices can damage you now. And the world will bear in mind your magnificence in and out endlessly,” he wrote.
Hussey was born on April 17, 1951, in Bueno Aires and moved to London as a toddler. She studied on the Italia Conti Academy drama college.
She additionally starred as Mary, the mom of Jesus, within the 1977 tv collection Jesus of Nazareth, in addition to the 1978 adaptation of Agatha Christie’s Loss of life on the Nile and horror motion pictures Black Christmas and Psycho IV: The Starting.
She is survived by her husband, David Glen Eisley, her three kids and a grandson.
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