Tributes pour in for a legendary actress dubbed the ‘most beautiful woman in the world.’
The entertainment world is mourning the loss of an iconic actress who captivated audiences with her stunning beauty and remarkable talent.
Culture Minister Alessandro Giuli led tributes, calling her ‘one of the greatest actresses of all time’ who embodied ‘grace,’ per Metro.
Her agent Laurent Savry said, per BBC, she ‘leaves us the legacy of a free and inspired woman both as a woman and as an artiste.’
Critics had long praised her as the ’embodiment of postwar European glamour,’ while fellow actor David Niven once told her: “Along with spaghetti, you’re Italy’s greatest invention.”
Born Claude Joséphine Rose Cardinale in Tunisia in April 1938 to Sicilian parents, her path to stardom began at just 16 when she won the ‘Most Beautiful Italian Girl in Tunisia’ competition in 1957, Sky News reports.
The prize included a trip to the Venice Film Festival, where producers immediately took notice of the striking teenager.
Originally intending to become a teacher, Cardinale was reluctant to abandon her academic dreams. However, her father encouraged her to ‘give this cinema thing a go,’ setting in motion one of cinema’s most illustrious careers.
Her early years in the industry were marked by significant challenges.
Growing up speaking French, Arabic, and her parents’ Sicilian dialect, her accent was deemed unacceptable for Italian films, leading to her voice being dubbed by other actors.
It wasn’t until Federico Fellini cast her in 8½ in 1963 that audiences first heard her own distinctive voice on screen.
“When I arrived for my first movie, I couldn’t speak a word. I thought I was on the moon. I couldn’t understand what they were talking about,” she once recalled. “And Federico Fellini was the first one who used my voice. I think I had a very strange voice.”
The year 1963 proved to be the most pivotal of Cardinale’s career, starring in both Fellini’s Oscar-winning 8½ and Luchino Visconti’s epic The Leopard alongside Burt Lancaster.
Both films are now considered among the greatest ever made and cemented her status as a star of international cinema’s golden age.
“Visconti wanted me brunette with long hair. Fellini wanted me blonde,” Cardinale remembered of working with the legendary directors.
Her Hollywood breakthrough came with Blake Edwards’ The Pink Panther, followed by memorable roles in Sergio Leone’s Once Upon A Time In The West, where she starred opposite Henry Fonda and Charles Bronson.
Despite success in America, Cardinale chose to return to Europe, explaining: “I don’t like the star system. I’m a normal person. I like to live in Europe.”
Cardinale’s contributions to cinema were recognized with numerous honors, including a career Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival in 1993, an honorary Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival in 2002, and a career David at Italy’s David di Donatello Awards in 1997.
In 2000, she was named a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador in recognition of her advocacy for women’s rights, demonstrating her commitment to causes beyond entertainment.
Remarkably, she continued working well into her 80s, with her final screen roles being in the Swiss mini-series Bulle in 2020 and the Tunisian-Italian drama The Island of Forgiveness in 2022.
Reflecting on her extraordinary career in 2014, she said: “I still continue to work, it’s 142 movies now. Usually when you are old you don’t work anymore, but I still work, which is good… I’ve been very lucky.”
At her Berlin Film Festival lifetime achievement ceremony, she captured the essence of her remarkable journey: “I’ve lived more than 150 lives: prostitute, saint, romantic, every kind of woman, and that is marvellous to have this opportunity to change yourself.”
Claudia Cardinale is survived by her two children, Patrick and Claudia. No cause of death has been confirmed.
