Renowned Argentine-British actress Olivia Hussey, best known for her role as Juliet in Franco Zeffirelli’s 1968 version of “Romeo and Juliet,” passed away on December 27, 2024, at her residence. She was 73. Her interpretation of Juliet earned her a Golden Globe and reshaped how a generation viewed Shakespeare’s work.
Her passing was made public via a statement on her Instagram account, noting she died “peacefully at home surrounded by her loved ones.” A return of her breast cancer was cited as the cause of death, as disclosed by her family.
Born on April 17, 1951, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Hussey moved to London with her mother and brother as a child, enduring considerable financial struggles before breaking into the show business. She attended the Italia Conti Academy drama school, where her innate acting abilities shone through. She was performing in local theater productions by the age of 13, attracting the attention of industry insiders.
While performing at the age of 15 in “The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie” alongside Vanessa Redgrave, Hussey caught the attention of director Franco Zeffirelli, who saw in her the ideal Juliet. The film was shot in Italy over a period of nine months on a budget of $850,000, and eventually grossed $38.9 million worldwide and won two Academy Awards for Best Cinematography and Best Costume Design.
Her role in Romeo and Juliet catapulted the young actress from the stage into international fame, as she later recounted in her 2018 memoir “The Girl on the Balcony.” This role brought both significant professional milestones and personal hurdles that would influence her entire career in the industry.
Throughout the 1970s, Hussey established a commendable career, undertaking a range of challenging roles that demonstrated her versatility. Her role as Mary in the Franco Zeffirelli’s “Jesus of Nazareth” (1977) was seen by an estimated 380 million viewers worldwide. She followed this with roles in “Death on the Nile” (1978) and the horror film “Black Christmas” (1974), which later achieved cult status.
In 2023, controversy erupted over “Romeo and Juliet” when Hussey and her co-star Leonard Whiting filed a $500 million lawsuit against Paramount Pictures. They alleged sexual abuse, sexual harassment, and fraud concerning nude scenes in the film. They claimed they were originally told to wear flesh-colored undergarments in a bedroom scene, but on the shooting day, Zeffirelli informed them they would wear only body makeup and the camera would be arranged to avoid displaying nudity. Hussey later revealed her struggles with agoraphobia and bulimia as a result of the experience.
The case was thrown out by Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Alison Mackenzie in May 2023, who stated that the First Amendment protected the film and that the statute of limitations had passed. The judge pointed out that both actors had defended the film’s artistic merit in multiple interviews over the decades. Despite the controversy, Hussey’s career continued to develop. She transitioned into voice acting, contributing her voice to multiple animated features and video games. In the 1990s, she played Mother Teresa in a biographical film shot in Sri Lanka and Italy, which she considered one of her most difficult roles. She also featured in “Psycho IV: The Beginning” (1990) and several independent films throughout the 2000s.
On the personal front, Hussey was married three times, first to Dean Paul Martin (son of Dean Martin) in 1971, then to Japanese singer Akira Fuse in 1980, and lastly to David Glen Eisley in 1991. She had three children: Alexander Martin, Max Fuse, and India Eisley, who also chose acting as a career.
She is survived by her husband, David Glen Eisley, her three children, and a grandson. At the time of her death, she was working on her second memoir and was actively involved in several charitable causes.