Olivia Hussey Eisley, star of the 1968 film “Romeo and Juliet” and the slasher classic “Black Christmas,” has died, according to a post on her Instagram page.
She was 73.
“It is with profound sadness that we announce the passing of Olivia Hussey Eisley, who went peacefully at home surrounded by her loved ones on December 27th,” the statement posted on her Instagram reads. “Olivia was a remarkable person whose warmth, wisdom, and pure kindness touched the lives of all who knew her.”
“Romeo and Juliet” was the British-Argentine actress’s big break, winning her a Golden Globe for her performance as Juliet.
Franco Zeffirelli’s adaptation of Shakespeare’s classic love story was not without its controversies. In late 2022, Hussey Eisley and co-star Leonard Whiting filed a lawsuit against Paramount Studios, which produced the film, for allowing the movie to be released with scenes showing them nude when they were minors. According to the complaint, Zeffirelli told Hussey Eisley and Whiting – who were 15 and 16 at the time, respectively – that “they must act in the nude or the picture would fail.” The suit was dismissed in May 2023.
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