Claudia Cardinale, the Tunisian-born Italian actor whose career ranged from Federico Fellini’s 8½ to the comedy The Pink Panther, died in Nemours, France, on 23 September 2025. She was 87. Her work with Luchino Visconti and Sergio Leone also made her a defining presence in European cinema.
When and where did Claudia Cardinale die?
Cardinale died in Nemours, France, on 23 September 2025, aged 87. The Associated Press reported that her agent confirmed her death. Italy’s culture minister, Alessandro Giuli, said in an official statement: “With the death of Claudia Cardinale, one of the greatest Italian actresses of all time has passed away.”
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Associated Press obituary, 23 September 2025
Which films made Cardinale famous?
Her best-known work spans sharply different kinds of cinema: landmark European art films, a Hollywood comedy, and a major western. Cardinale’s roles in 8½ and The Leopard in 1963 helped establish her stature; she later played Princess Dala in The Pink Panther and Jill McBain in Sergio Leone’s Once Upon a Time in the West (1968).
| Film | Director | Cardinale’s role or significance |
|---|---|---|
| 8½ (1963) | Federico Fellini | One of the two landmark 1963 productions she filmed simultaneously. |
| The Leopard (1963) | Luchino Visconti | Her other major 1963 film, made at the same time as 8½. |
| The Pink Panther | Blake Edwards | Cardinale played Princess Dala in the international comedy. |
| Once Upon a Time in the West (1968) | Sergio Leone | Cardinale played Jill McBain in Leone’s western. |
The British Film Institute describes her career as extending over eight decades, with work in both serious drama and comedy. AP reported that she appeared in more than 100 films and made-for-television productions; that figure is AP’s count, and totals can vary with counting conventions.
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British Film Institute obituary, 1 October 2025
Why is she associated with both Fellini and Visconti?
Cardinale’s 1963 films show the range of her collaborators and the contrasting ways they worked. The BFI calls that year her annus mirabilis. She changed her hair color between productions: dark brown for Visconti’s The Leopard, blonde for Fellini’s 8½.
She recalled the difference in atmosphere in a 2013 interview with The Guardian: “He [Fellini] couldn’t shoot without noise. With Visconti, the opposite, like doing theatre. We couldn’t say a word. Very serious.” Her recollection captures two distinct approaches: Fellini’s noisy, disorderly set and Visconti’s formal, theatre-like discipline.
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The Guardian obituary, 23 September 2025
How did Cardinale enter the film industry?
Cardinale was born in Tunisia on 15 April 1938 to a Sicilian family. A beauty contest in Tunis in 1957 led to an invitation to the Venice Film Festival and brought her to the attention of the Italian film industry.
Her early career was not simply a story of opportunity. In a 2017 interview with Le Monde, she spoke about acting as a way to earn a living and gain independence after the birth of her son. She also described the pressure to conceal his parentage and the control a producer exerted over her early career. The interview offers her own account of the constraints surrounding her entry into film.
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Le Monde interview, first published 14 May 2017 and republished 24 September 2025
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.How did Cardinale describe becoming an actor?
When recalling her 2002 Berlin Film Festival lifetime achievement award, Cardinale described her entry into cinema as accidental. “The fact I’m making movies is just an accident,” she said, explaining that when she was first asked to act, she said no, but people kept insisting. The comment sits alongside a career that AP counted at more than 100 screen productions and the BFI traces across eight decades.
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