Zeffirelli

A decade later, the actress garnered acclaim in Franco Zeffirelli's autobiographical 1999 film Tea with Mussolini, alongside her close friends, Judi Dench and Maggie Smith.

Zeffirelli was looking for someone who was young enough to be a convincing Juliet in what he intended to be the definitive cinematic version of the Shakespeare play.

Decades later, she and Whiting sued Paramount Pictures alleging Zeffirelli - who died in 2019 - had encouraged them to film nude scenes despite previous assurances they would not have to.

In 1977, Hussey had reunited with Zeffirelli for Jesus of Nazareth to play the Virgin Mary, before appearing in Death on the Nile a year later based on Agatha Christie's novel.

Director Franco Zeffirelli described her as big in every way — big eyes, big nose, big mouth, big body — and compared her to the Statue of Liberty.