Geraldine Chaplin

Geraldine Chaplin Headshot

Actress

Birth Date: July 31, 1944

Age: 79 years old

Birth Place: Santa Monica, California

Parents: Charlie Chaplin

Children: Oona Chaplin

Siblings: Josephine Chaplin

Though she is the daughter of silent film legend Charlie Chaplin, actress Geraldine Chaplin blazed her own trail with a prominent career as a supporting actress in major films in both Hollywood and abroad. Born on July 31, 1944 in Santa Monica, CA, Chaplin was the daughter of silent film legend Charlie Chaplin, and his fourth and final wife, Oona O'Neill, herself the daughter of Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Eugene O'Neill. The first of eight children between her parents, Chaplin moved to Switzerland with her family when she was eight years old because of her father's exile over alleged Communist activities. While there, she attended several boarding schools and became fluent in both French and Spanish. Also at that age, she made her film debut with an uncredited part in the opening scene of her father's scandal-ridden feature, "Limelight" (1952), a tragicomic semi-autobiographical drama about a former music hall star forced to contend with his loss of popularity. The film waited 20 years to receive a theatrical release in the United States, though it was warmly received throughout Europe and was considered by later critics to be one of her father's finest works. Meanwhile, Chaplin attended the famous Royal Ballet School in London, but decided against a dancing career and instead turned to following in her father's footsteps.

Thirteen years after her film debut, Chaplin made her official splash into acting with a major supporting part in David Lean's classic romantic epic, "Doctor Zhivago" (1965), starring Julie Christie and Omar Sharif. Chaplin played Tonya Gromeko, the upper-class wife of Sharif's titular Zhivago, who is forced to immigrate to France after the fall of Russia's Tsar, only to see her husband remain behind because he is in love with a dressmaker's daughter (Christie). Chaplin's performance earned the actress a Golden Globe nomination for New Star of the Year in 1966. From there, she earned high praise for her Broadway debut in "The Little Foxes" (1967), before landing significant parts in rather forgettable films like "Stranger in the House" (1967) and "Peppermint Frappe" (1967). Chaplin next starred opposite Marlon Brando and Sophia Loren in her father's critically maligned romantic comedy "A Countess from Hong Kong" (1967), while starting a professional and romantic relationship with Spanish director Carlos Suara in the late-1960s that led to starring roles in "Stress is Three" (1968) and "Honeycomb" (1969).

After starring opposite Charlton Heston in "The Hawaiians" (1970), Chaplin was a foreign governess taking care of a group of children in an isolated house in Suara's drama "Ana and the Wolves" (1973). She had a supporting turn as Queen Anne of Austria in "The Three Musketeers" (1973), a role she reprised for "The Four Musketeers" (1974). Following a highly-acclaimed turn in "Raise Ravens" (1975), Chaplin was a wacky, celebrity-obsessed BBC reporter who might be just a groupie looking to cozy up to musicians in Robert Altman's classic film, "Nashville" (1975). A standout among a top-notch ensemble cast that included Shelley Duvall, Barbara Harris, Lily Tomlin, Scott Glenn and Ned Beatty, Chaplin earned a Golden Globe nomination for Best Supporting Actress. She went on to play Annie Oakley to Paul Newman's Buffalo Bill in Altman's revisionist Western "Buffalo Bill and the Indians, or Sitting Bull's History Lesson" (1976) and earned a BAFTA Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress for her performance as a San Fernando Valley housewife addicted to taxi rides in Alan Rudolph's moody "Welcome to L.A." (1976).

Chaplin continued to tackle interesting roles with a turn as a shy divorcée in James Ivory's "Roseland" (1977) and as a woman reunited with her estranged father (Fernando Rey) after 20 years in Carlos Suara's "Elisa, vida mía" (1977). Following more acclaim for her performance as a deranged woman determined to win back her husband (Anthony Perkins) at any cost in "Remember My Name" (1978), she was top-billed in Robert Altman's ensemble comedy "A Wedding" (1978) before again collaborating with Suara on "Blindfolded Eyes" (1978) and "Mama Turns 100" (1979). In the following decade, Chaplin starred in a number of foreign-made films, including the French musical "Les Uns et les Autres" (1981) and Jacques Rivette's "Love on the Ground" (1984), before co-starring alongside Jack Nicholson and Meryl Streep in Mike Nichols' comedy "Heartburn" (1986). She went on to notable supporting turns in "White Mischief" (1987) and "The Moderns" (1988), before reprising Queen Anne again for "The Return of the Musketeers" (1989). A few years later, she delivered a convincing performance as the gaunt, mentally-troubled mother of her own father (Robert Downey, Jr.) in Richard Attenborough's acclaimed biopic, "Chaplin" (1992). The role earned her another Golden Globe nomination for Best Supporting Actress.

Always busy, Chaplin went on to play Mrs. Welland opposite Daniel Day-Lewis and Michelle Pfeiffer in Martin Scorsese's costume drama "The Age of Innocence" (1993) and served as comic relief as Anne Bancroft's slightly dotty sister in Jodie Foster's "Home for the Holidays" (1995). Following a turn as Miss Scratcherd in Franco Zeffirelli's adaptation of "Jane Eyre" (1996), Chaplin was Adeline Hulot in "Cousin Bette" (1998) and starred opposite Richard Harris in "To Walk with Lions" (1999). After a supporting role in the biblical "In the Beginning" (2000), she was the operator of a dance studio in Pedro Almodóvar's highly-acclaimed "Talk to Her" (2002) and the wife of a wealthy man (Fernando Fernán Gómez) dying of cancer in "The City of No Limits" (2002). Chaplin next played the Ghost of Christmas Future in a musical version of "A Christmas Carol" (NBC, 2004), starring Kelsey Grammer as Scrooge, and was the Fortune Teller in the big screen adaptation of the popular video game, "BloodRayne" (2006). Chaplin went on to portray a medium in the well-received gothic horror "The Orphanage" (2007), before co-starring in foreign films like "The Island Inside" (2009) and "The Making of Plus One" (2010). From there, she starred opposite Anthony Hopkins and Benicio del Toro in "The Wolfman" (2010) and earned acclaim alongside daughter Oona Chaplin in the Spanish eco-comedy "What's a Bear For?" (2011).

By Shawn Dwyer

Credits

Seneca

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Cecilia
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2023

Luka

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2023

Los Rodríguez y el más allá

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Isabel
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2019

Holy Beasts

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Vera
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2019

The Barefoot Emperor

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Lady Liz
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2019

Jurassic World: Fallen KingdomStream

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Iris
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2018
46%

Camino sinuoso

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Miny
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2018

Electric DreamsStream

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Irma
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2017
72%

Tierra firme

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Germaine
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2017

The Broken Key: La chiave spezzata

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anziana Mole
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2017

The Broken Key

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Tower Woman
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2017

Au-delà des murs

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Rose
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2016

A Monster Calls

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The Head Teacher
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2016

Seances

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2016

The Forbidden Room

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The Master Passion/Nursemaid/Aunt Chance
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2015

Ich und Kaminski

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Therese Lessing
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2015

Valentin Valentin

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Jane
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2015

Marguerite & Julien

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La mère de Lefebvre
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2015

Mère des dieux

Self
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2015

Wax

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Producer
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2014

Amapola

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2014

Dólares de arena

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Anne
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2014

Another Me

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Mrs. Brennan
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2013

Three-60

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Jean Christophe
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2013

Panzer Chocolate

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Frau Frida
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2013

Hostias

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Jean
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2012

The ImpossibleStream

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Old Woman
Movie
2012
82%

O Apóstolo

Voice
Dorinda
Movie
2012

Memoria de mis p... tristes

Actor
Rosa Cabarcas
Movie
2011

Americano

Actor
Linda
Movie
2011

The Monk

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L'abbesse
Movie
2011

And if We All Lived Together?

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Annie
Movie
2011

Who Needs Bears?

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Josephine
Movie
2011

Versión española

Actor
Show
2010

The Wolfman

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Maleva
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2010

The Mosquito Net

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María
Movie
2010

The Making of Plus One

Actor
Geri
Movie
2010

L'imbroglio nel lenzuolo

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Alma
Movie
2009

The Island Inside

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Victoria
Movie
2009

Parlami d'amore

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Amelie
Movie
2008

Diary of a Nymphomaniac

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Abuela de Valére
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2008

Inconceivable

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Frances Church-Chappel
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2008

Ramírez

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Galerist
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2008

Talk to Me About Love

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Amelie
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2008

Les aventuriers des mers du sud

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Show
2007

The Orphanage

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Aurora
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2007

Theresa: The Body of Christ

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Priora
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2007

Boxes

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Maman
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2007

Parc

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La mère de Marteau
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2007

Miguel y William

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2007

Los Totenwackers

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Salgado
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2007

Les Aventuriers des mers du Sud

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Maggie
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2006

Winter Solstice

Actor
Show
2005

BloodRayne

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Fortune Teller
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2005

Heidi

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Rottenmeier
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2005

Mélissa P.

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Nonna Elvira
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2005

The Bridge of San Luis Rey

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Abadesa
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2004

A Christmas Carol: The Musical

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Ghost of Christmas Future/Blind Beggarwoman
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2004

Rosamunde Pilcher: Winter Solstice

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Gloria Blundell
Show
2003

Winter Solstice

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Gloria Blundell
Movie
2003

Rosamunde Pilcher - Wintersonne

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Gloria Blundell
Movie
2003

Rosamunde Pilcher - Wintersonne - Teil 1

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Gloria Blundell
Movie
2003

Rosamunde Pilcher - Wintersonne - Teil 2

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Gloria Blundell
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2003

Talk to Her

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Katerina Bilova
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2002

The City of No Limits

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Marie
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2002

Y Tú, Qué Harías Por Amor?

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Movie
2001

Las caras de la Luna

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2001

In the Beginning...

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2000

Tú Que Harías por Amor

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Madre
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2000

Just Run!

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Madre
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2000

To Walk With Lions

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Victoria Anrecelli
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1999

Mary, Mother of JesusStream

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Elizabeth
Movie
1999

Beresina or the Last Days of Switzerland

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Charlotte De
Movie
1999

Finisterre

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Madre / Mother
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1998

Cousin Bette

Actor
Adeline Hulot
Movie
1998

The OdysseyStream

Actor
Miniseries
1997

Mother Teresa: In the Name of God's Poor

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Mother Theresa
Movie
1997

Gulliver's TravelsStream

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Miniseries
1996

Jane EyreStream

Actor
Miss Scatcherd
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1996

Crimetime

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Thelma
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1996

Home for the Holidays

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Aunt Gladys/'Glady'
Movie
1995

鳥の歌

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Movie
1995

Words Upon the Window Pane

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Miss McKenna
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1994

Rosamunde Pilcher

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Show
1993

A Foreign Field

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Beverly
Movie
1993

The Age of InnocenceStream

Actor
Mrs. Welland
Movie
1993
88%

Duelo de Corazones

Actor
Movie
1992

Duel of Hearts

Actor
Mrs. Miller
Movie
1992

ChaplinStream

Actor
Hannah Chaplin
Movie
1992
60%

Off Season

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Anarchist
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1992

Buster's Bedroom

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Diana Daniels
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1991

The Children

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Joyce Wheater
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1990

El Retorno de los Mosqueteros

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1989

The Return of the Musketeers

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Queen Anne
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1989

I Want to Go Home

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Terry Amstrong
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1989

The Moderns

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Nathalie de Ville
Movie
1988

White MischiefStream

Actor
Nina Soames
Movie
1987
80%

The Corsican Brothers

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Madame Savilia de Franchi
Movie
1985

L'Amour Par Terre

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Charlotte
Movie
1984

Love on the Ground

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Charlotte
Movie
1984

My Cousin Rachel

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Contessa Rachel Sangalletti
Movie
1983

Life is a Bed of Roses

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Nora Winkle
Movie
1983

Bolero

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Suzan/Sara Glenn
Movie
1981

Mystery!

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Series
1980

Los Unos y los Otros

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Movie
1980

The Mirror Crack'd

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Ella Zielinsky
Movie
1980

Le Voyage en Douce

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Lucie
Movie
1980

Mama Turns 100

Actor
Ana
Movie
1979

La Viuda de Montiel

Actor
Movie
1979

Los ojos vendados

Actor
Emilia
Movie
1978

A Wedding

Actor
Rita Billingsley
Movie
1978

Remember My Name

Actor
Emily
Movie
1978

Verhängnisvolle Freundschaft

Actor
Catherine
Movie
1978

In memoriam

Actor
Movie
1977

Roseland

Actor
Marilyn (The Hustle)
Movie
1977

Welcome to L.A.

Actor
Karen Hood
Movie
1977

Elisa, vida mía

Actor
Elisa Santamaria/Elisa's Mother
Movie
1977

Buffalo Bill and the Indians

Actor
Annie Oakley
Movie
1976

Cria!

Actor
Maria - The Mother/Ana the Daughter as an Adult
Movie
1976

Noroît

Actor
Movie
1976

The Four Musketeers

Actor
Queen Anne of Austria
Movie
1975

NashvilleStream

Actor
Opal
Movie
1975
91%

¿...Y el Prójimo?

Actor
Movie
1974

Le Mariage à la mode

Actor
Movie
1973

Innocent Bystanders

Actor
Miriam Loman
Movie
1973

The Three MusketeersStream

Actor
Anna of Austria
Movie
1973
88%

Ana y los Lobos

Actor
Ana
Movie
1972

La casa sin fronteras

Actor
Lucía Alfaro
Movie
1972

Z.P.G.

Actor
Carol McNeil
Movie
1972

Zawieszeni na drzewie

Actor
Movie
1971

Carlos

Actor
Lisa
Movie
1971

The Hawaiians

Actor
Purity Hoxworth
Movie
1970

Sur un arbre perché

Actor
Mme Muller
Movie
1970

Honeycomb

Actor
Teresa
Movie
1969

Stress Es Tres Tres

Actor
Teresa
Movie
1968

Cop-Out

Actor
Angela Sawyer
Movie
1967

I Killed Rasputin

Actor
Mounia Golovine
Movie
1967

A Countess From Hong Kong

Actor
Girl at dance
Movie
1967

Peppermint Frappe

Actor
Elena/Ana
Movie
1967

J'ai tué Raspoutine

Actor
Movie
1967

Andremo in città

Actor
Lenka Vitas
Movie
1966

Pasternak

Self
Movie
1965

Doctor ZhivagoStream

Actor
Tonya
Movie
1965
82%

Crime on a Summer Morning

Actor
Zelda
Movie
1965

What's My Line?Stream

Guest
Game Show
1950

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