Ornella Muti (Francesca Romana Rivelli) was born in Rome on 9 March 1955. Her father was a Neapolitan journalist and her mother an Estonian sculptress. She has three children, Naike, Andrea and Carolina who live with her. Today, she has under her belt a hundred or so films and dozens of series made throughout the world. Amongst the many awards that she has received, are the “Nastri d’Argento” in 1988 and in 1989 and the “Grolla d’Oro”, the crowning achievement of her career in 1998.
In Italy, she made her debut in cinema at just 14 years of age. Damiano Damiani made her the heroine of his film “La moglie più bella”. A year later, in 1971, she starred in several films made in Italy (“Il sole nella pelle” and “Un posto ideale per uccidere” by Umberto Lenzi) and in Spain (“Un solo grande amore” and “Experiencia prematrimonial”(“Esperienze prematrimoniali”)).
In 1974, Ornella Muti got her first big hit with “Come Home and Meet my Wife” (“Romanzo Popolare”) by Mario Monicelli. Alongside Ugo Tognazzi, who played the Milanese labourer Basletti, she played an unforgettable “Vincenzina”. Other masterpieces followed: “Pure as a Lily” (“Come una rosa al naso”) by Franco Rossi; “The Bishop’s Bedroom” (“La stanza del vescovo”) and “First Love” (“Primo amore”), both by Dino Risi, then “The Last Woman” (“L'ultima donna”) by Marco Ferreri, in 1976, with Gérard Depardieu. In 1978, “The New Monsters“ (“I nuovi mostri”) by Monicelli-Risi-Scola, was selected from the Best Foreign Film category at the Oscars.
With Ferreri, she also made “Tales of Ordinary Madness” (“Storie di ordinaria follia”) in 1981, and “The Future is Woman” (“Il futuro è donna”) in 1984. The same year, she played the role of Odette, the impossible love interest in Proust’s “Swann in Love” (“Un amour de Swann”) by Volker Schlondorff where she played opposite Jeremy Irons, Fanny Ardant and Alain Delon. These films made her an icon of transalpine cinema abroad, in the U.S. and above all in France. She is unforgettable in the role of the flamboyant and treacherous Princess Aura in “Flash Gordon” by Mike Hodges, included in the list of 100 films to be saved in the U.S. Without forgetting the Italian-style comedies with Adriano Celentano (“The Taming of the Scoundrel” (“Il bisbetico domato”), “Madly in Love” (“Innamorato pazzo”)), Renato Pozzetto (“Nobody’s Perfect” (“Nessuno è perfetto”) and “Rich and Poor” (“Un povero ricco”).
During the second half of the 1980s, on the other hand, her roles were more involved as in “Chronicle of a Death Foretold” (“Cronaca di una morte annunciata”) by Francesco Rosi, “Codice privato” by Citto Maselli, “O' Re” by Luigi Magni and “The Voyage of Captain Fracassa” (“Il viaggio di Capitan Fracassa”) by Ettore Scola.
In 1991, under the direction of John Landis, she made the American film “Oscar” alongside internationally renowned actors: Chazz Palminteri, Vincent Spano, Sylvester Stallone, Joey Travolta, Kirk Douglas and Don Ameche.
In 1992, she starred in the comedy “Non chiamarmi Omar”, directed by Staino. Success was on the cards in 1993 with “El amante bilingüe” (“The Bilingual Lover”) by Vincente Aranda then in 1999 with “Panni sporchi” by Mario Monicelli. More recently, she has worked with Francesca Archibugi, Asia Argento and Eleonora Giorgi, who chose her for her first steps into directing in “Uomini & donne, amori & bugie”.
Ornella Muti is known in Russia because of her films with Adriano Celentano, in Germany through “Widows” by Sherry Hormann (1997) and “Unscarred” by Giovinazzo (1999), and in France for her roles in cult films such as “Jet set” (1999), “Trilogie” (2001) by Lucas Belvaux and “Les Bronzés 3” (2005). But her fame has also reached Spain, Brazil and even China where, in 1999, she made “Tierra del fuego” under the leadership of Miguel Lettin. A large number of popular successes continue to increase her international renown. As the years go by, Ornella Muti confirms her status as an atypical actress with confidence. In this way, trusting her intuition, she often opts for debut films and short films.
