Isabella Rossellini facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Isabella Rossellini
Rossellini at the 2024 Toronto Film Festival
Born	Isabella Fiorella Elettra Giovanna Rossellini (1952-06-18) 18 June 1952 (age 72) Rome, Italy
Citizenship	Italy United States
Education	Hunter College (MA in Animal Behavior)
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1976–present
Spouse(s)	Martin Scorsese ​ ​ (m. 1979; div. 1982)​ Jonathan Wiedemann ​ ​ (m. 1983; div. 1986)​
Partner(s)	David Lynch (1986–1991) Gary Oldman (1994–1996)
Children	2, including Elettra Rossellini Wiedemann
Parents	Roberto Rossellini (father) Ingrid Bergman (mother)
Relatives	Pia Lindström (maternal half-sister) Renzo Rossellini (paternal half-brother)

Isabella Fiorella Elettra Giovanna Rossellini (Italian: [izaˈbɛlla rosselˈliːni]; born 18 June 1952) is an Italian actress. The daughter of Swedish actress Ingrid Bergman and Italian film director Roberto Rossellini, she is noted for her successful tenure as a Lancôme model and an established career in American and European cinema. She has received nominations for an Academy Award, two Golden Globe Awards, a British Academy Film Award and a Primetime Emmy Award.

After making her acting debut with White Nights (1985), Rossellini had her breakthrough role in David Lynch's Blue Velvet (1986) for which she received the Independent Spirit Award for Best Female Lead. She starred in the box office hit Death Becomes Her (1992), and had further roles in Cousins (1989), Wild at Heart (1990), Fearless (1993), Wyatt Earp (1994), Big Night (1996), Roger Dodger (2002), Infamous (2006), Two Lovers (2008), Enemy (2013), Joy (2015), La chimera (2023). She also voiced roles in Incredibles 2 (2018) and Marcel the Shell with Shoes On (2021). For her role as a nun in the drama Conclave (2024), she earned a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.

Rossellini received a Golden Globe Award nomination for the HBO film Crime of the Century (1996). She received a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series nomination for Chicago Hope (1997). She also has guest starred in the sitcoms Friends and 30 Rock as well as the dramas Alias and The Blacklist. She portrayed Simone Beck in the HBO series Julia (2022).

Early life

Rossellini was born in Rome, the daughter of Swedish actress Ingrid Bergman, who was of Swedish and German descent, and Italian director Roberto Rossellini, who was born in Rome from a family originally from Pisa, Tuscany. She has three siblings from her mother: her fraternal twin sister Isotta Rossellini, who is an adjunct professor of Italian literature; a brother, Robertino Ingmar Rossellini; and a half-sister, Pia Lindström, who formerly worked on television and is from her mother's first marriage with Petter Lindström. She has four other siblings from her father's two other marriages: Romano (who died at age nine), Renzo, Gil, and Raffaella. Growing up, she received "a liberal Catholic education".

Rossellini was raised in Rome, as well as in Santa Marinella and Paris. She underwent an operation for appendicitis at the age of five. At 11, she was diagnosed with scoliosis. In order to correct it, she had to undergo an 18-month ordeal of painful stretchings, body casts and surgery on her spine using pieces of one of her shin bones. Consequently, she has incision scars on her back and shin.

At 19, she went to New York City, where she attended Finch College, while working as a translator and a RAI television reporter. She also appeared intermittently on L'altra Domenica (The Other Sunday), a TV show featuring Roberto Benigni. However, she decided not to stay full-time in New York until her marriage to Martin Scorsese (1979–1982), whom she met when she interviewed him for RAI.

Career

Modeling

At the age of 28, her modeling career began, when she was photographed by Bruce Weber for British Vogue and by Bill King for American Vogue. During her career, she has also worked with many other renowned photographers, including Richard Avedon, Steven Meisel, Helmut Newton, Peter Lindbergh, Norman Parkinson, Eve Arnold, Francesco Scavullo, Annie Leibovitz, Denis Piel, and Robert Mapplethorpe. Her image has appeared on such magazines as Marie Claire, Harper's Bazaar, Vanity Fair, and Elle. In March 1988, an exhibition dedicated to photographs of her, called Portrait of a Woman, was held at the Musee d'Art Moderne in Paris.

Rossellini's modeling career led her into the world of cosmetics, when she became the exclusive spokesmodel for the French cosmetics brand Lancôme in 1982, replacing Nancy Dutiel in the United States and Carol Alt in Europe. At Lancôme, in 1990, she was involved in product development for the fragrance Trésor. In 1996, when she was 43, she was removed as the face of Lancôme for being "too old". In 2016, at the age of 63, she was rehired by Lancôme's new female CEO, Francoise Lehmann, as a global brand ambassador for the company.

Rossellini was the inaugural brand ambassador for the Italian Silversea Cruises company in 2004, and she appeared in print ads and on their website. Barbara Muckermann, the senior vice-president of worldwide marketing and communications in 2004, said at the time of the announcement, "Isabella is the ideal personification of Silversea's exclusive standard of elegance, glamour and sophistication."

Film and television

Rossellini on location at Tempelhof Airport in Berlin in 1992 to shoot some scenes for the film The Innocent

Rossellini made her film debut with a brief appearance as a nun opposite her mother in the 1976 film A Matter of Time. Her first role was the 1979 film Il Prato, and then in 1980 she appeared in Renzo Arbore's film Il pap'occhio with Martin Scorsese.

Following her mother's death in 1982, Rossellini was cast in her first American film, White Nights (1985). This was followed by her notable role as the nightclub singer Dorothy Vallens in the David Lynch film Blue Velvet, in which she also contributed her own singing. Other significant film roles during this period include her work in Cousins (1989), Death Becomes Her (1992), Fearless (1993), and Immortal Beloved (1994). In 1996, she appeared as herself in an episode of the TV series Friends called "The One with Frank Jr."

In 2003, Rossellini was a recurring character on the television series Alias. In that same year, she also appeared in the Canadian film The Saddest Music in the World, directed by Guy Maddin. In 2004, she played the High Priestess Thar in the Sci-Fi Channel miniseries Legend of Earthsea, and the director Robert Lieberman stated that Rossellini "brings a very big persona to the screen. She carries a great deal of beauty. We needed someone who had a feeling of authority to be this kind of mother superior type and at the same time not be totally dour and unattractive."

In 2006, Rossellini appeared in several television documentaries. First, she narrated a two-hour television special on Italy for the Discovery Channel's Discovery Atlas series. Then, alongside Segway PT inventor Dean Kamen, she spoke about her past and current activities on an episode of Iconoclasts, a series that featured on the Sundance Channel (known as SundanceTV from 2014 onwards), an independent film network founded by film industry veteran Robert Redford. The Sundance Channel then purchased the 2006 Guy Maddin-directed short film My Dad Is 100 Years Old, a tribute that Rossellini created for her father. In the film, she played almost every role, including Federico Fellini, Alfred Hitchcock and her mother, Ingrid Bergman. Rossellini's twin sister, Isotta Ingrid, criticized the short film, calling it an "inappropriate" tribute.

In 2007, Rossellini guest starred on two episodes of the television show 30 Rock, playing Alec Baldwin's character's ex-wife. Around the same time, Rossellini enrolled at Hunter College in New York to study animal behavior, and the Sundance Channel commissioned her to contribute a short-film project to the environmental program The Green.

Rossellini at the 2013 Toronto Film Festival

Mammas debuted in the United States on 12 May 2013, Mother's Day weekend there, and is a celebration of the maternal aspects of the animal world. Rossellini is again the primary actor and plays the maternal versions of animals such as spiders and hamsters. Rossellini explained in a 2013 interview part of the research process for Mammas: "First of all it's about diversity. When talking about motherhood, I would find examples of ten different species that either don't get pregnant in the belly but in the mouth or back. Or species that abandon their children all-together so that I don't tell ten stories that are too similar."

Rossellini acted in the film Enemy, with Jake Gyllenhaal, which was shown at the 2013 Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF). Rossellini praised the film during a TIFF interview: "I love the subtlety of the film. It reminded me of Kafka. It's very metaphysical, but yet it's also a solid thriller. It made me leap up out of my seat at the end." Rossellini also played the silent film actor Rudolph Valentino's mother in Vlad Kozlov's Silent Life, a feature-length version of the director's silent, black-and-white short film Daydreams of Rudolph Valentino. Kozlov's film was due for release in 2012, but, as of February 2014, the film has not been officially released.

Rossellini was the president of the jury for the 61st Berlin International Film Festival in 2011. In April 2015, she was announced as the president of the jury for the Un Certain Regard section of the 2015 Cannes Film Festival.

In 2016, Rossellini was cast as Rita Marks, the matriarch of the Marks crime family in the Hulu original series, Shut Eye.

In 2023, Rossellini was honoured with Lifetime Achievement Award at the 18th Rome Film Festival.

In 2024, Rossellini received acclaim for her portrayal of Sister Agnes in the political drama, Conclave, opposite Ralph Fiennes, Stanley Tucci and John Lithgow.

Stage and live performance

In 2004, Rossellini acted in an Off-Broadway production of Terrence McNally's The Stendhal Syndrome, with Richard Thomas.

Rossellini's "smallest circus in the world", a stage play exploring the ability of animals to think, was premiered in May 2018, at the Jerome Robbins Theater of the Baryshnikov Arts Center. The play "addresses the scientific discoveries about animal minds, intelligence, and emotions. Joined onstage by various animals portrayed by Pan, her trained dog, Rossellini transforms herself into Aristotle, Descartes, B.F. Skinner, Charles Darwin, and more, to deliver a vivid monologue about the brilliance of the animal kingdom".

Rossellini performed "Link Link Circus" (as in Ring Ring) as a benefit for The Gateway Performing Arts Center of Suffolk County, in Bellport, New York, the south shore Long Island village where she is a local organic farmer. "Link Link Circus" is performed by Rossellini in a black and red ringmaster's tailcoat, with the assistance of her dog, Peter Pan, who performs a few tricks and is costumed as other animals including a chicken and a dinosaur. In addition to Rossellini and Pan, the production includes puppets, handled by puppeteer Schuyler Beeman, and still photos, home movies, and animation projected on a large screen behind the set decorated with Rossellini's childhood toys, including a marionette stage and a toy upright piano, which Rossellini plays in the show. The set was designed by Andy Byers, who is also the costume designer and composer for the show. In promoting the show, which was performed twice at The Gateway, Rossellini appeared in Long Island's Newsday. Proceeds from The Gateway production of "Link Link Circus" also benefited The Plaza Cinema & Media Arts Center, a non-profit located near Rossellini's Bellport home in Patchogue, New York.

Rossellini has been a frequent guest narrator at Disney's Candlelight Processional at Walt Disney World, most recently appearing in the 2019 and 2022 seasons.

Activism

Rossellini is involved in conservation efforts. She is the president and director of the Howard Gilman Foundation – a leading institution focused on the preservation of wildlife, arts, photography and dance – and she has been a board member of the Wildlife Conservation Network. She received US$100,000 from Disney to help with her conservation efforts in those two organizations. She has also helped with the Central Park Conservancy, and is a major benefactor of the Bellport-Brookhaven Historical Society in Bellport, Long Island, where she is a part-time resident.

Rossellini is involved in training guide dogs for the blind. She is a former trustee of the George Eastman House and a 1997 George Eastman Award honoree for her support of film preservation. She is also a National Ambassador for the U.S. Fund for UNICEF.

Personal life

Rossellini with David Lynch at the Cannes Film Festival in 1990.

Rossellini holds dual Italian and United States citizenship. She speaks Italian, French and English fluently. She is a naturalized U.S. citizen.

Rossellini married filmmaker Martin Scorsese in 1979. After she and Scorsese divorced in 1982, Rossellini was married to Jon Wiedemann from 1983 to 1986. Rossellini has a daughter, Elettra Rossellini Wiedemann (born 1983), and an adopted son, Roberto (born 1993).

Filmmaker David Lynch and Rossellini were a couple from 1986 to 1991. She was also engaged to actor Gary Oldman from 1994 to 1996.

She has always lived near her fraternal twin sister Isotta Ingrid, while growing up in Rome or residing in New York City.

Filmography

Key

Denotes works that have not yet been released

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1976	A Matter of Time	Sister Pia
1979	The Meadow	Eugenia
1980	In the Pope's Eye	Isabella
1985	White Nights	Darya Greenwood
1986	Blue Velvet	Dorothy Vallens
1987	Tough Guys Don't Dance	Madeleine Regency
	Siesta	Marie
	Dark Eyes	Claudia
1988	Zelly and Me	Mademoiselle Zelly
1989	Cousins	Maria
	Red Riding Hood	Lady Jean
1990	Wild at Heart	Perdita Durango
	Dames Galantes	Victoire
1991	Caccia Alla Vedova	Rosanna
1992	Death Becomes Her	Lisle von Rhuman
1993	The Pickle	Planet Cleveland Woman	Uncredited
	The Innocent	Maria
	Fearless	Laura Klein
1994	Wyatt Earp	Big Nose Kate
	Immortal Beloved	Anne Marie
1995	Croce e delizia	Henriette
1996	Big Night	Gabriella
	The Funeral	Clara
1998	Left Luggage	Mrs. Kalman
	The Impostors	The Veiled Queen
2000	Il Cielo cade	Kathcen
2002	Empire	La Colombiana
	Roger Dodger	Joyce
2003	The Tulse Suitcases, Part 1: The Moab Story	Mme. Moitessier
	The Saddest Music in the World	Lady Helen Port-Huntley
2004	The Tulse Luper Suitcases, Part 2: Vauz to the Sea	Mme. Moitessier
	Heights	Liz
	King of the Corner	Rachel Spivak
2005	La Fiesta Del Chivo	Urania
	My Dad Is 100 Years Old	Herself
2006	The Architect	Julia Walters
	Infamous	Marella Agnelli
2007	The Last Jews of Libya	Narrator
2008	The Accidental Husband	Mrs. Bollenbecker
2009	Two Lovers	Ruth Kraditor
	My Dog Tulip	Ms. Cavenenini	Voice
2010	The Solitude of Prime Numbers	Adele
2011	Keyhole	Haycinth
	Chicken with Plums	Parvine
	Silent Life	Gabriella
	Late Bloomers	Mary
2013	Enemy	Mother
2014	The Zigzag Kid	Lola
2015	Closet Monster	Buffy	Voice
	Joy	Trudy
2018	Incredibles 2	Ambassador Henrietta Selick	Voice
	Vita & Virginia	Lady Sackville
2019	Preludio- Il Film	Voice
2021	Land of Dreams	Jane
	Marcel the Shell with Shoes On	Connie	Voice
2023	Cat Person	Dr. Enid Zabala
	Problemista	Narrator
	La chimera	Flora
2024	Spaceman	Commissioner Tuma
	Conclave	Sister Agnes
TBA	Silent Retreat	Michelle Keaton	Post-production

Television

Video games

Accolades

Also in 1997, Rossellini was awarded The George Eastman Award. In 1998, she received an Honourable Mention at the 48th Berlin International Film Festival for her role in the film Left Luggage. In 2013, she was awarded with the Berlinale Camera at the 63rd Berlin International Film Festival. In 2016, she was granted an honorary doctorate by the Université du Québec à Montréal.