Franco Nero in Django Unchained, 1966 © to the owners
He was memorable as Django in 1966 and then again in 2012 in Django Unchained by Quentin Tarantino, he played a variety of roles, from Abel in The Bible: In The Beginning in 1966 to King Mathias II of Hungary in the Eastern European film Bathory: Countess of Blood in 2008, he worked alongside Anthony Quinn, Bruce Willis, Leonardo DiCaprio and Keanu Reeves: in a career spanning over 60 years, Italian actor Franco Nero has starred in more than 250 films in 30 countries – and counting.
Franco Nero in 1964 © to the owners
Since being picked at age 25 in 1966 by multi-award-winning director John Huston for his biblical blockbuster, Franco Nero has been making a name for himself in Hollywood ever since; the following year, he famously starred in the American musical fantasy drama Camelot, which earned him a Golden Globe nomination for New Star of the Year; on that movie’s set, he also met his future wife, Academy Award and Golden Globe-winning English actress Vanessa Redgrave, starring as Guenevere.
Franco Nero and Vanessa Redgrave in Camelot, 1967 © to the owners
He gained further international recognition over the following decades thanks to the plethora of parts and characthers he experimented with, including Saint Augustine, Rudolph Valentino and Gianni Versace; he took part in Die Hard 2, John Wick 2 and Letter to Juliet, he voiced Uncle Topolino in Cars 2 and also appeared in an episode of Law & Order Special Victims Unit; in 1992, he was even asked to portray himself in The Player by New Hollywood leading auteur Robert Altman.
Franco Nero in Django Unchained, 2012 © to the owners
Starting in 2005, Franco Nero also made a few films of his own and, in 2022, he was the director of The Man Who Drew God, the film that marked the return to screens of two-time Academy Award-winning Kevin Spacey after a multi-year career hiatus, on the account that he considers him “one of the greatest actors of all time”, and he believes that everyone deserves a second chance, “whether they have made mistakes or not”, as he publicily stated.
Franco Nero was inducted into the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2026 and presented with a special award at the Filming Italy Los Angeles festival, which offered the opportunity to set up this interview about his remarkable film career.
Franco, what achievements are you most proud of, at this stage in your career?
Franco Nero’s induction into The Hollywood Walk of Fame by Daniele Venturelli ©
I am proud of so many of my professional achievements. As I said in my acceptance speech when I was awarded a star into the Hollywood Walk of Fame, when I first came to the United States some 60 years ago to make a wonderful film called Camelot, which is a great musical, I would always walk along the Walk of Fame wondering that if I also were to get a star one day, that would be such a great dream coming true. And so as I say, dreams are a beautiful thing, and they’re free of charge; they don’t cost a thing. And so this dream of mine eventually came true, and here we are!
Is your work perceived differently abroad than in Italy?
Well, I used to make a lot of films in Italy, but then, fortunately, I am privileged to receive a lot of offers from other countries as well; since I’m fortunate enough to be known all over the world, in every country in the world, I am constantly receiving acting offers from abroad, and I take on lots of international jobs.
How do you decide what to turn down? What are the main criteria to say no?
The very first thing is the movie script, the screenplay. I read the screenplay, and based on that, I already get a feeling of what the film might be like; I often find myself moved by the beautiful sentiments behind a story, while other times I read some kind of “cold” scripts, and I decide not to take part in that film. And then, of course, I’m interested in learning about the director and finding out whether they are a good director. I have often helped many young directors debut in the industry; I like taking risks, and I am happy with that because I really, really enjoy helping young people.
Have the years abroad affected your identity? It is often said that multilingual people develop different brains; is your Italian brain any different from your English brain?
Franco Nero awarded at the Filming Italy Los Angeles © to the owners
Well, you know, every country has its own way of filming and making films, each has its own character, and you need to be unpretentious and embrace the mentality, the personality of other countries; then you’re happy. Because you know, if you have, for example, I don’t know, some Italian spaghetti cooked in a certain way in Italy, and you go abroad, and you want and you expect to enjoy the same spaghetti recipe, and then it’s not the same, then you are going to complain. So that’s what my attitude has always been: I have always remained humble and open and have accepted the mentality and the differences of the countries where I went to work, both in terms of filmmaking and from a culinary standpoint!
How do you feel when you bump into one of your films on television?
I enjoy watching my films, but I don’t even watch them very often at home because I’m busy. I like watching films on the big screen instead. But movie theatres have almost died since the arrival of streaming platforms, all these big platforms that make films for the small screen. Instead, films should be seen on the big screen, in a large theatre, in the dark, so that in the end you can properly decide whether you liked them or not. When you watch films on the small screen, at home, maybe you are about to eat dinner, or a phone call comes in, and you’re always disturbed or distracted one way or another, so you cannot really appreciate all the work that’s been done.
Unless stated otherwise, pictures provided are from Franco Nero’s collection or from the Filming Italy – Los Angeles’s team © belongs to their respective owners