---
name: "Vanessa Redgrave"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/vanessa-redgrave"
fi1m_id: "vanessa-redgrave"
imdb_id: "nm0000603"
tmdb_id: 13333
wikidata_id: "Q347879"
roles: ["Actor"]
born: "30 January 1937"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 12
average_fi1m_score: 75
average_as: "actor"
average_over: 12
updated: "2026-10-24T04:00:15.630098+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Vanessa Redgrave

## Identity

Vanessa Redgrave

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/person/vanessa-redgrave
- **Type:** Person
- **Fi1m ID:** vanessa-redgrave
- **IMDb ID:** nm0000603
- **TMDB ID:** 13333
- **Wikidata ID:** Q347879
- **Same entity:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vanessa_Redgrave, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q347879, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000603/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/13333

Actor. Born 30 January 1937 in Greenwich, London, England, UK.

## Details

- **Work:** Actor
- **Born:** 30 January 1937, Greenwich, London, England, UK
- **Active:** 1966–2017
- **Also known as:** Vanessa Redgreiv, Dame Vanessa Redgrave
- **Academy Awards:** 1 Oscar (1 won · 5 nominated)
- **Average Fi1m score:** 75, as actor, over 12 titles
- **Fi1m score by decade:** 1960s 78 (2), 1970s 60 (1), 1990s 82 (2), 2000s 78 (2), 2010s 74 (5)
- **Fi1m against the critics:** 75 to 70 across 12 titles
- **Score spread:** 6 at 80+, 6 at 60–79, 0 under 60
- **Lead roles:** 3 of 10 acting credits billed first or second
- **Genres:** Drama 11, Romance 4, Thriller 4, History 2, Action 1, Adventure 1
- **Screen time:** 22 hours of reviewed films
- **Box office:** $885m across 10 films with figures
- **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vanessa_Redgrave, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q347879, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000603/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/13333

## Streaming the US now

- **Amazon Prime Video:** [*Howards End*](https://film.one/film/howards-end.md) (84), [*Foxcatcher*](https://film.one/film/foxcatcher.md) (82), [*Coriolanus*](https://film.one/film/coriolanus.md) (74)
- **Apple TV:** [*Mission: Impossible*](https://film.one/film/mission-impossible.md) (81)
- **Netflix:** [*Call the Midwife*](https://film.one/tv/call-the-midwife.md) (80)

For United States; add `?region=XX` for another country.

## Fi1m on Vanessa Redgrave

> Vanessa Redgrave gives quiet characters an authority that does not depend on winning the conversation. We recommend her patient work with James Ivory, and the amused ease that makes her such welcome company in *Mission: Impossible*.

In *Howards End* (1992), Vanessa Redgrave's Ruth Wilcox makes us attend to someone who is not doing all the talking. Anthony Hopkins gives Henry J. Wilcox the assurance of a man who expects his opinions to pass unchallenged; Redgrave finds authority without that insistence. We were moved by the quietness of her performance, because Ruth continues to matter among people so much more practised at putting their case. There is no need for her to compete with their fluency.

Her screen prominence came in the 1960s, with *Blow-Up* (1966) and the leading role in *Isadora* (1968). The physical and vocal commitment of *Isadora* gives some measure of how much she later chooses to hold back. Character parts in Merchant Ivory films, followed by supporting work as different as *Mission: Impossible* (1996) and *Atonement* (2007), gave her smaller spaces to work in. We would not treat those smaller roles as a decline: Ruth is reason enough to keep watching *Howards End*.

James Ivory gets particularly good work from her when he lets the characters consider one another, with Emma Thompson also rewarding that patience. He is less persuasive when the screenplay hurries from one relationship to the next, and the performances cannot make every connection convincing. Richard Robbins's score helps the film feel steadier than its editing does; the actors have already earned the feeling that the music supports. We recommend it warmly, with the warning that the hurried passages are frustrating when the acting gives us so much reason to linger.

Brian De Palma puts her to quite different use in *Mission: Impossible*, where she brings amusement to a film full of people concentrating hard. Tom Cruise makes the gadgets and disguises look like practical tools, while Redgrave appears to find the whole business rather enjoyable. That change of manner is a substantial pleasure, even when the screenplay makes the job needlessly difficult to follow. Her performance looks unforced, and we never feel that she is asking for special attention. Try *Mission: Impossible* before deciding that Redgrave is only for serious occasions.

## Biography

Vanessa Redgrave is an English actress. She trained at the Central School of Speech and Drama in London and made her London stage debut in 1958. She rose to prominence in 1961 as Rosalind in *As You Like It* with the Royal Shakespeare Company.

On screen, Redgrave has appeared in numerous films including *Blow-Up* (1966), *Howards End* (1992) as Ruth Wilcox, *Mission: Impossible* (1996) as Max, and *Atonement* (2007). She won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for *Julia* (1977) and received further Oscar nominations for *Morgan: A Suitable Case for Treatment* (1966), *Isadora* (1968), *Mary, Queen of Scots* (1971), *The Bostonians* (1984) and *Howards End*. She has also won a Tony Award and an Olivier Award for stage work.

Redgrave comes from a family of actors: she is the daughter of Sir Michael Redgrave and Rachel Kempson, sister of Lynn Redgrave and Corin Redgrave, and mother of Natasha Richardson and Joely Richardson. Her niece Jemma Redgrave played her on-screen daughter in *Howards End*.

*Sources: imdb.com, en.wikipedia.org, cnn.com, themoviedb.org.*

## On Fi1m (12)

- *Film Stars Don't Die in Liverpool* (2017), Fi1m 66, as Jeanne McDougall — [page](https://film.one/film/film-stars-dont-die-in-liverpool.md)
- *Foxcatcher* (2014), Fi1m 82, as Jean du Pont — [page](https://film.one/film/foxcatcher.md)
- *The Butler* (2013), Fi1m 66, as Annabeth Westfall — [page](https://film.one/film/the-butler.md)
- *Call the Midwife* (2012), Fi1m 80, as Jennifer Worth (voice) — [page](https://film.one/tv/call-the-midwife.md)
- *Coriolanus* (2011), Fi1m 74, as Volumnia — [page](https://film.one/film/coriolanus.md)
- *Atonement* (2007), Fi1m 83, as Briony Tallis (Age 77) — [page](https://film.one/film/atonement.md)
- *Venus* (2006), Fi1m 72, as Valerie — [page](https://film.one/film/venus.md)
- *Mission: Impossible* (1996), Fi1m 81, as Max — [page](https://film.one/film/mission-impossible.md)
- *Howards End* (1992), Fi1m 84, as Ruth Wilcox — [page](https://film.one/film/howards-end.md)
- *Julia* (1977), Fi1m 60, as Julia — [page](https://film.one/film/julia.md)
- *A Man for All Seasons* (1966), Fi1m 81, as Anne Boleyn — [page](https://film.one/film/a-man-for-all-seasons.md)
- *Blow-Up* (1966), Fi1m 74, as Jane — [page](https://film.one/film/blow-up.md)

## Complete filmography (160)

Every credit, newest first. Titles without a page can be requested for review on the HTML page.

- *The Crystal Planet* (2026), as The Matriarch (voice)
- *Cold Storage* (2026), as Mary Rooney
- *The Estate* (2025), as Executive Producer
- *On Our Way* (2023), Actor
- *The Lost Girls* (2022), as Great Nana
- *Alice, Through the Looking* (2021), as Narrator
- *Finding You* (2021), as Cathleen Sweeney
- *Entree Des Artists* (2020), as Henry's Grandmother
- *Mrs Lowry & Son* (2019), as Elizabeth Lowry
- *Georgetown* (2019), as Elsa Brecht
- *The Aspern Papers* (2019), as Juliana Bordereau
- *Film Stars Don't Die in Liverpool* (2017), as Jeanne McDougall — Fi1m 66, [page](https://film.one/film/film-stars-dont-die-in-liverpool.md)
- *Sea Sorrow* (2017), Director, Screenplay
- *Man in an Orange Shirt* (2017), series, as Flora Berryman
- *The Secret Scripture* (2017), as Old Roseanne McNulty
- *Almeida Theatre Live: Richard III* (2016), as Queen Margaret
- *The Go-Between* (2015), as Older Marian
- *Foxcatcher* (2014), as Jean du Pont — Fi1m 82, [page](https://film.one/film/foxcatcher.md)
- *The Wound and the Gift* (2014), Actor
- *Black Box* (2014), series, as Dr. Hartramph
- *The Thirteenth Tale* (2013), as Vida Winter
- *The Butler* (2013), as Annabeth Westfall — Fi1m 66, [page](https://film.one/film/the-butler.md)
- *The Last Will and Testament of Rosalind Leigh* (2012), as Rosalind Leigh
- *Last Will. & Testament* (2012), Actor
- *Song for Marion* (2012), as Marion
- *Political Animals* (2012), series, as Diane Nash
- *Playhouse Presents* (2012), series, as Elderly Woman
- *Call the Midwife* (2012), series, as Jennifer Worth (voice) — Fi1m 80, [page](https://film.one/tv/call-the-midwife.md)
- *Anonymous* (2011), as Queen Elizabeth I
- *Cars 2* (2011), as The Queen / Mama Topolino (voice)
- *Coriolanus* (2011), as Volumnia — Fi1m 74, [page](https://film.one/film/coriolanus.md)
- *Robinson in Ruins* (2010), as Narrator
- *Miral* (2010), as Bertha Spafford
- *The Whistleblower* (2010), as Madeleine Rees
- *Letters to Juliet* (2010), as Claire
- *The Day of the Triffids* (2009), series, as Durrant
- *God, Smell and Her* (2009), Actor
- *Ein Job* (2008), as Hannah Silbergrau
- *Restraint* (2008), as Sky News Reader #2
- *How About You...* (2007), as Georgia Platts
- *The Shell Seekers* (2007), as Penelope Keeling
- *The Riddle* (2007), as Roberta Elliot
- *Evening* (2007), as Ann Lord
- *Atonement* (2007), as Briony Tallis (Age 77) — Fi1m 83, [page](https://film.one/film/atonement.md)
- *Dealing and Wheeling in Small Arms* (2007), as Narrator
- *Venus* (2006), as Valerie — Fi1m 72, [page](https://film.one/film/venus.md)
- *The Thief Lord* (2006), as Sister Antonia
- *The White Countess* (2005), as Princess Vera Belinskya
- *The Keeper: The Legend of Omar Khayyam* (2005), as Miss Sangorski
- *Short Order* (2005), as Marianne
- *The Fever* (2004), as The woman · Executive Producer
- *Good Boy!* (2003), as The Greater Dane (voice)
- *Byron* (2003), as Lady Melbourne
- *Nip/Tuck* (2003), series, as Dr.Erica Noughton, Dr. Erica Noughton — Fi1m 70, [page](https://film.one/tv/nip-tuck.md)
- *Byron* (2003), series, as Lady Melbourne
- *The Locket* (2002), as Esther Huish
- *Crime and Punishment* (2002), as Rodion's mother
- *The Gathering Storm* (2002), as Clemmie Churchill
- *Jack and the Beanstalk: The Real Story* (2001), series, as Countess Wilhelmina
- *Escape to Life: The Erika and Klaus Mann Story* (2001), as (voice)
- *The Pledge* (2001), as Annalise Hansen
- *A Rumor of Angels* (2000), as Maddy Bennett
- *The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Love's Sweet Song* (2000), as Vicky's Mother
- *Uninvited* (2000), as Mrs. Rutterburn
- *Mirka* (2000), as Kalsan
- *If These Walls Could Talk 2* (2000), as Edith Tree
- *1961* (2000), as Edith Tree
- *Exile in Buyukada* (2000), as Narrator
- *Girl, Interrupted* (1999), as Dr. Wick
- *Cradle Will Rock* (1999), as Countess Constance La Grave
- *Lulu on the Bridge* (1998), as Catherine Moore
- *Deep Impact* (1998), as Robin Lerner
- *Déjà Vu* (1998), as Skelly
- *Bella Mafia* (1997), as Graziella Luciano
- *Wilde* (1997), as Lady Speranza Wilde
- *Mrs. Dalloway* (1997), as Mrs. Clarissa Dalloway
- *Smilla's Sense of Snow* (1997), as Elsa Lübing
- *The Willows in Winter* (1996), as Grandmother / Narrator
- *Two Mothers for Zachary* (1996), as Nancy Shaffell
- *Mission: Impossible* (1996), as Max — Fi1m 81, [page](https://film.one/film/mission-impossible.md)
- *The Wind in the Willows* (1995), as Grandmother / Narrator (voice)
- *Down Came a Blackbird* (1995), as Anna Lenke
- *A Month by the Lake* (1995), as Miss Bentley
- *Little Odessa* (1994), as Irina Shapira
- *Great Moments in Aviation* (1994), as Dr. Angela Bead
- *Sparrow* (1994), as Suor Agata
- *They* (1993), as Florence Latimer
- *The House of the Spirits* (1993), as Nivea del Valle
- *Mother's Boys* (1993), as Lydia
- *A Wall of Silence* (1993), as Kate Benson
- *Howards End* (1992), as Ruth Wilcox — Fi1m 84, [page](https://film.one/film/howards-end.md)
- *The Ballad of the Sad Cafe* (1991), as Miss Amelia
- *Young Catherine* (1991), series, as Empress Elizabeth
- *What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?* (1991), as Blanche Hudson
- *Breath of Life* (1990), as Suor Crocifissa
- *Orpheus Descending* (1990), as Lady Torrance
- *Stalin's Funeral* (1990), as English journalist
- *Romeo.Juliet* (1990), as Mother Capulet (voice)
- *A Man for All Seasons* (1988), as Lady Alice More
- *Consuming Passions* (1988), as Mrs. Garza
- *Comrades* (1987), as Mrs. Carlyle
- *Prick Up Your Ears* (1987), as Peggy Ramsay
- *Peter the Great* (1986), series, as Sophia
- *Second Serve* (1986), as Renee Richards
- *Wetherby* (1985), as Jean Travers
- *Steaming* (1985), as Nancy
- *Three Sovereigns for Sarah* (1985), as Sarah Cloyce
- *Screen Two* (1985), series, as Dr. Angela Bead
- *Three Sovereigns for Sarah* (1985), series, as Sarah Cloyce
- *Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs* (1984), as The Evil Queen
- *The Bostonians* (1984), as Olive Chancellor
- *Sing Sing* (1983), as la Regina
- *Wagner* (1983), series, as Cosima von Bulow
- *Faerie Tale Theatre* (1982), series, as The Evil Queen
- *My Body, My Child* (1982), as Leenie Cabrezi
- *American Playhouse* (1982), series, as Sarah Cloyce
- *Occupied Palestine* (1981), Producer
- *Playing for Time* (1980), as Fania Fenelon
- *The Fifth War* (1980), Actor
- *Bear Island* (1979), as Heddi Lindquist
- *Yanks* (1979), as Helen
- *Agatha* (1979), as Agatha Christie
- *Julia* (1977), as Julia — Fi1m 60, [page](https://film.one/film/julia.md)
- *The Palestinian* (1977), Producer
- *The Seven-Per-Cent Solution* (1976), as Lola Deveraux
- *Out of Season* (1975), as Ann
- *Murder on the Orient Express* (1974), as Mary Debenham
- *A Picture of Katherine Mansfield* (1973), series, as Katherine Mansfield
- *Right to Work March* (1972), Actor
- *Mary, Queen of Scots* (1971), as Mary, Queen of Scots
- *Vacation* (1971), as Immacolata Meneghelli
- *The Devils* (1971), as Sister Jeanne des Anges
- *The Trojan Women* (1971), as Andromache
- *Dropout* (1970), as Mary
- *The Body* (1970), as Narrator
- *No Arks* (1969), as Narrator
- *Oh! What a Lovely War* (1969), as Sylvia Pankhurst
- *The Sea Gull* (1968), as Nina
- *A Quiet Place in the Country* (1968), as Flavia
- *Isadora* (1968), as Isadora Duncan
- *Red and Blue* (1968), as Jacky
- *The Charge of the Light Brigade* (1968), as Mrs Clarissa Morris
- *Red, White, and Zero* (1968), as Jacky
- *Camelot* (1967), as Guenevere
- *One Pair of Eyes* (1967), series, Actor
- *The Sailor from Gibraltar* (1967), as Sheila
- *Blow-Up* (1966), as Jane — Fi1m 74, [page](https://film.one/film/blow-up.md)
- *A Man for All Seasons* (1966), as Anne Boleyn — Fi1m 81, [page](https://film.one/film/a-man-for-all-seasons.md)
- *Morgan: A Suitable Case for Treatment* (1966), as Leonie Delt
- *Maggie* (1964), as Maggie
- *As You Like It* (1963), as Rosalind
- *Circus at Clopton Hall* (1961), as Narrator
- *Sunday-Night Play* (1960), series, as Monica Claverton-Ferry
- *Behind the Mask* (1958), as Pamela Benson-Gray
- *Theatre Night* (1957), series, as Caroline Lester
- *Armchair Theatre* (1956), series, as Sally
- *Hallmark Hall of Fame* (1951), series, as Esther Huish
- *The Turning Door*, as (voice)
- *All That I Am*, Actor
- *The Boy at the Back of the Class*, as Queen

## Gallery

- ![Vanessa Redgrave](https://film.one/media/person/80462/gallery-5e422c61e2df.jpg) Vanessa Redgrave — Frankie Fouganthin, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/67/Vanessa_Redgrave_2017.jpg/1280px-Vanessa_Redgrave_2017.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Vanessa Redgrave in Venice, 64th Mostra Internazionale d’Arte Cinematografica, opening day. She took part in Joe Wright's "Atonement". (2007)](https://film.one/media/person/80462/gallery-7b2792d2322c.jpg) Vanessa Redgrave in Venice, 64th Mostra Internazionale d’Arte Cinematografica, opening day. She took part in Joe Wright's "Atonement". (2007) — Alberto Vaccaro, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/17/Funny_Vanessa_%281934285528%29.jpg/1280px-Funny_Vanessa_%281934285528%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Patti LuPone, Vanessa Redgrave. photo by Rob Rich © 2011 robwayne1@aol.com 516-676-3939](https://film.one/media/person/80462/gallery-00c2f9dd6933.jpg) Patti LuPone, Vanessa Redgrave. photo by Rob Rich © 2011 robwayne1@aol.com 516-676-3939 — Drama League from USA, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a9/Patti_LuPone_and_Vanessa_Redgrave.jpg/1280px-Patti_LuPone_and_Vanessa_Redgrave.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Left to right, Jemma, Corin, Lynn, and Vanessa Redgrave, English actors, holding hands to bow in unison after reading Poems from Guantánamo: The Detainees Speak (2011)](https://film.one/media/person/80462/gallery-12eaa7611917.jpg) Left to right, Jemma, Corin, Lynn, and Vanessa Redgrave, English actors, holding hands to bow in unison after reading Poems from Guantánamo: The Detainees Speak (2011) — Culture Project, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b7/Redgrave_family_bowing_after_Poems_from_Guant%C3%A1namo.jpg/1280px-Redgrave_family_bowing_after_Poems_from_Guant%C3%A1namo.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Vanessa Redgrave](https://film.one/media/person/80462/gallery-50b7607f0d94.jpg) Vanessa Redgrave — Image via TMDB
- ![Vanessa Redgrave](https://film.one/media/person/80462/gallery-4a45c166d31f.jpg) Vanessa Redgrave — Image via TMDB
- ![Vanessa Redgrave](https://film.one/media/person/80462/gallery-c5197cf3ea09.jpg) Vanessa Redgrave — Image via TMDB
- ![VanRedgrveRoseKng090219-10 (2019)](https://film.one/media/person/80462/gallery-149eb65da382.jpg) VanRedgrveRoseKng090219-10 (2019) — Raph_PH, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0e/VanRedgrveRoseKng090219-10_%2846997098682%29.jpg/1280px-VanRedgrveRoseKng090219-10_%2846997098682%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![VanRedgrveRoseKng090219-11 (2019)](https://film.one/media/person/80462/gallery-02f7d5cb4ec6.jpg) VanRedgrveRoseKng090219-11 (2019) — Raph_PH, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/ab/VanRedgrveRoseKng090219-11_%2846997097822%29.jpg/1280px-VanRedgrveRoseKng090219-11_%2846997097822%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Vanessa Redgrave](https://film.one/media/person/80462/gallery-312b4c992319.jpg) Vanessa Redgrave — Image via TMDB
- ![Vanessa Redgrave](https://film.one/media/person/80462/gallery-684e5bcce41c.jpg) Vanessa Redgrave — Image via TMDB
- ![Vanessa Redgrave](https://film.one/media/person/80462/gallery-0535c40e8efa.jpg) Vanessa Redgrave — Image via TMDB

## Awards

### Academy Awards — 1 won, 5 nominated

- 1993: Best Supporting Actress (nominated), for *Howards End*
- 1985: Best Actress (nominated), for *The Bostonians*
- 1978: Best Supporting Actress (won), for *Julia*
- 1972: Best Actress (nominated), for *Mary, Queen of Scots*
- 1969: Best Actress (nominated), for *Isadora*
- 1967: Best Actress (nominated), for *Morgan - A Suitable Case for Treatment*

### BAFTA Film Awards — 1 won

- 2010: BAFTA Fellowship (won)

### Golden Globes — 2 won

- 2001: Best Supporting Actress – Series, Miniseries or Television Film (won), for *If These Walls Could Talk 2*
- 1978: Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture (won), for *Julia*

### Primetime Emmy Awards — 2 won

- 2000: Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie (won), for *If These Walls Could Talk 2*
- 1981: Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie (won), for *Playing for Time*

### Cannes Film Festival — 2 won

- 1969: Best Actress (won), for *Isadora*
- 1966: Best Actress (won), for *Morgan - A Suitable Case for Treatment*

### Other awards — 5 won, 2 nominated

- European Film Academy Lifetime Achievement Award 2023: European Film Academy Lifetime Achievement Award (won)
- Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire 2022: Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (won)
- Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play 2011: Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play (nominated)
- Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play 2007: Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play (nominated)
- Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play 2003: Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play (won), for *Long Day's Journey into Night*
- Donostia Award 1999: Donostia Award (won)
- Commander of the Order of the British Empire 1967: Commander of the Order of the British Empire (won)

*From Wikidata, which records wins more completely than nominations.*

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© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/vanessa-redgrave