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British actor Samantha Eggar, the Oscar-nominated star of films including \u201cThe Collector,\u201d \u201cDoctor Dolittle\u201d and David Cronenberg\u2019s \u201cThe Brood,\u201d has died. She was 86. <\/p>\n
Eggar died Wednesday evening, her daughter Jenna Stern announced Friday on Instagram<\/a>. Stern said her mother died \u201cpeacefully and quietly surrounded by family\u201d and recalled being by the actor\u2019s side \u201ctelling her how much she was loved.\u201d A cause of death was not revealed.<\/p>\n Stern described her mother, who was also a prolific TV actor, as \u201cbeautiful, intelligent, and tough enough to be fascinatingly vulnerable.\u201d<\/p>\n Eggar pursued a film career that spanned the 1960s to the 1990s and was most celebrated for her work in \u201cThe Collector,\u201d directed by William Wyler. The psychological horror movie, based on John Fowles\u2019 novel of the same name, featured Eggar as the youthful art student abducted by a reclusive young man portrayed by Terence Stamp.<\/a> For the thriller, Eggar collected the Cannes Film Festival\u2018s actress prize plus a Golden Globe Award and an Academy Award nomination.<\/p>\n After the film\u2019s release, Eggar secured numerous roles, notably in the 1967 iteration of \u201cDoctor Dolittle\u201d opposite Rex Harrison, \u201cWalk, Don\u2019t Run\u201d with Cary Grant, \u201cThe Molly Maguires\u201d and \u201cThe Walking Stick.\u201d<\/p>\n One of Eggar\u2019s most memorable roles was in Cronenberg\u2019s \u201cThe Brood,\u201d released in 1979. She starred as Nola Carveth, a mental patient receiving radical psychotherapy treatment amid a series of mysterious murders. The film also starred Oliver Reed and Art Hindle. <\/p>\n Throughout her film career, Eggar also appeared in scores of television series ranging from \u201cAnna and the King\u201d (opposite \u201cThe King and I\u201d star Yul Brynner), \u201cStarsky & Hutch,\u201d \u201cThe Love Boat\u201d and \u201cStar Trek: The Next Generation.\u201d Her more substantial TV roles included a voice-acting part in the animated series \u201cThe Legend of Prince Valiant,\u201d which ran for two seasons, and a stint as Charlotte Devane on the daytime drama \u201cAll My Children.\u201d<\/p>\n The actor also lent her voice as Hera in Disney\u2019s \u201cHercules,\u201d then reprised the role in the animated classic\u2019s spinoff video game and TV series. <\/p>\n Eggar was born March 5, 1939, in Hampstead, London. Her father was a British Army brigadier and her mother served as an ambulance driver during World War II. She studied art and fashion at the Thanet School of Art and pursed acting at the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art, according to a statement her daughter shared. Later in life, Eggar returned to the stage, performing \u201cThe Lonely Road\u201d at the Old Vic and \u201cThe Seagull\u201d at Oxford Playhouse and Theatre Royal, Bath. <\/p>\n She also brought her talents to radio, lending her voice to more than 40 productions for the California Artists Radio Theatre. Eggar was an animal enthusiast and supporter of several environment and health causes. <\/p>\n \u201cSamantha Eggar will be remembered not only for her unforgettable performances but for her generosity, wit, and love of life,\u201d the statement said. <\/p>\n Eggar is survived by her children Nicolas and Jenna, grandchildren Isabel, Charlie and Calla; and sisters Margaret Barron, Toni Maricic, and Vivien Thursby.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n