Last Tango in Paris Star Maria Schneider Dead at 58; Revisit One of Her Classic Scenes [NSFW]

Sad news: Maria Schneider, the French actress catapulted to international fame in Bernardo Bertolucci's scandalous 1972 film Last Tango in Paris before tumbling into a troubled life of depression and addiction, has died in Paris. She was 58 and, according to reports, had waged a long battle with cancer. Schneider had largely withdrawn from the spotlight since the '70s, when she also starred opposite Jack Nicholson in Michelangelo Antonioni's 1975 classic The Passenger; she attributed much of the turbulence of her later decades to regret and resentment over her treatment as a sex symbol (not to mention her alleged mishandling in one of Tango's most notorious scenes involving Brando and a generous helping of butter).

But it wasn't all bad in Tango. How about this flashback to one of her character's trysts with Paul (Brando), the American businessman with whom she embarks on a torrid, doomed love affair? It's vaguely NSFW, but I'd actually take more care with the speakers than with the monitor. Headphones up! And RIP, Ms. Schneider.