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Mark Cerulli interviews actress Catherine Schell about her 60 years in the film industry
By: Mark Cerulli
Published:
2026-02-03
2026-02-03
A few decades later, when her manager Anders Frejdh asked if I would be interested in interviewing her, I almost fell over in my haste to say Yes. During our call, Ms. Schell was every bit as lovely as she was when she was matching wits with the bumbling Inspector Clouseau. She was charming, quick to laugh and still full of enthusiasm for her many films and iconic TV roles.
Originally born in Hungary, young Catherine Schell and her family emigrated to the United States after WWII and the future star enrolled in a Catholic convent school in New York! Fortunately, a cloistered life was not to be as her family moved to Germany and Catherine focused on acting, attending Munich’s prestigious Falconberg School of the Arts. She was spotted by Germany’s biggest talent agent, Steffi Yovanovitch, a very lucky break that terrified the young actress. “Here I am having fun acting as a student and now suddenly I was being asked to be professional... this isn’t going to be fun anymore; it’s going to be work!” Catherine recalls. Doors began opening for the beautiful young woman and in 1964 she had her first starring role in a German prehistoric action/adventure called Lana, Queen of the Amazons with popular German star Anton Differing (Where Eagles Dare).
Other projects followed and five years later she found herself on a Swiss mountaintop with the new James Bond, George Lazenby, for On Her Majesty’s Secret Service (1969). “I had worked before, but it was my introduction to making a big film.” Catherine was surprised by how well she and her fellow “Angels of Death” got along during the shoot. “They were a great group of girls... very friendly.” She was expecting conflicts or jealousy with the other women but, “It was a very pleasant surprise, we all had a wonderful time.”
Catherine is also full of praise for her co-stars, Diana Rigg and George Lazenby. “Oh, George was wonderful... to tell the truth, we (the Bond girls) were surprised by how nice he was and how comfortable he made us feel in his company.” Although Telly Savalas was more reserved, the formidable Diana Rigg was also kind to the young actress. “We’re all much nicer when we’re filming than people think we are!” Catherine says with a laugh.
Helena Ronee, Zaheera, Catherine Schell, Jenny Hanley, Anouska Hempel, Julie Ege, Joanna Lumley, and Mona Chong with George Lazenby during the production of On Her Majesty’s Secret Service in Switzerland. All rights reserved.
A few years later, she had a memorable encounter with George’s predecessor in the Bond role, Sean Connery. She was with a friend at an upscale restaurant when she noticed the star sitting at another table with his back to them. She summoned the waiter and scribbled out a note: “I suppose a f*ck is out of the question?” Connery read it and “I could see his shoulders moving up and down, so he had a good laugh.” Then he walked over to chat. Fortunately, the former 007 didn’t call her bluff. “If he had said yes, I don’t know what I would’ve done. I wasn’t prepared for that!”
Schell’s 00 streak continued when she guest starred on The Persuaders with Roger Moore who she found to be “very sweet”, but she REALLY made an impression with his co-star Tony Curtis. He was watching her on set and complimented her work - Catherine replied in Hungarian, which left the American actor speechless. (Curtis was also of Hungarian descent and grew up speaking only Hungarian until age 9.) In addition to Hungarian, Catherine also speaks German, French and flawless English!
Roger Moore and Catherine Schell in a scene from The Persuaders directed by Leslie Norman. All rights reserved.
One of the perks of being an actress in the 1970s was that many screen icons from Hollywood’s Golden Era were still making films. Catherine found herself working alongside one of them in 1972’s Madame Sin with the legendary Bette Davis. The two-time Oscar winner also had a fierce reputation for being demanding and diva-like. Early on, Catherine was warned, “Be careful with her, remember who she is,” but she found the then-64-year-old to be “totally different to what I expected. She was a real lady. On the set we were fine together. Off the set we never saw each other...”
In 1975 she made the very popular The Return of the Pink Panther opposite Peter Sellers. By then, the brilliant comedic actor had developed a well-deserved reputation for being difficult, even combative on sets but as Catherine remembers, “Peter and I got along very well and I enjoyed his company and he enjoyed mine.” Although United Artists originally wasn’t too interested in the project, the movie turned into a major hit and “rebooted” the comedy franchise, earning over $75M on a $5M budget.
Peter Sellers, Catherine Schell and Christopher Plummer in The Return of the Pink Panther directed by Blake Edwards. All rights reserved.
Of course, Schell is perhaps best known for her recurring role of “Maya” on Space 1999, and during her 24 episodes became close with the series’ stars, Martin Landau and Barbara Bain. As the actress remembers, “Martin and I got along very well... we had so many laughs together. I had more scenes with Martin than Barbara, but she was charming, she was helpful, she was everything an older sister could be.”
Catherine Schell in action as Maya in the sci-fi series Space 1999 directed by Charles Crichton. All rights reserved.
In 1979 she found herself working with Peter Sellers again on The Prisoner of Zenda. Although it was a much smaller part than the Pink Panther film, Sellers embraced her warmly as soon as she walked on set.
Even in her 70s, Catherine was still landing roles, appearing as the “Duchess Valeria” in the BBC/Netflix production of Dracula, which starred Danish actor Claes Bang as the thirsty count.
Catherine Schell in action as Duchess Valeria in the 2020 series Dracula directed by Damon Thomas. Photo by Robert Viglasky. All rights reserved.
Horror auteur Rob Zombie was a fan and cast her in his 2022 big screen adaptation of the beloved American TV series, The Munsters, which was shot in her native Hungary. “I loved that one,” Catherine enthused, reminding me, “they weren’t monsters, they were Munsters!”
Catherine Schell in action as Zoya Krupp in the 2022 film The Munsters directed by Rob Zombie. All rights reserved.
In addition to her enviable screen career, for many years Catherine also ran a lovely guest house in Bonneval, France with her then-husband, British director Bill Hays. Now enjoying life in the French countryside, Catherine looks back fondly on her six decades before the cameras. “I’ve had very few bad experiences making films... for most of it I was pleasantly surprised... I was very, very lucky.”
A hearty “Merci” to Catherine’s friend Annick, who helped arrange this interview.
Interview by Mark Cerulli. Copyright © 2026 From Sweden with Love. All rights reserved.
Editor’s Note:
In 2016, the first part of Catherine Schell’s memoirs was published under the title A Constant Alien. The second part, When God Was Out For Lunch, was published in 2018.
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