As Cleopatra, queen of Egypt, Taylor presided over one of the most lavish and talked-about films ever made.
Cleopatra (1963) follows the queen’s alliances with Julius Caesar and Mark Antony, played by Richard Burton, against a backdrop of Roman politics and enormous spectacle. The production was famously troubled and expensive, but Taylor’s regal, witty performance remains its centre.
The film won four Academy Awards, and its off-screen romance between Taylor and Burton became legend in itself. As a signature role, Cleopatra is inseparable from Taylor’s own stardom.
Image credit: Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.