Luca Giorgio Barbareschi (born July 28, 1956) is an Uruguayan-born Italian actor, filmmaker, businessman, and politician. He represented Sardinia in the Chamber of Deputies between 2008 and 2014.

Luca Barbareschi
Barbareschi in 2008
Member of the Chamber of Deputies
In office
29 April 2008 – 4 March 2014
ConstituencySardinia
Personal details
Born (1956-07-28) 28 July 1956 (age 68)
Montevideo, Uruguay
Political partyThe People of Freedom (2008–10)
Future and Freedom (2010–2011)
Occupation
  • Politician
  • television presenter
  • actor

Early life

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Barbareschi was born in Montevideo, Uruguay to Italian parents Francesco Saverio, an engineer and former World War II partisan from Milan, and Maria Antonietta Hirsch, an economist of Ashkenazi Jewish descent.[1] His parents divorced when he was six, and Barbareschi moved to Milan.

Acting career

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Barbareschi studied acting with Alessandro Fersen, and began his professional career in 1970 as an assistant director to Virginio Puecher at the Teatro di Verona. He spent a year as an assistant director at the Lyric Opera of Chicago, then to Frank Corsaro at the Metropolitan Opera in New York City. He subsequently enrolled in the Actors Studio, where he studied for four years.

He was one of four actors whom the Italian police believed had been murdered in the making of the 1980 horror film Cannibal Holocaust, where he also abused and killed a young piglet. So realistic was the film that shortly after it was released, its director, Ruggero Deodato was arrested on suspicions of murder. The actors had signed contracts to stay out of the media for a year in order to fuel rumors that the film was a snuff movie. The court was only convinced that they were alive when the contracts were canceled, and the actors appeared on a television show as proof.[2][3]

Political career

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In 2008, he was elected as a Member of the Italian Parliament in the Chamber of Deputies with Silvio Berlusconi's centre-right party, The People of Freedom. In 2010, he joined, with the other 32 deputies and 10 senators, the Gianfranco Fini's new party Future and Freedom. He left parliament in 2013.

Controversies

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On June 11, 2012, during an interview for the program Le Iene, Barbareschi attacked journalist Filippo Roma and his cameraman, and stole Roma's cellphone.[4] The police rushed to the scene but did not make any arrests. Roma filed a complaint for theft, but according to some witnesses, his phone, never returned, was destroyed by Barbareschi. A similar incident repeated in Filicudi in August, when Barbareschi again battered Roma.

Barbareschi was accused of homophobia during April 30, 2022 speech in Sutri, in which he said "the homosexual mafia is the problem." He later claimed the comments were taken out of context and were intended as a joke, and that he himself had had homosexual experiences.[5][6][7][8]

Barbareschi has defended director Roman Polanski, with whom he has worked several times as a producer, against his sexual abuse conviction, claiming the case against him is due to "political correctness."[9][10]

Personal life

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Marriages and relationships

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Barbareschi has been married twice. With his first wife, Patrizia Fachini, he had three daughters: Beatrice, Eleonora and Angelica. He married his second wife, Elena Monorchio, the daughter of Ministry of Economy and Finance economist Andrea Monorchio, on 20 June 2015. They have two children, Maddalena (b. 2010) and Francesco Saverio (b. 2012).

Barbareschi was previously in a seven-year long relationship with actress Lucrezia Lante della Rovere.

Religion

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Barbareschi practices Judaism.[1]

Filmography

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Cinema

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Luca Barbareschi with Ezio Greggio

Television

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Theatre

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  • 2004 – Amadeus
  • 2006 – Il Sogno del Principe di Salina, l'Ultimo Gattopardo

References

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  1. ^ a b Gramola, Gianfranco (2 December 2015). "Luca Barbareschi" (in Italian). Archived from the original on 15 May 2021. Retrieved 13 December 2020. Io sono ebreo e seguo la religione ebraica. [I'm a Jew and I follow Judaism.]
  2. ^ Ruggero Deodato (interviewee), In the Jungle: The Making of Cannibal Holocaust, Alan Young Pictures, Italy, 2003.
  3. ^ Ruggero Deodato, interview with Sage Stallone and Bob Murawski, Cult-Con 2000, Cannibal Holocaust DVD Commentary, Tarrytown, New York, 2000.
  4. ^ "Barbareschi-Iene, atto secondo Calcio, schiaffi e pugni dell'onorevole". Archived from the original on 7 November 2021. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
  5. ^ "Barbareschi interviene alla presentazione della mostra di Sgarbi con insulti ai gay e attacchi all'inclusività. Lazio Pride: "Inaccettabile, si scusi"". Il Fatto Quotidiano (in Italian). 30 April 2022. Retrieved 26 March 2024.
  6. ^ Redazione (30 April 2022). "Barbareschi dopo le polemiche: «La mia frase sugli omosessuali? Era una battuta, è stata strumentalizzata»". Open (in Italian). Retrieved 26 March 2024.
  7. ^ "Cinema, Barbareschi: «Il problema è la mafia degli omosessuali. L'inclusività è stupida». Il Lazio Pride: «Parole inaccettabili» - Corriere Tv". video.corriere.it (in Italian). Retrieved 26 March 2024.
  8. ^ "Luca Barbareschi: "Le attrici denunciano le molestie per pubblicità. Sono stato molestato, il problema è più grande"". HuffPost Italia (in Italian). 9 May 2023. Retrieved 26 March 2024.
  9. ^ Kaloi, Stephanie (2 September 2023). "Roman Polanski's Producer Defends Working With Him: 'I Know the Real Story'". TheWrap. Retrieved 26 March 2024.
  10. ^ Vivarelli, Nick (2 September 2023). "'Viva Polanski!' Says Roman Polanski's Producer After Lamenting That 'The Palace' May Not Be Released in France". Variety. Retrieved 26 March 2024.
  11. ^ a b Keslassy, Elsa (25 April 2022). "Roman Polanski's 'The Palace' Adds 'Fantastic Beasts' Actor Oliver Masucci, Fanny Ardant (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Archived from the original on 25 April 2022. Retrieved 25 April 2022.
  12. ^ "Nero Wolfe torna con Pannofino e trasloca a Roma - Photostory Spettacolo - ANSA.it". Archived from the original on 22 December 2017. Retrieved 19 December 2017.
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