Vanessa Redgrave

Actress Vanessa Redgrave attends the 2007 Tony Awards nominees press reception at the Marriott Marquis in New York on May 16, 2007. The 70-year-old award-winning actress is nominated for a Tony for her performance in "The Year of Magical Thinking." Redgrave won a Tony in 2003 for "Long Day's Journey Into Night."

Actress Vanessa Redgrave takes a bow during the curtain call on the opening-night performance of the play "The Year of Magical Thinking," in New York on March 29, 2007. Redgrave recieved a Tony nomination for her portrayal of Joan Didion, who wrote the script based on her memoir.

Vanessa Redgrave is joined by her family after the opening night of her new play, "The Year Of Magical Thinking," at the Booth Theater in New York on March 29, 2007. From left are granddaughter Daisy Bevan, daughter Joely Richardson, son Carlo Gabriel Nero, and sister Lynn Redgrave.

Arts and Leisure Weekend — GETTY IMAGES/Peter Kramer

Actress Vanessa Redgrave makes an appearance at the CUNY Graduate Center to speak at The New York Times Art and Leisure Weekend on Jan. 5, 2007.

British actress Vanessa Redgrave, a goodwill ambassador for UNICEF, listens on Feb. 15, 2006, during a press conference in Berlin concerning the situation of children in areas of conflict. Since the 1960s, Redgrave has supported a range of human rights causes and has made headlines for her political activism.

Actresses and sisters Vanessa and Lynn Redgrave attend the premiere of Merchant Ivory's "The White Countess" at the Paris Theatre in New York on Nov. 21, 2005. In 1967, the sisters both were nominated for the Best Actress Academy Award. They lost out to Elizabeth Taylor.

Natasha and Joely Richardson — GETTY IMAGES

The Redgrave acting dynasty continues with another generation. Acting is in the genes of Natasha, left, and Joely Richardson, right, posing with their famous mother, actress Vanessa Redgrave.

Vanessa Redgrave, nominated for best performance by an actress in a miniseries or a motion picture made for television for her work in "The Gathering Storm," arrives with daughter Joely Richardson for the 60th Annual Golden Globe Awards, in Beverly Hills, Calif., on Jan. 19, 2003. Redgrave played mother to her real-life daughter in a few episodes of the TV series "Nip/Tuck."

Vanessa Redgrave, left, and her sister, Lynn, pose for photographers at the Tony Awards in New York on June 8, 2003. Vanessa Redgrave won a Tony for Best Actress in a Play for the revival of "Long Day's Journey into Night." They are the daughters of renowned actor Sir Michael Redgrave, who was also the son of actors.

Actresses Vanessa Redgrave, right, and daughter Joely Richardson pose for photographers on Feb. 19, 2002, to promote their West End play "Lady Windermeres Fan" at the Theatre Royal, Haymarket in London.

British actress Vanessa Redgrave, left, and top Chechen rebel Akhmed Zakayev arrive at Bow Street magistrates court in central London on Nov. 13, 2003, for an extradition hearing on a Russian government request. The Russians were asking for Zakayev's extradition for alleged "terrorist" activity in Chechnya between 1995 and 2000. Redgrave posted bail for Zakayev.

Vanessa Redgrave arrives for the Film Society of Lincoln Center Gala Tribute to actress Jane Fonda in New York on May 7, 2001. Redgrave and Fonda co-starred in the 1977 film, "Julia," for which Redgrave won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress. Members of the Jewish Defense League chose to picket the awards ceremony in the spring of 1978 to protest against Redgrave and her support of the Palestinian cause.

British actress Vanessa Redgrave receives her medal from French Ambassador Daniel Bernard at the French Institute in London on March 13, 2001. Redgrave was promoted to the highest order of "Commandeur de l'Ordre des Arts and des Lettres." The award is one of the French government's highest awards; it's given for cultural and artistic achievement in France or throughout the world.

British actress Vanessa Redgrave, center, flanked by her brother Corin, right, and Dr. Demitri Furman of Moscow's Sakharov Foundation, delivers a speech on the plight of the Chechen people on Jan. 25, 2000, in the Jubilee Room at the Houses of Parliament in London. Redgrave, was attempting to gain recognition to what she called inhuman tactics the Russian government was using to destroy the Chechen people.

The 1966 drama "A Man for All Seasons" was nominated for eight Academy Awards and won six, including Best Picture. The film starred Robert Shaw, right, as King Henry VIII and Vanessa Redgrave, left, as Anne Boleyn.