Claudia continued dividing her time between Hollywood and Europe for the remainder of the decade, appearing in diverse projects ranging from the 1964 Vaghe stelle dell'Orsa to the 1966 Richard Brooks Western The professionals.
In 1968, she also co-starred in the Sergio Leone classic once upon a Time in the West. Since 1969 she has appeared almost exclusively in European films, working with directors such as Alberto Sordi, Pasquale Squitieri and Lilianna Cavani. In 1977 she also co-starred in the Franco Zeffirelli's Jesus of Nazareth. Cardinale's next high-profile international project was the 1982 Werner Herzog art-house hit Fitzcarraldo.
She followed it with 1983's Princess Daisy and then participated in Blake Edwards' 1993 Son of the Pink Panther. recently she has appeared as the Contessa Falconetti in Claude Lelouch's and Now...
Ladies and Gentlemen and she has been involved in theatre, enjoying success in La Venexiana in May 2000 and a six-month run of Come tu mi vuoi between October 2002 and March 2003.In June 1992 she was recognised with an homage by the Cinémathèque Française and by the presentation of the 'médaille de commandeur des arts et des Lettres'.
In 1999 she was awarded the prestigious 'Legion d'Honneur,' the highest honour in France. She received corresponding honours from Portugal in 2001 and Italy in 2002. In March 2000 she was named UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador by the organisation's Director-General M. Matsuura. After her Lifetime Achievement Golden Lion from the Venice Film Festival in 1993, she was awarded the Golden Bear for Lifetime Achievement at the Berlin Film Festival in 2002.
