- Bertolucci's Last Tango in Paris (1972) was pronounced obscene as was banned 'forever' by Italian courts. The director lost his civil rights for 5 years, couldn't vote and received a four months suspended sentence.
- Was close friends with Pier Paolo Pasolini.
- He was a big fan of Breaking Bad (2008).
- When the Italian Bertolucci was Oscar-nominated as Best Director for The Last Emperor (1987) (and won), none of his Best Director fellow nominees were from the United States: Adrian Lyne and John Boorman (UK), Lasse Hallström (Sweden) and Norman Jewison (Canada) making that particular instance unique in Oscar history. It was also the first time the Best Director Oscar had been given to a member of the Communist Party. (April 11, 1988)
- In July 1990, along with Federico Fellini, Tonino Guerra and Marcello Mastroianni, he wrote: "With the death of Sergei Parajanov cinema lost one of its wizards".
- He was wheelchair bound for the last few years of his life due to serious back problems.
- The young Bertolucci took after his father, a Roman poet and film critic, and became a celebrated published poet by the age of 20. He gave up poetry for the cinema after working as an assistant to Pier Paolo Pasolini on the movie Accattone (1961).
- Son of poet Attilio Bertolucci and Ninetta Giovanardi. His father was Italian and his mother was born in Australia, of Italian and Irish descent.
- Was voted the 44th Greatest Director of all time by Entertainment Weekly.
- His family moved to Rome when he was a teenager. They lived in the Monteverde vecchio section. A few years later, Pier Paolo Pasolini, poet and friend of Bernardo's father Attilio Bertolucci, and his family came to live in another apartment in the same building. Pasolini asked Bernardo to be his assistant on Accattone (1961). Bertolucci used some locations from Monteverde vecchio in his later movies.
- At the time of his death he was preparing a new film centered on the theme of love.
- Directed one Oscar nominated performance: Marlon Brando in Last Tango in Paris (1972).
- Supported the Italian Communist Party (PCI).
- He had a residence in Rome's Trastevere quarter. The main shooting location of his last feature Me and You (2012) was just around the corner in a large basement.
- He presided over the Venice jury twice, in 1983 and 2013, and over the Cannes jury in 1990.
- One of eight Italians to have been nominated for the 'Best Director' Academy Award. The others are Federico Fellini, Pietro Germi, Michelangelo Antonioni, Franco Zeffirelli, Gillo Pontecorvo, Lina Wertmüller and Roberto Benigni. Bertolucci is the only one who won the award.
- He was made a Fellow of the British Film Institute in recognition of his outstanding contribution to film culture.
- He was awarded a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6925 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, California on November 19, 2013.
- President of the 'Official Competition' jury at the 43rd Cannes International Film Festival in 1990.
- President of the 'Official Competition' jury at the 70th Venice International Film Festival in 2013.
- President of the 'Official Competition' jury at the 40th Venice International Film Festival in 1983.
- In the early sixties he was the partner of actress Adriana Asti.
- Older brother of Giuseppe Bertolucci, cousin of Giovanni Bertolucci. Brother-in-law of Lucilla Albano. Brother-in-law of Mark Peploe.
- Homage at the 48th Donostia-San Sebastián Film Festival. (2000)
- Biography in: John Wakeman, editor. "World Film Directors, Volume Two, 1945-1985". Pages 121-127. New York: The H.W. Wilson Company, 1988.
- Directed two movies with the word last in the title: Last Tango in Paris (1972) and The Last Emperor (1987).
- Born at 7:25pm-CET.
- From 1962 until 1966 he was the partner of actress Adriana Asti.
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