Joan Collins’ film producer goddaughter has died after a battle with terminal cancer, seven years after losing her best friend Charlotte Brosnan to the disease.
Milica Kastner, 49, was the daughter of American film producer Elliott Kastner and British celebrity interior designer Tessa Kennedy, and counted Robbie Williams, Jemima Khan and model Saffron Aldridge among her friends.
The mother-of-two was diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer and stage 4 uterine sarcoma – a rare cancer of the uterus – in February 2019 and was told she had ‘six months to live’ if she didn’t have treatment and ’33 months’ if she did.
Posting a tribute on Instagram, Joan posted: ‘May you #restinpeace my beautiful brave #goddaughter @milica_kastner. You fought a great fight and I admire you so much for your strength. You are with the #angels now and you have always been an #angel.’
Moving: Milica Kastner, 49, daughter of American film producer Elliott Kastner and British celebrity interior designer Tessa Kennedy, has died after a battle with cancer (Pictured: Milica and Tessa with Piers Brosnan at an event in 2007. Milica was a close friend of Brosnan’s daughter Charlotte, who lost her battle with cancer in 2013)
Milica’s siblings were among those posting tributes to the 49-year-old online, with actor brother Cary Elwes, who appeared in The Princess Bride, posting on Instagram: ‘My dear sweet Milica. I dislike having to write this about you as it puts the finality on something I have been dreading to accept, which is that you are gone.
‘What can I share about my extraordinary sister in this short space?
‘First and foremost, she had an enormous capacity to care for others over herself. A rare quality of inclusion which makes this loss even more insurmountable.
‘Even whilst suffering she would not want to talk about her day, but about yours. And that conversation would usually end with a few good laughs. In fact, having a good laugh was really important to Mil and that laugh was totally infectious.
Milica previously wrote about her terminal cancer battle in a Tatler magazine article and said she was choosing not to be a ‘victim’ Pictured, Milica in a photograph shared on her Instagram account Two Stage Fours
‘She was able to laugh as much at death as she was at life.’
He continued: ‘Truly a force to contend with. A candle that burned ever so brightly. I would watch people who met her for the first time and stand back trying to not to smile as I watched them realize this woman was completely without pretense. No filter at all. But in a good way.
Hollywood upbringing: Milica with her father Elliott Kastner, best known for Where Eagles Dare (1968), The Long Goodbye (1973) and Angel Heart (1987), in 2002. He died in 2010
‘Looking for the good in people and then making sure to make friends with them. I have met many of the Angels who have surrounded her from the start of their friendship and never left her at the end.
‘To all of you, too many to mention here, I thank you from my completely shattered heart. And to all of you who have shared your outpouring of support to me and my family at this difficult time, we are truly grateful.
‘My North Star will forever twinkle tears in memory of you, Milica. God speed, sweet angel.’
Meanwhile artist Damian Elwes posted on Instagram: ‘I am so sad about the passing of my darling sister Milica. She had been battling cancer with such bravery.
‘This is a photo from much happier times when she was little. I loved holding her and playing with her and we always had such a beautiful relationship.
‘She is gone physically but that deep love will always be there every day.’
Milica’s brother Cassian also posted a tribute online, taking to Twitter to write: ‘In shock. My baby sister battled cancer for two years and died last night in London. Can’t describe my sadness.’
Close: Princess Grace of Monaco and Princess Firyal of Jordan were named her godmothers. After Grace Kelly’s death in a car crash, Dame Joan Collins stepped in (pictured in 2011)
In January, Milica spoke of her story publicly for the first time. ‘Having had two stage 4 cancers I was inspired to share my story even if it helps four people,’ she explained on her dedicated Instagram account, Two Stage Fours.
Milica was born in January 1972 to Kastner, whom she described as a ‘tough, Jewish, New York film producer with a heart of gold’ and ‘social swan’ Kennedy, whose clients have included Elizabeth Taylor and King Hussein of Jordan (who was also Milica’s godfather).
Kennedy made headlines in the 1950s when, aged just 18, she defied her father’s wishes and married painter Dominick Elwes, who was eight years her senior.
Her father Geoffrey obtained a restraining order preventing the couple from marrying in England or Wales, prompting the young lovers to travel to Cuba where they had a civil ceremony at a Havana hotel owned by notorious gangster Meyer Lansky.
Joan Collins was among those sharing emotional tributes to her goddaughter online, calling the 49-year-old ‘an angel’
They later fled the country and legally wed in New York before returning to England where Elwes was initially arrested and temporarily jailed for contempt of court.
She had three sons with Elwes, including actor and star of The Princess Bride Cary Elwes, before divorcing in 1967.
She married husband Kastner, best known for Where Eagles Dare (1968), The Long Goodbye (1973) and Angel Heart (1987), and had son Dillon before welcoming Milica.
Princess Grace of Monaco and Princess Firyal of Jordan were named her godmothers.
After Grace Kelly’s death in a car crash, Dame Joan Collins stepped in.
In Tatler, Milica recalled the charmed upbringing she enjoyed as the daughter of a Hollywood producer.
‘One of my earliest memories is a magical Easter at Frank Sinatra’s house in Palm Springs,’ she wrote.
‘Grace Kelly (my godmother), the Grants, the Pecks and Roger and Luisa Moore (my brother Dillon’s godparents), were all there.’
Milica, who befriended Robbie Williams when she moved in next door to him in Notting Hill, spent some time in Los Angeles before moving back to the UK, where she lived with her two children.
She had a son Jack, 15, with American film producer Cary Woods, and daughter Sophia, 11, whose father is art dealer Alex Corcoran.
In 2010, shortly after Sophia was born, Milica’s father died following a long battle with cancer.
Three years later, in 2013, Milica lost her close friend Charlotte Brosnan, daughter of James Bond star Piers, to the disease.
Support network: Milica and close friend model Saffron Aldridge, on her first day of chemo
Milica is godmother to Charlotte’s daughter Isabella, or Bella, now 22.
Although she has seen the illness up close, Milica admitted her own diagnosis was ‘shattering’.
‘Having terminal cancer, it turns out, is scary,’ Milica wrote. ‘You can’t control it – it controls you. Sometimes, I panic that I won’t see my children grow up or get to watch what they do with their lives.’
As well as undergoing chemotherapy, Milica underwent an operation to remove a tumour from her brain after doctors discovered the disease had spread.
She ended the article on an optimistic note, saying she believed she ‘has the power to floor the cancer, to beat it at its own game’.
She wrote: ‘We all have a story and I am choosing not to be a victim in mine. When you do that, it’s game over.’
Her latest post was shared six weeks ago and read: ‘Met with Dr Robin Jones and Dr Noreen Starling today and they said all things considered I look great and seem strong. I’ll take that! #mindovermatter.’