Aside from his appearance, Campbell, 72, can remember how determined the young singer was for Queen, who formed in 1970, to make it big in the music business.
Although Campbell always told Mercury to be realistic about how hard it would be to top the charts, those words ultimately meant nothing to the Queen frontman.
She said: “He was always banging on about his band, trying to get a record deal. I told him, ‘Freddie, it’s a harsh world out there, hang on to the day job!’”
Campbell landed her breakout role as groupie Columbia in 1975’s The Rocky Horror Picture Show when she was spotted waitressing in a cafe near Hyde Park, London, by the musical comedy’s writer Richard O’Brien and director Jim Sharman.
The movie sees a couple, Brad Majors (Barry Bostwick) and Janet Weiss (Susan Sarandon), arrive at “sweet transvestite, transsexual Transylvanian” Dr Frank-N-Furter’s castle, where a party is held, and the mad scientist creates the titular muscle man Rock Horror (Peter Hinwood).
Tim Curry, 79, played Dr Frank-N-Furter, whose memorable pouts and struts were styled on Rolling Stones singer Sir Mick Jagger.
Jagger, 82, famously wanted the role and he tried to buy the film rights to cast himself, which Campbell thinks would have “killed it”.
She said: “Jim Sharman didn’t want rock stars. He wanted interesting, unusual people with street cred.”
Disney bought the rights to The Rocky Horror Picture Show in 2019 as part of its acquisition of 20th Century Fox, the studio that produced and released the cult classic in 1975.
Campbell flashed a boob to the camera as Columbia in the movie and Disney decided to erase her nipple to make it “more family-friendly”.
She said: “They invited Jim Sharman into the studio to edit it and make it more family-friendly. They didn’t want many changes. But they asked him to erase my nipple!
“He told them, ‘I have no experience in erasing nipples.’ They took it out anyway. But I can tell you that the fans were not happy. My nipple belonged in that film!”