MacColl began her career in the late 1970s, making her debut in the French romantic drama Le dernier amant romantique, in which she received a small role.

In 1979, she received her first leading role in Lady Oscar, a historical drama directed by Jacques Demy based on the manga Rose of Versailles by Riyoko Ikeda.

[citation needed] According to MacColl, because Lady Oscar was not widely released in Europe, her career stalled: "I met all kinds of incredible French directors and of course they all knew Jacques.

"[3]Following her part in the drama Le fils puni, she appeared in the first of director Lucio Fulci's 'The Gates of Hell Trilogy', City of the Living Dead, playing the role of Mary Woodhouse, with Christopher George.

MacColl did not originally plan to work in films with such a violent nature, as she had thought that they would not attract an audience, but is proud of the worldwide recognition the trilogy has received, as well as its growing fanbase over the years.