Gerard Depardieu doc sends shockwaves through French film industry

An investigative documentary featuring footage of Gerard Depardieu engaging in lewd, sexist behaviour has sent shockwaves through the world of French cinema.

The documentary, Gerard Depardieu: La Chute De l’Ogre (Gerard Depardieu: The Fall Of The Ogre), was broadcast on December 7, part of France 2’s investigative series Complément d’Enquete.

It includes testimony from actress Helene Darras who said she officially pressed charges against Depardieu after claiming he sexually assaulted her on the set of Fabien Onteniente’s 2008 local comedy Disco. According to the Paris prosecutor’s office, an investigation into Darras’ accusations is currently underway.

The programme features footage of Depardieu on a trip to Pyongyang, North Korea in 2018. Depardieu is seen with a TV crew as he makes repeated obscene remarks and sexual noises directed to and about women including a minor, all while knowing he was being filmed.

Depardieu was first accused of rape and sexual assault by actress Charlotte Arnould in 2018 before being officially charged in 2020 in a case still making its way through French courts. He is also reeling from an April exposé in Mediapart in which 13 women, including Darras, detailed sexually inappropriate behaviour on film sets between 2004 and 2022, followed by two more women who came forward over the summer.

Following the years of allegations, Depardieu finally broke his silence in October with an open letter in Le Figaro newspaper in which he wrote: “Never, ever have I abused a woman” and denying all charges against him.

Industry reaction

The documentary made front-page news throughout France, with Le Parisien headlining its story ‘The Fall of an Icon’. It has also rattled the local film industry. Manuel Alduy, head of cinema at France Televisions, said in the programme: “We must not celebrate Gerard Depardieu. It’s just not possible.”

Alduy said France Televisions has paused future projects with the actor, but told Screen: “We will continue to air feature films with Gerard Depardieu because films are collective works and we don’t censor art, but we are careful when and how we run such films to make sure it is not seen as a support and hommage.”

However, some in the industry have come to the actor’s defence, including director Josée Dayan, who directed Depardieu in films such as The Count Of Monte-Cristo, and Depardieu’s long-time agent Jean-Louis Livi.

Others claimed Depardieu’s behaviour was known about and tolerated for too long. Actress Clotilde Hesme told BFMTV that “people warned each other about him and protected each other”, while casting director Sophie Lainé Diodovic said on France Info: “Gerard Depardieu is the visible part of the iceberg… It’s our Weinstein. It’s the same thing - everyone knew for a long time, but nobody said anything. There was an omerta.”

Marc Missonnier, who produced 2011 film Asterix & Obelisk: God Save Brittania starring Depardieu, admitted in the documentary: “We’re all a little bit guilty. There was a tolerance and that was a mistake.”

Depardieu’s prolific career, which has spanned several decades and more than 200 films in France and internationally, has managed to stay afloat since the original 2018 rape allegations.

The actor has shot nearly a dozen films and TV series since that time including box office hits like 2022 comedy Retirement Home (UGC) that sold more than two million tickets and Maigret (SND) with over 500,000. However, he has not starred in a film since 2021.

Alduy added: “Gerard Depardieu is a great actor, but talent is not a passport to permit all behaviour.”

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