News

The first sexual assault trial against French actor Gérard Depardieu has begun in Paris, with Depardieu in attendance.

Two women accuse the French acting legend, famous for his roles in Cyrano de Bergerac (1990), Green Card (1990) and The Last Metro (1981), of assault alleged to have taken place in 2021 on the set of French feature The Green Shutters.

The two female crew members — a set decorator and an assistant director — allege Depardieu sexually assaulted them during the filming of Jean Becker’s period drama. Depardieu denies the charges. The film, based on Georges Simenon’s 1950 novel, stars Depardieu as a celebrated but tyrannical actor grappling with personal and professional decline.

Monday’s proceedings mark the first time Depardieu will be tried on official sexual assault charges. Over the past several years, Depardieu has faced a growing number of allegations of sexually inappropriate behavior, which he has vehemently denied.

Depardieu was initially scheduled...

French actor Gérard Depardieu will stand trial in October on charges of sexual assault brought by two women who claim the Green Card and Cyrano de Bergerac star assaulted them on set of the film The Green Shutters in 2021, the Paris Public Prosecutor said on Monday.

French police briefly detained Depardieu for questioning on Monday morning. In a note following Depardieu’s release, the prosecutor’s office said the actor was given a summons to appear before the criminal court “for sexual assaults likely to have been committed in September 2021 against two victims, on the set of the film The Green Shutters.”

Multiple media sources, including Agence France-Presse (Afp) and Bfm-tv, reported that the 75-year-old actor has been accused by two separate women of sexual assault. The alleged incidents reported occurred in 2021 — when Depardieu was shooting French film Les Violets vertes (The Green Shutters) — and in 2014 during the making of...

French actress turned director Barbara Schulz’s Treasure Hunters: On the Tracks Of Khufu, has been acquired by France’s Snd which is launching sales on the French take on Indiana Jones at the European Film Market later this month

The film is Schulz’s directorial debut and will star Fabrice Luchini as an archaeologist who joins forces with his daughter and grandson in a race against time to find a hidden treasure in locations from Cairo to Paris. Julia Piaton will co-star.

Schulz’s acting credits include roles in Léa Domenach’s Bernadette/

Snd is also producing the film with Bonne Pioche Cinema,...

French prosecutors have dismissed a complaint by French actress Hélène Darras claiming she was sexually assaulted by Gérard Depardieu, citing the statute of limitations for the alleged crime.

Darras filed an official complaint against the 75-year-old French star, claiming Depardieu assaulted her on the set of Fabien Onteniente’s film Disco in 2007. Darras made her allegations public in an interview on French TV in December. The interview, combined with raw footage of Depardieu making sexually inappropriate and obscene jokes, triggered a public uproar in France that some have compared to the #MeToo movement that was galvanized by the testimonies of victims of Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein.

Thirteen women have come forward to accuse Depardieu of sexual assault involving incidents spanning two decades. In February 2021, Depardieu was charged with rape and sexual assault allegedly committed in 2018 against actress Charlotte Arnould. Darras was auditioned as a witness during that ongoing investigation and...

French authorities have dismissed the sexual assault complaint filed against Gérard Depardieu by French actress Hélène Darras due to the local statute of limitations.

Darras lodged the complaint, related to events on the set of the 2007 dance comedy Disco, with the Paris Prosecutor’s Office on September 10, 2023. The case was first reported by France 2’s investigative show Complément d’Enquête in teased extracts of an edition devoted to Depardieu and the multiple sexual misconduct allegations against him.

In the show’s interview with Darras, she recounted how Depardieu hounded her on the set of Disco when she was a 26-year-old novice actress. She had a small role as a dance competition contestant in the comedy, directed by Fabien Onteniente and starring Franck Dubosc with Depardieu in a supporting role.

“He was unmanageable,” she said of Depardieu. “He looked at me as if I were a piece of meat. I was...

Gerard Depardieu: The Fall Of The Ogre was broadcast on France 2

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...

French actress Hélène Darras has filed an official complaint against Gérard Depardieu, claiming the French star sexually assaulted her on the set of the 2007 film Disco.

Darras is the second woman to go public with allegations against Depardieu, following actress Charlotte Arnould who filed a complaint in 2018, accusing the 74-year-old actor of rape. Arnould’s case is currently working its way through the courts. Depardieu has denied all charges.

Complément d’Enquête, an investigative news show on France 2, broke the Darras news, teasing extracts of an exclusive interview with the actress, which will air on French TV on Thursday night.

French media is reporting that Darras lodged her complaint with the Paris Prosecutor’s Office on Sept. 10.

In the show’s interview with Darras, she recounts how Depardieu harassed her on the set of Disco when she was 26 years old and had a walk-on role as a dance competition contestant. The...

A second woman has filed an official complaint against French actor Gérard Depardieu accusing him of sexual assault.

According to local media reports, French actress Hélène Darras lodged a complaint, related to events on the set of the 2007 dance comedy Disco, with the Paris Prosecutor’s Office on September 10.

The case was first reported by France 2’s investigative show Complément d’Enquête in teased extracts of an edition devoted to Depardieu and the mounting sexual misconduct allegations against him, which airs at 11pm Cet this evening.

The show is also set to reveal material capturing Depardieu talking in a sexually inappropriate way to a young female interpreter assigned to him during a visit to North Korea in 2018.

In the show’s interview with Darras, she recounts how Depardieu hounded her on the set of Disco when she was a 26-year-old novice actress. She had a small role as a dance competition contestant in the comedy,...

French actor Gérard Depardieu is facing new allegations of sexual misconduct from 13 women.

The women spoke with MediaPart, a French investigative news website which launched a months-long investigation into the actor.

According to the report, actresses, make-up artists and production staff all provided testimony accusing Depardieu of inappropriate words or gestures that occurred during shooting for 11 films that came out between 2004 and 2022. MediaPart notes that Depardieu denies any criminal behavior.

Also Read:

Gerard Depardieu Charged With 2018 Rape, Sexual Assault (Report)

The investigation, which was launched after MediaPart repeatedly heard rumors of Depardieu’s on-set behavior, found that the actor’s behavior followed a common pattern of unwanted touching, groping, obscene sexual remarks and “persistent groaning noises.” In most cases, other crew members reportedly ignored or tolerated Depardieu’s behavior, often laughing it off.

The outlet contacted 20 producers and directors involved in the relevant productions but only 11 responded. All but one...

The accusations span the production of projects including Netflix series Marseille, period biopics L’Autre Dumas and La Vie En Rose and French comedy Disco.

French actor Gerard Depardieu has been accused of sexual misconduct by 13 women in an extensive report from Paris-based investigative news website Mediapart.

Depardieu has denied any wrongdoing through his legal team and has not been formally charged following the accusations.

Mediapart reported the accusations of actresses, make-up artists and production staff, many of whom preferred to remain anonymous. Their accusations detail inappropriate behaviour that allegedly occurred during the shooting of 11 films released between 2004 and 2022.

The...

Gérard Depardieu is facing fresh allegations of sexually inappropriate behaviour by 13 women.

The accusations have emerged after a months-long investigation into the French film star, known for his appearances in Paris, je t’aime and Jean de Florette.

The French investigative news website Médiapart has reported numerous cases of groping, obscene comments and inappropriate acts by Depardieu on film and TV sets between 2004 and 2022, including on the French comedy Big House, the period biopic Dumas and Netflix crime show Marseille.

The Independent has contacted representatives of Depardieu for comment, though they have declined to comment on the Médiapart story.

Depardieu has denied any criminal behaviour through his Paris-based law firm Cabinet Temime. The company said some of the allegations in the report seem to be based on “very subjective assessments and/or moral judgments”.

Médiapart reported that the accusations against Depardieu involve unwanted touching and groping of young female stars,...

French actor Gerard Depardieu, who is already indicted on rape and sexual assault charges in connection to a 2018 case, is now being accused of sexual misconduct by 13 women in an investigative report published by Mediapart.

The accusations were made by female actors, make-up artists and production staff, some of whom spoke on the basis of anonymity, and allegedly occurred during the filming of 11 films released between 2004 and 2022. Mediapart said “one actress has just given her account to the French justice system.”

None of these 13 women have taken legal action against Depardieu, according to a statement provided to Variety by the Paris prosecutor’s office.

“The prosecutor has not received any new lawsuit. A formal investigation, launched in 2020 following the lawsuit filed by Charlotte Arnaud, is still ongoing,” continued the statement.

Depardieu’s legal representation Cabinet Temime has denied all the accusations and released a lengthy statement saying that the actor...

Gérard Depardieu faces fresh allegations of sexually inappropriate behavior by 13 women who spoke to French investigative news website Médiapart as part of a months-long investigation into the French film star.

The Médiapart report, published on Wednesday, details numerous cases of groping, obscene comments and inappropriate acts by Depardieu on film and TV sets between 2004 and 2022, including on the French comedy Big House, the period biopic Dumas and Netflix crime series Marseille.

Depardieu declined to comment for the story but, through his Paris-based law firm Cabinet Temime has denied any criminal behavior. The firm said some of the accounts in the Médiapart report appear to be based on “very subjective assessments and/or moral judgments.”

As reported by Médiapart, Depardieu’s behavior followed a common pattern, involving unwanted touching and groping of young actresses, make-up artists or technical staff, as well as obscene sexual remarks and “persistent groaning noises.” In most cases,...

Jean Paul Gautier model Alex Wetter set to star.

Other Angle Pictures is launching sales on French-Portuguese actor Ruben Alves’s upcoming comedy Miss, starring androgynous model Alex Wetter as a young man who sets his heart on winning the Miss France contest.

It is Alves’ second feature after 2013’s well-travelled The Gilded Cage about a Portuguese caretaker couple working in a Paris apartment block, which drew 1.2m spectators in France and sold well internationally.

Wetter is a well-known model on the Paris fashion scene who has walked the catwalk for the womenswear collections of Jean-Paul Gautier and others. He...

Other Angle has picked up international sales rights to “A Good Doctor” with Michel Blanc, “Just The Three of Us” with Catherine Frot, and “The Father Figure” in the run-up to the UniFrance’s Rendez-Vous in Paris.

Directed by Eric Besnard, “The Father Figure” is a supernatural comedy drama following a writer who mourns the death of his father and starts seeing him reappear; but he turns out to be the only one able to see him. The film stars François Berleand, Guillaume de Tonquedec and Josiane Balasko.

“Just the Three of Us,” which marks the feature debut of José Alcala, is a love-triangle comedy starring Daniel Auteuil and Catherine Frot. Auteuil stars a man on a mission to get his wife back after she leaves him for another man. Both “The Father Figure” and “Just The Three of Us” will be released by Apollo Films in France.

“A Good Doctor,...

Pathe have Main Comp titles in Paolo Sorrentino's This Must Be the Place and Alain Cavalier's Pater on their product list, but the sale agent might find both titles a difficult sell until they are unveiled to the film critic mass. I'd bet that Phyllida Lloyd's The Iron Lady with Meryl Steep is the most desired item on their inventory list. The Iron Lady by Phyllida Lloyd - Completed This Must Be The Place by Paolo Sorrentino - Completed Monsieur Papa by Kad Merad - Completed My Worst Nightmare by Anne Fontaine - Post-Production Pater by Alain Cavalier - Completed Switch by Frederic Schoendoerffer - Completed The Tuche Family (Les Tuche) by Olivier Baroux - Completed The Well-digger's Daughter (La Fille Du Puisatier) by Daniel Auteuil - Completed Titeuf, The Film (Titeuf, Le Film) by Zep - Completed Zarafa by Jean-Christophe Lie - Post-Production Africa United by...

There won't be any big costly parties in Cannes this year for the folks at Pathe – it seems to be a Berlin, skip Cannes and go to Venice type of year. The Illusionist preemed in Berlin and makes an appearance in the Market screenings, and the much anticipated Miral from Julian Schnabel skipped a non-comp, non-confidence vote and is instead poised to double dip in Venice and Tiff. - There won't be any big costly parties in Cannes this year for the folks at Pathe – it seems to be a Berlin, skip Cannes and go to Venice type of year. The Illusionist preemed in Berlin and makes an appearance in the Market screenings, and the much anticipated Miral from Julian Schnabel skipped a non-comp, non-confidence vote and is instead poised to double dip in Venice and Tiff. All That Glitters (Tout Ce Qui Brille) by G&eacute...

There won't be any big costly parties in Cannes this year for the folks at Pathe – it seems to be a Berlin, skip Cannes and go to Venice type of year. The Illusionist preemed in Berlin and makes an appearance in the Market screenings, and the much anticipated Miral from Julian Schnabel skipped a non-comp, non-confidence vote and is instead poised to double dip in Venice and Tiff. All That Glitters (Tout Ce Qui Brille) by Géraldine Nakache - Completed Centurion by Neil Marshall - Completed The Illusionnist (L'illusioniste) by Sylvain Chomet - Completed Benvenuti Al Sud by Luca Miniero - Completed Camping 2 by Fabien Onteniente - Completed L'italien by Olivier Baroux - Completed Oceans by Jacques Perrin - Completed Africa United by Debs Gardner Paterson - Production Farewell by Christian Carion - Completed Loup (Wolf) by Nicolas Vanier - Completed Miral by Julian Schnabel - Post-Production Rien A...

Sam Worthington in Louis Leterrier’s Clash of the Titans (top); Mia Wasikowska in Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland (upper middle); Franck Dubosc, Mathilde Seigner, Claude Brasseur, Mylène Demongeot in Fabien Onteniente’s Camping 2 (lower middle); Isabelle Adjani, Gérard Depardieu in Gustave de Kervern and Benoît Delépine’s Mammuth (bottom) Robert Pattinson’s Remember Me Surprisingly Jumps 17%; Kristen Stewart’s The Runaways Down: Box Office Internationally, Clash of the Titans, starring Avatar’s Sam Worthington, remained the #1 movie this past weekend with an estimated $32 million in 60 markets, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Overseas total to date: $240.4 million. Clash of the Titans‘ month-long reign, however, will likely end when Iron Man 2, starring Robert Downey Jr, opens in several markets next week [...]...

Rounding out a month as the No. 1 title on the foreign theatrical circuit, "Clash of the Titans" claimed an estimated $32 million from 10,075 screens in 60 markets on the weekend, raising its overseas boxoffice total to $240.4 million.

"Titans'" offshore domination ends this week as an early-to-arrive summer season, thanks to the June 11-July 11 World Cup, kicks off this week. Paramount's "Iron Man 2" begins its overseas run on Wed. in six markets, including France, Belgium, Sweden and Norway.

A Japan opening at 481 screens generated for the 3D update of MGM's 1981 action fantasy based on Greek mythology $3.1 million, including paid previews. In all, said distributor Warner Bros., 3D venues provided 64% of "Titans'" overseas gross.

Taking second place on the weekend was Disney's "Alice in Wonderland," which tallied $26.7 million in its eighth round on the foreign circuit from 7,233 venues in 54 markets. A Brazil bow generated $5.7 million from 649 locations, Disney's biggest market gross ever for this market.

Paris -- French director Fabien Onteniente has joined forces with local producer Laurent Brochand to bring Gallic audiences laughs with a new comedy-based production partnership at Joinville Productions.

As other Gallic producers are setting their sights overseas with U.S. production outlets or English-language films in development, Onteniente and Brochand are keeping their work at home.

"We want to maintain a typically French spirit and focus on popular and traditional French comedy," Onteniente said of the new partnership.

The duo plan to develop between three and five projects a year, starting with "La Night," a humorous look at the world of Parisian nightlife that the producers hope to make with Pathe, though no deal has been signed.

Onteniente saw tremendous boxoffice results for Pathe release "Camping" in 2006 with more than five million tickets sold in France. The director formed his own production shingle Joinville Productions, named after the studio where...

Paris -- French films and the talent who star in them suffered in 2009 as the global financial crisis caused a 26.3% dip in investment in the country's film industry to €1.1 billion, compared to €1.5 billion the year before, according to figures released Wednesday from state film body the CNC.

The French film industry was less prolific in 2009 with 230 movies made, compared to 240 in 2008. French majority productions totaled 182, down from 196 in 2008.

Gallic stars also saw a 19% drop in their paychecks. France's actors and actresses made just 59.3% of the total wages delegated for talent, compared to 67% the year before. Total talent earnings accounted for an average 6.8% of the cost of a film, down from 8% in 2008.

As France's TV networks struggled to remain afloat during the wave of economic downturn, their investments in film dwindled. Leading private network TF1's investment in French majority productions dropped 29.8%. In 2009, public TV group France Televisions decreased their spending...

CORRECTED 5:23 p.m. PT April 7, 2008

The tail end of spring school holidays in scattered markets is easing the traditional decline of the overseas boxoffice at this time of year, with family fare getting the greatest attention. "Dr. Suess' Horton Hears a Who!" dominated foreign multiplexes for a second week in a row with $10.8 million from 5,575 screens in 54 markets for a cume to date of $90.6 million. Also in the family mix was "The Spiderwick Chronicles", which brought in $6.8 million from 3,351 sites in 45 markets. Teenagers turned out for "Step Up 2 the Streets", which scored $5 million from 1,677 screens in 26 markets for a cume of $61.4 million. More family action saw "The Game Plan" tally $3.3 million from 1,215 screens in 11 markets for a cume of $43.4 million, and "Enchanted" increased its cume to $207.1 million after a $23.3 million take from Japan in four weeks, where it dropped to No. 2 after holding the No. 1 spot for three weeks in a row.

At the same time, the prehistoric epic "10,000 BC" lifted its international gross to $153.9 million after a weekend tally of $5.9 million from 4,500 prints in 62 territories, and "Vantage Point", the political drama about the attempted assassination of a president, advanced to $67.5 million following a weekend take of $4 million from 2,130 screens in 57 markets.

But the big surprise of the period before May's onslaught of the summer blockbusters was the performance of a series of French films. Following on the heels of the phenomenal "Bienvenue Chez les Ch'tis", the rural comedy that has enchanted France for six weeks in a row, comes "Disco", a comedy directed by Fabien Onteniente and distributed by Studio Canal, which grabbed top honors at the French boxoffice with $8.5 million from 824 screens and $9.3 million overall from three markets.

PARIS -- With "Disco", shlock humor specialist Fabien Onteniente teams up again with stand-up comedian Franck Dubosc hoping for a repeat of their 2006 hit "Camping", which clocked up 4.5 million ticket sales. He is likely to be disappointed. The earlier film's reputation may attract moderate business at home, but even the presence of big-name stars such as Gerard Depardieu and Emmanuelle Beart fails to add luster to this pedestrian affair. Overseas prospects look dim.

When unemployed no-hoper Didier Travolta (Dubosc), or Graindorge to give him his real name, learns that his estranged English wife is refusing to send his son to visit him for the summer unless he can guarantee him a proper holiday, he sees a glimmer of hope when local club-owner Jean-Francois Jackson (Depardieu) organizes a disco contest. First prize is two plane tickets to Australia.

Didier, a former disco champion, tracks down his dance-floor teammates Walter Samuel Le Bihan), now a trade union leader, and Neuneuil (Abbes Zahmani), a salesman with an electrical goods chainstore, and persuades them to reform their trio, the Bee Kings -- the name chosen in tribute to The Bee Gees, he proudly notes. First, of course, they will need knocking back into shape, so Didier recruits a classical dance instructor, France Navarre (Beart), to put them through their routines.

Given these beginnings, an averagely talented 101 class in screenwriting could probably write the rest of the script and come up with what we see on the screen, give or take minor details. The humor is laid on with a trowel, and the implausibilities come thick and fast.

Spectators may wonder what on earth an attractive dancing instructor could possibly see in a smirking, posturing and distinctly graceless lumpen-prole whose saving virtue is his heart of gold. And the dancing, whether Dubosc's disco gyrations or Beart's supposedly classical variety, is entirely unconvincing.

In short, as a Gallic version of "The Full Monty", "Disco" does not have a lot going for it. Spectators who still thrill to the sound of Boney M, Donna Summer and Gloria Gaynor will be in their element though. Veteran movie composer Michel Legrand, no less, is credited with the original score.

DISCO

LGM Cinema

Sales: StudioCanal

Credits:

Director: Fabien Onteniente

Writers: Fabien Onteniente, Philippe Guillard, Franck Dubosc, Emmanuel Booz

Director of photography: Jean-Marie Dreujou

Producers: Cyril Colbeau-Justin, Jean-Baptiste Dupont

Production designer: Jean-Marc Kerdelhue

Costume designer: Pierre-Yves Gayraud

Music: Michel Legrand

Editors: Nathalie Langlade, Laurent Rouan, Sarah Ternat

Cast:

Didier: Franck Dubosc

France: Emmanuelle Beart

Jackson: Gerard Depardieu

Walter: Samuel Le Bihan

Neuneuil: Abbes Zahmani

Mme Graindorge: Annie Cordy

La Baronne: Isabelle Nanty

Guillaume: Francois-Xavier Demaison

Running time -- 103 minutes

No MPAA rating...

PARIS -- Jason Reitman's Juno secured the grand prize at the 11th Alpe d'Huez Comedy Festival, which wrapped in the Gallic ski town Sunday night.

A jury presided by Gallic actor and funnyman Fabrice Luchini and featuring thesps Gilles Lellouche, Thierry Fremont and Julie Ferrier, gave its special jury prize to Dany Boon's cultural differences comedy Bienvenue chez les Ch'tis about a postal worker.

The event's "Young Jury" headed by actress Marilou Berri and composed of film students, also bestowed its top prize on Ch'tis.

Pascale Arbillot nabbed the best actor award for his role in Lea Fazer's couples comedy What if...

U.S. actor Robert Davi was given the Prix Coup de Coeur for his first turn in the director's chair The Dukes.

The six-day event, the only such comedy festival in France, closed with Fabien Onteniente's Disco starring Gerard Depardieu, Emmanuelle Beart and Franck Dubosc.

PARIS -- French helmer Fabien Onteniente and Gallic actor Franck Dubosc are joining forces again for "Disco", following up on the massive success of their last collaborative effort, "Camping", which sold 5.4 million tickets in France.

Produced by Onteniente's production company, Joinville Prods., along with StudioCanal, TF1 and LGM Prods. and distributed by StudioCanal, "Disco" will take its €10 million ($12.9 million) budget to France's Havre region for a 10-week shoot starting in March, LGM's Jean-Baptiste Dupont said Monday.

The all-star cast includes Emmanuelle Beart and Gerard Depardieu, who will reunite on the big screen for the first time since Claude Berri's "Manon of the Spring" 21 years ago.

"Disco" follows a group of nostalgic fortysomethings who decide to open a disco nightclub. Songs from The Bee Gees and Donna Summer will top off the film's soundtrack, the filmmakers said.