Actor falls ill

Gérard Depardieu wants to postpone trial date

The trial against Gérard Depardieu began in Paris on Monday - but without his presence. According to his lawyer, the actor was ill and hoped that the trial could be postponed. The court complied with this request.

(Bild: APA/AFP/Bertrand GUAY)

The criminal trial against French actor Gérard Depardieu on charges of sexual harassment has been postponed at the defendant's request. After one and a half hours of deliberation, the Paris criminal court decided not to hear the case until the end of March. It thus complied with the request of Depardieu's lawyer Jérémie Assous, who had asked for a new date due to the 75-year-old film legend's state of health.

The actor's defense must submit a medical report by the beginning of March. As defense attorney Assous explained earlier, Depardieu's doctors have forbidden him from appearing at the hearing. The actor is asking for a postponement so that he can be present in person. He would like to have his say, the lawyer continued. The Paris Criminal Court had originally planned to hear the case this Monday. The verdict was also expected.

There were protests outside the court building in Paris on Monday.

(Bild: APA/AFP/GEOFFROY VAN DER HASSELT)

The trial concerns two cases that allegedly took place in 2021 during the filming of the movie "Les volets verts" (The Green Shutters) by director Jean Becker. The two women, a set decorator and an assistant to the director, accuse Depardieu of groping them on the breasts and buttocks. Depardieu ("Cyrano of Bergerac", "Asterix and Obelix") denies the allegations. He faces up to five years imprisonment and a fine of 75,000 euros in the proceedings.

For years, women have repeatedly come forward to accuse Depardieu of sexual assault. Now, for the first time, he has to stand trial. The case is attracting a great deal of attention in France. The courtroom was packed, although it was clear that the actor himself would not be appearing. Dozens demonstrated in front of the court in support of the complaining women.

Harassed and touched
One of the two plaintiffs, a decorator, accused the actor of pulling her towards him when he was sitting in a corridor and she walked past him, according to information from the Paris public prosecutor's office. He allegedly pinned her with his legs, touched her buttocks, her sex and her breast over her clothes. He is said to have accompanied his gestures with obscene remarks. The woman filed a complaint against him in February for sexual assault, sexual harassment and sexist insults.

Depardieu faces five years in prison if convicted.

(Bild: APA/AFP/El Gouna Film Festival/Ammar Abd Rabbo)

According to the public prosecutor's office, the second plaintiff, an assistant to the director, stated that Depardieu allegedly touched her breasts and buttocks on set. He had previously allegedly harassed her on the street. She filed a lawsuit in March 2024.

Years of allegations against Depardieu
For years, more and more women have been coming forward to accuse the award-winning actor of sexual assault. In 2018, actress Charlotte Arnould sued him. The case has been under investigation since 2020. He is alleged to have assaulted Arnould twice. Depardieu could face the next trial in this case.

The online newspaper "Mediapart", which regularly causes a stir with investigative stories, published an article in April 2023 in which 13 women accused him of sexual assault or inappropriate sexual comments. They denounce incidents that allegedly took place mainly during film shoots between 2004 and 2022.

Depardieu sees himself as a victim of "media lynch law"
Depardieu completely denies the allegations. In a letter published in the newspaper "Le Figaro" at the beginning of October 2023, he describes himself as the victim of a "media lynch law". In it, he admitted that he had been "provoked, exaggerated, sometimes abusive" throughout his life, but that he was not a rapist. He also wrote that Arnould had voluntarily gone to his room with him.

At the end of 2023, Depardieu also shocked viewers with misogynistic and degrading comments in the investigative TV magazine "Complément d'enquête" about his trip to North Korea, during which he visited a stud farm, among other things.

In the report, he says in front of the camera while a young girl on a horse appears in the picture: "Women like to ride because their clitoris rubs against the saddle." Depardieu claims that the images were taken out of context and are fictitious. In mid-October, a Paris court ordered an expert opinion to determine whether the images had been manipulated.

Projects put on hold
Depardieu has appeared in over 200 films, many of which have become cinema classics. However, more and more people have been distancing themselves from him since the mounting accusations.

France Télévisions, France's public broadcaster, announced weeks ago that it would be reviewing its broadcasting plans with Depardieu and putting all projects with him on hold for the time being. A collaboration with him for the animated film "La plus précieuse des marchandises" by Michel Hazanavicius was also abandoned - by mutual agreement, according to reports.