Accusations of sexual misconduct and rape have swirled around the 75-year-old star for years, but they are mostly seen as the excesses of a man whose Rabelaisian appetites and sensuality are also the source of much great art. It has been ignored.
A rift is emerging between young people, who grew up on social justice and social media, who think Depardieu is unconscionable, and older generations who don’t understand what all the fuss is about.
As Depardieu wrote in his article, le figaro In October, she said, “I have always been provocative, excessive, and sometimes aggressive. I have often done things that others have not dared to do. I would subvert it, laugh on set during breaks between takes and nervous moments, and make other people laugh.”
But finally, his homeland – these days a tax-funded exile – seems to have stopped seeing the strange side.of Figaro The editorial was a response to accusations of sexual misconduct against Depardieu by more than a dozen women.newspaper Le Monde published a six-part editorial, “Le Ca Depardieu,” detailing the actor’s ignominious past. Most seriously, in 2020 he was charged with raping his friend’s daughter, actor Charlotte Arnold.
A month later, a documentary was aired on French television and things got even worse. Depardieu: The Fall of the Demon The film includes never-before-seen footage from a 2018 trip to North Korea, in which the actor sexually harasses an interpreter, makes lewd comments to a woman, and even makes sexual comments about children. I did some things. In a few weeks, his films will include classics such as: cyrano de bergerac and green card – was removed from Swiss television and the French network canceled future projects. The Minister of Culture insisted on the revocation of the Légion d’Honneur. His wax portrait was also removed from the Grevin Museum, presumably to make room for two or three others.
“The overlap of sexism and racism in that documentary spoke volumes about France’s patriarchal and colonialist gaze,” says author and author Alice Pfeiffer. Je ne swiss pas en parisiennea book about sexism in the representation of women in France.
“Social media has set new standards and debates, and the deep-seated prejudices of the French people are suddenly exposed. In France, terms such as ‘crime of passion’ are still used in court, and Picasso is still considered a genius. It is considered. This passionate artist’s myth that sexual crimes are simply collateral damage or part of his character remains strong. ”
As if to prove that point, right-wing writer Yanis Etziadi compiled a letter signed by 56 celebrities, including Charlotte Rampling, condemning the attack on Depardieu. “Gerard Depardieu is perhaps the greatest of all actors.” “When you attack Gérard Depardieu in this way, it is art that you are attacking. Gérard Depardieu, through his genius as an actor, contributes to the artistic brilliance of our country.”
