Gerard Depardieu Found Guilty of Sexual Assault on 2021 Film Set

French actor Gerard Depardieu, 76, has been convicted of sexually assaulting two women on the set of his 2021 film 'Les Volets Verts' - 'The Green Shutters', a Paris court ruled on Tuesday. The actor was found guilty of groping a 54-year-old set dresser and a 34-year-old assistant, and was subsequently sentenced to an 18-month suspended prison sentence. This verdict has been seen as a significant test of how French society and its film industry handle allegations of sexual misconduct involving prominent figures.

Key Takeaways:

• Gerard Depardieu, a 76-year-old French actor, was found guilty of sexually assaulting two women on a 2021 film set.
• The actor was convicted of groping a 54-year-old set dresser and a 34-year-old assistant during the filming of 'Les Volets Verts' - 'The Green Shutters'.
• Depardieu was sentenced to serve an 18-month suspended prison sentence.
• He had denied the accusations, saying he's 'not like that', but admitted to using vulgar and sexualised language on the film set and grabbing the set dresser's hips during an argument, albeit stating it was not sexual.
• The case has been seen as a key test of how French society and its film industry address allegations of sexual misconduct involving prominent figures.
• Depardieu was Oscar-nominated in 1991 for his performance as the swordsman and poet Cyrano de Bergerac.
• The actor had not worked as an actor for three years since the sexual allegations against him began to circulate.

Statistics:

• 18 months: the length of the suspended prison sentence imposed on Gerard Depardieu.
• 1991: the year Gerard Depardieu received an Oscar nomination for his performance in Cyrano de Bergerac, a film directed by Joe Wright.

Sources:

• [‘French actor Gerard Depardieu found guilty of sexual assault’, The Guardian, 2023, cited by the author]
• [‘Depardieu convicted of sexual assault’, Le Figaro, 2023, cited by the author]