Veteran French actor Gérard Depardieu has been handed an 18-month suspended prison sentence by a Paris court after being found guilty of sexually assaulting two women on a film set in 2021.
The 76-year-old, who did not appear in court for the verdict, was also ordered to be placed on France’s sex offenders’ register. Depardieu, a towering figure in French cinema with over 200 film and television credits, is the most prominent name yet implicated in France’s reckoning with the #MeToo movement.
The ruling coincided with the opening day of the 2025 Cannes Film Festival — a fittingly symbolic moment given Depardieu’s long association with the prestigious event, where he won Best Actor in 1990.
The conviction relates to allegations made by two women — a 54-year-old set dresser, identified only as Amelie, and a 34-year-old assistant director — who accused Depardieu of groping and making lewd comments during the filming of Les Volets Verts (The Green Shutters) in 2021.
The lead prosecutor, Laurent Guy, had recommended an 18-month suspended sentence, citing Depardieu’s “total lack of remorse.” Amelie told the court the actor had pinned her down and touched her inappropriately, describing him as “very strong” and recounting his boast that he could “give women an orgasm without touching them.” The second plaintiff alleged Depardieu touched her inappropriately on three occasions, including while escorting him from his dressing room to the set.
Depardieu denied any sexual misconduct. “I’m vulgar, rude, foul-mouthed, I’ll accept that,” he told the court. “But I don’t touch.” He defended his behaviour, describing himself as someone who “adores women and femininity,” while dismissing the #MeToo movement as a “reign of terror.”
His defence team, however, drew sharp criticism. Lawyer Jeremie Assous referred to the complainants as “liars” and “hysterical,” suggesting they were acting on behalf of “rabid feminism.” The plaintiffs’ legal representatives condemned the strategy as deeply misogynistic. One lawyer described it not as a defence, but as “an apology for sexism.”
Their concerns were echoed by nearly 200 French lawyers in an open letter, urging the judiciary to take a firmer stand against sexism in courtrooms and accusing Depardieu’s defence of weaponising misogyny to undermine the plaintiffs.
Depardieu has also been formally indicted in a separate case involving a rape complaint from actor Charlotte Arnould, now 29. Prosecutors are seeking a trial.
The French National Assembly recently highlighted widespread abuse in the entertainment industry, following a six-month investigation.
Depardieu, once celebrated as the face of French cinema, had been working in Portugal earlier this year with actor-director Fanny Ardant, a close friend and vocal supporter. Others, including his daughter Roxane, ex-partner Karine Silla, and actor Vincent Perez, have also publicly stood by him. On Monday, Brigitte Bardot joined that chorus, lamenting that “those who have talent and put their hands on a girl’s bottom are thrown in the gutter.”
The court’s decision marks a major fall from grace for a man long regarded as one of France’s greatest cinematic icons.
