Gérard Depardieu: 13 women accuse actor of sexually inappropriate acts
Gérard Depardieu is accused of sexually inappropriate behaviour by 13 women who join an alleged rape victim in making accusations against the acclaimed French actor
- The French movie star, 74, has been accused of preying on actresses and crew
- He is said to have inappropriately touched and propositioned 13 women
- It follows French actress Charlotte Arnould accusing Depardieu of raping her
Thirteen women have joined an alleged rape victim in accusing movie star Gérard Depardieu of sexually inappropriate behaviour, according to France’s leading investigative news site.
Mediapart published a dossier on Wednesday outlining how the 74-year-old regularly preyed on his victims during recent productions including Marseille, the Netflix crime drama.
Depardieu – who made his name in hits such as Green Card and The Last Metro – vehemently rejects the claims, with a legal spokesman saying: ‘He formally denies all the charges likely to fall under criminal law’.
It follows French actress Charlotte Arnould, 33, accusing Depardieu of raping her at his Paris mansion.
Ms Arnould renounced her legal right to anonymity at the end of 2021, to protest at how long the investigation is taking, following Depardieu being charged with rape and sexual assault.
Thirteen women have accused French actor Gérard Depardieu (pictured) of sexually inappropriate behaviour
These new allegations come after French actress Charlotte Arnould (pictured) went public with her accusation that Depardieu, 74, raped her in his Paris mansion
Within a few days of his indictment, Depardieu was back working on the Paris set of the police drama ‘Maigret And The Dead Girl’, in which he starred with Jade Labeste.
There is CCTV footage of Depardieu performing a sex act on Arnould in August 2018, but the actor said their relationship was consensual.
The new Mediapart report reads: ‘Besides the complaint from Charlotte Arnould, we have gathered 13 accounts from women who say they were subjected to sexually inappropriate gestures or proposals by the famous actor, of differing levels of gravity.’
The report continues: ‘Across the different accounts, the same scene seemed to repeat itself. They are actresses, make-up artists and crew members.
‘They attest to have been subjected to a hand on their buttock, between the legs, or on their thighs or stomach – as well as obscene sexual propositions, and sometimes insistent groaning.’
None of the new 13 reports – some of which have been made anonymously – are currently formal criminal complaints.
It alleged that the incidents were often brushed off with laughter, and the words: ‘Oh, OK, it’s just Gérard!’
Mediapart suggests that many victims feared a complaint might lead to a backlash which could see them never working again.
Mediapart notes: ‘The asymmetry between, on the one hand, often young, precarious women, starting their career, and on the other, a world-famous actor, whose mere presence sometimes makes it possible to finance the film.’
The Charlotte Arnould case is currently making its way through the French courts after an attempt by Depardieu’s counsel to get the charges overturned was overruled.
Accusations against Dépardieu follow a series of #MeToo complaints against powerful men in the Paris arts establishment who are said to have raped or otherwise abused young women working as models and actresses.
Such scandals have led to demonstrations by women’s groups at high-profile showbusiness events, as they call for female actors to stop working with allegedly abusive men.
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