A Paris court today has found actor Gérard Depardieu guilty of having sexually assaulted two women on a 2021 film set, giving him an 18-month suspended prison sentence.
The actor, 76, has been convicted of having groped a 54-year-old costume designer and a 34-year-old assistant during the filming of Jean Becker's Les Volets Verts.
Depardieu, who has denied the accusations, didn't attend today's hearing.
The actor was also slapped with the additional penalty of a two-year disqualification from standing for election, as well as registration in the national automated database of sexual offenders.
In addition to non-material damages, Depardieu has been ordered to pay both women the sums of €1,000 and €2,000 for secondary victimisation. No fine of €20,000 as requested by the public prosecutor, however.
"I hope this is the end of impunity for an artist in the film industry," stated Carine Durrieu-Diebolt, the lawyer of one of the victims. "With this decision, we can no longer say (that Gérard Depardieu) is not a sexual abuser," she added. "My thoughts are with the other victims who are under the statute of limitations and with the four victims who took the stand."
Depardieu will appeal against his conviction for sexual assault, his lawyer Jérémie Assous announced after the hearing.
The case is widely seen as a key post- #MeToo test of how French society and its film industry address allegations of sexual misconduct involving prominent figures.
During the four-day trial in March, Depardieu rejected the accusations, saying he’s “not like that.” He acknowledged that he had used vulgar and sexualized language on the film set and that he grabbed the set designer’s hips during an argument, but denied that his behavior was sexual.
Paris’ public prosecutor had requested that Depardieu be found guilty and given an 18-month suspended prison sentence and a fine of €20,000. The prosecutor denounced the actor's “total denial and failure to question himself.”
Some figures in the French cinema world have expressed their support for Depardieu. Actors Vincent Perez and Fanny Ardant were among those who took seats on his side of the courtroom.
Depardieu has been accused publicly or in formal complaints of misconduct by more than 20 women, but so far only the sexual assault case has proceeded to court. Some other cases were dropped because of a lack of evidence or the statute of limitations.
The actor may have to face other legal proceedings soon.
In 2018, actor Charlotte Arnould accused him of raping her at his home. That case is still active, and in August 2024 prosecutors requested that it go to trial.
