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French actor Gerard Depardieu, already accused of rape and sexual assault in connection with a 2018 case, is now being accused of sexual misconduct by 13 women in an inquest report published by Mediapart.
The allegations were made by female actors, makeup artists and production staff, some of whom have spoken out on the basis of anonymity, and are said to have occurred during the filming of 11 films that were released between 2004 and 2022. Mediapart said: “An actress just gave her credit for the French justice system.”
None of those 13 women have taken legal action against Depardieu, according to a statement from Paris prosecutors to Variety.
“The prosecutor has not received a new complaint. A formal investigation launched in 2020 following the lawsuit filed by Charlotte Arnaud is still ongoing,” the statement continued.
Depardieu’s legal representative, Cabinet Temime, has denied all allegations and released a lengthy statement saying the actor “does not intend” to address the article, “which appears to mix very different subjects, including some very subjective assessments and/or moral judgements .”
He “formally denies all allegations that may be criminally relevant,” the statement said.
One of the reports comes from a former extra working on a 2015 film called The Box, who said Depardieu “put his hand under (her) dress” and was “trying to cum in (her) panties.” After she pushed him, he reportedly became “aggressive” and “tried to push my panties aside to finger (her).” Mediapart quoted “a member of the production team” as saying filming on “The Box” was halted because “an extra said she was a victim of Gérard Depardieu.” The scene was eventually modified so that the extra was no longer standing next to Depardieu, according to the anonymous member of the production team. An actor who worked on the film said she heard Depardieu “screaming that he could have whoever he wanted and that he didn’t want her, that she was a ‘fat pig.'”
The investigative article also reported on an incident that allegedly happened during the filming of “Disco,” directed by Fabien Onteniente. Depardieu played the boss of a nightclub in a scene with around 250 extras, including Helène Darras, who told Mediapart that he was “attacked”. [her] at the waist” and had a “wandering hand”. She said he “laid his hand on [her] Bums insistently,” and suggested they go to his dressing room.
Mediapart also released statements from filmmakers and producers who worked with the actor on the sets where the misconduct allegedly occurred. They include Onteniente, Olivier Dahan and producer Alain Goldman (“La vie en Rose”), Graham Guit and Fabio Conversi (“Hello Goodbye”), Safy Nebbou (“L’autre Dumas”) and Pascal Breton (“Marseille”). With the exception of Onteniente, the directors and producers denied seeing any incidents during filming.
The actor was indicted on December 16, 2020 in connection with allegations of rape and sexual assault related to a lawsuit filed by Charlotte Arnould in 2018. The case was previously dropped in 2019 due to lack of evidence, but resumed in 2020 and criminal charges were filed in December. No custodial measures were taken against the actor.