Culture Minister Rima Abdul-Malak ruled on Friday that Gérard Depardieu's comments and attitude, revealed in a recent broadcast, during the actor's trip to North Korea in 2018 were “shameful for France.”
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When Ms. Abdul-Malak traveled to Moissac (Tarn-et-Garonne) with government spokesman Olivier Véran, she denounced “the absolutely shocking comments that we have seen in this report, an attitude that is intended to be joking and provocative in tone, but “That’s it.” quite disrespectful and unworthy indeed, and that shames France.
These previously unpublished images of the actor's journey, published by the program Complément d'investigation, show Gérard Depardieu making inappropriate comments during exchanges with women and making gestures and throat sounds that mimic the sexual act.
At a stud farm he says: “Women love to ride horses [car] her clitoris rubs against the saddle […] They are enjoying it enormously.” And continued: “They are big sluts.”
“It disgusted me,” added the minister on Friday, who recalled, however, that “it is not for the Ministry of Culture to give instructions, since in France there is complete freedom of creation.”
“There are directors who can decide whether they want to play him in future films or not. “I don’t feel like there are a lot of proposals coming across his desk right now,” she further noted.
According to the Paris prosecutor's office, the French actor, already accused of rape, has been the subject of another complaint since mid-September from an actress who accuses him of sexually assaulting her during filming in 2007. Gérard Depardieu denies these allegations.
Gérard Depardieu is a national icon like Alain Delon or Brigitte Bardot and is known all over the world. He is an extraordinary actor whose career has been marked by excesses and scandals. He has made more than 200 films in cinema and television.