French actor Gerard Depardieu denies sexual assault but acknowledges ‘vulgar Russian nature’ in trial
25 March 2025, 21:13 | Updated: 25 March 2025, 21:14
Gerard Depardieu has denied sexual assault on the second day of his trial, where he stands accused of assaulting two women on a film set in 2021.
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The 76-year-old said he has been told he has a ‘vulgar Russian nature’ for his drinking, but denied the charges against him.
Depardieu, who previously has denied any wrongdoing, is accused of using "violence, coercion, surprise or threat" in the alleged assault, which prosecutors said took place on the set of Les Volets verts (The Green Shutters).
He told the court: "I've always been told I have a Russian nature, I don't know if it's because of the drinking or the vulgarity.
"I'm not touching the butts of women."
Prosecutors say that in both cases, victims reported that the 76-year-old actor trapped them between his legs and groped their buttocks, genitals, chest and breasts over their clothes.
One woman described the alleged assault in detail, and told the court Depardieu behaved "like a madman" who took "pleasure in frightening me".
She told the court: "That's when I had a reflex of 'my God'. I tried to free myself, I tried to take his hands away, I couldn't do it.
"He terrified me, he laughed, he looked like a madman."
"It was very brief, there was no shouting," she added.
The anonymous woman said she had been too scared to speak out, and that Depardieu was too strong for her to break free - but that someone eventually removed his hands from her.
"I saw in his eyes a pleasure in frightening me, that's what I felt, it's savagery. He terrified me, and that amused him," she said.
Depardieu behaved completely differently in court than how he normally behaves on film sets, the woman said.
"Here, he's exemplary, he doesn't move, he's quiet, he doesn't make any noise," she said. "He's not like that on the film set: he gesticulates, he grunts, he makes remarks to women."
The actor faces up to five years in prison and a fine of €75,000 (£62,000) if he is found guilty.
The trial comes as France continues to reckon with sexual violence in the wake of the #MeToo movement that struggled to find traction, especially in the cinema industry.
According to Paris prosecutors, the woman told investigators that she had first heard sexual remarks from Depardieu and then one day, as she walked past him, he had "grabbed her, attracted her towards him, blocked her with his legs, and groped her waist, hips and chest, accompanying her gestures with obscene remarks".
Three people witnessed it, prosecutors said, confirming that the woman attempted to break off Depardieu's grip and that she seemed "shocked".
A psychiatrist examination granted her a seven-day leave.
After the incident, it was arranged for Depardieu to apologise.
But in a TV interview aired on Saturday, she said the actor was furious and blamed her for causing trouble.
Prosecutors said witnesses confirmed that what Depardieu had said did not constitute an apology.
In the interview with French online news site Mediapart, the production designer - who spoke on camera but only gave her first name - said the alleged assault had taken a toll on her personal and professional life for at least one-and-a-half years. She said she could not sleep well, suffered anxiety attacks and lost weight.
The woman, according to prosecutors, said it had taken her a while to file a complaint but decided to do so after hearing on television that there had never been an incident during the shoot.
The month before the alleged assault, another woman also working on the film's set had complained about Depardieu, Paris prosecutors said.
A director's assistant told investigators Depardieu had touched her buttocks on several occasions. She had expressed her disapproval and in return, Depardieu, she said, had been insulting towards her.
She was also given a six-day leave by a psychiatrist.
It is not clear when the court will rule.
Despite the allegations against Depardieu, many have come out in his support, including French President Emmanuel Macron.
Late in 2023, 56 French performers, writers and producers published an essay defending the film star, saying that when "Gerard Depardieu is targeted this way, it is the art (of cinema) that is being attacked."
Their call came just weeks after national broadcaster France 2 put out a documentary outlining accusations of sexual misconduct by 16 women against Depardieu, and showed the actor making obscene remarks and gestures during a 2018 trip to North Korea.
In the footage, Depardieu can be seen making groaning sounds and sexual comments in front of women, including a girl about 10 years old who is horse riding.
He can also be seen posing for a photo, saying he was "touching the bottom" of a North Korean interpreter by his side.
He was charged in 2021 with rape and sexual assault after authorities revived a 2018 investigation that was initially dropped, following allegations from actor Charlotte Arnould.
In an open letter published in the conservative-leaning newspaper Le Figaro, Depardieu said last year: "I have never, ever abused a woman."
