The "sacred monster" is disenchanted: Gérard Depardieu found guilty of sexual assault

It's a remarkable moment: just hours before the opening of the 78th Cannes Film Festival, France's most famous actor was publicly called to account on Tuesday. The Paris criminal court found Gérard Depardieu guilty of sexual assaults on two women and sentenced the 76-year-old to 18 months in prison. The "holy monster of French cinema," as Depardieu is often called, has thus been convicted as a sex offender for the first time – even though the verdict is not yet final. In Cannes, which has long struggled with the #MeToo movement, this is likely to have a lasting impact.

In addition to the suspended prison sentence, the court also imposed a two-year ban on public office and ordered Depardieu's registration on the sex offenders' register. In addition, the actor must pay €4,000 in damages to the plaintiff, Amélie K., as well as €10,000 to cover legal costs. The judges based their ruling on the "consistent and consistent statements of the victims," ​​supplementary witness statements, and the "proven traumatization" of one of the two plaintiffs.

Depardieu himself did not consider it necessary to appear in court for the verdict. His defense attorney, Maître Jérémie Assous, said he was in the Azores for filming. His longtime collaborator Fanny Ardant had hired him for the film he was shooting there. The actress and director also testified in his favor at the start of the trial in March. She said she had never observed any behavior that she considered abusive. With Gérard Depardieu, one can always say "no."

Specifically, the trial concerned allegations of sexual harassment during the filming of the 2021 film "Les volets verts" (The Green Shutters). A set designer and an assistant director, Amélie K. and Sarah (not her real name), reported being repeatedly groped by Depardieu on her breasts, buttocks, and hips. One victim claimed that the actor "brutally grabbed" her and held her "with her legs closed." The women's statements were made independently and were corroborated by other witnesses.

Depardieu denied the allegations in full. While he admitted to occasionally being "rude or vulgar," he denied any intention of sexual harassment. "I don't know why I would grope women or touch their breasts or buttocks," he once said, adding that he wasn't one of those "guys on the metro who rub themselves against other people's bodies." In his closing statement, however, the 76-year-old described himself as a "man from another era" – with perhaps different standards of behavior and a rather outdated image of women.

During the trial, four other women appeared as witnesses alongside the plaintiffs. They reported similar experiences with Depardieu between 2007 and 2015. In several cases, they described touching her breasts or underwear. One of them said: "At twenty, you don't just go to the police and report Mr. Depardieu." Their statements were not relevant to the verdict, as they fell outside the possible time period of the charges, but were noted by the court for the purpose of assessing their overall credibility.

The behavior of the eccentric defense attorney Assous was probably not particularly helpful. During the trial, he called the plaintiffs "liars" and "hysterics" and shouted at them, "Go cry!" After the verdict was announced, Assous expressed outrage and called it an attack on the right to a defense. He announced an appeal against the verdict.

The lawyers for the civil parties accused the defense of deliberately using harsh words and an aggressive tone to undermine the victims' credibility. They argued that the trial clearly demonstrated how victims are subjected to a second victimization through the courtroom process—a phenomenon known as secondary victimization.

For Gérard Depardieu, it is not out of the question that he will soon appear in court again – this time in a particularly serious case. Actress Charlotte Arnould, now 29, accuses him of sexually abusing her over two days in August 2018 in his Paris apartment. Arnould, who has publicly admitted to the allegations, has been trying for years to have her complaint legally recognized. The investigation was initially closed, but Arnould persisted. The case has now been reopened, and the investigating judges are recommending the opening of a trial. A decision on this is still pending.