The controversy surrounding Gérard Depardieu did not subside during the holidays. In a column published Monday evening on the website of the Figaro56 personalities from the world of culture denounce the “lynching” of the actor, indicted for rape since 2020 and at the heart of a scandal that has become politico-media following a documentary broadcast on France 2.
Among them are the director Bertrand Blier, the actresses Nathalie Baye, Carole Bouquet or Charlotte Rampling, the actors Jacques Weber, Pierre Richard or Gérard Darmon, but also the singers Roberto Alagna, Carla Bruni, Arielle Dombasle and Jacques Dutronc.
A “torrent of hatred […] without nuance »
“Gérard Depardieu is probably the greatest actor. The last sacred monster of cinema. We can no longer remain silent in the face of the lynching that fell upon him, in the face of the torrent of hatred that pours down on his person, without nuance, in the most complete amalgamation and in defiance of a presumption of innocence of which he would have benefited, like everyone else, if he were not the giant of cinema that he is,” write the signatories of the forum.
“When we attack Gérard Depardieu in this way, it is art that we attack. Through his genius as an actor, Gérard Depardieu contributes to the artistic influence of our country. (…) Whatever happens, no one will ever be able to erase the indelible trace of his work which will forever mark our time. The rest, everything else, concerns justice; than justice. Exclusively,” they add. They hope that he can continue to act because, according to them, “to deprive ourselves of this immense actor would be a tragedy, a defeat. The death of art. Ours. »
The shock wave after “Additional investigation”
Emmanuel Macron and members of the actor’s family, including his daughter Julie, had already spoken publicly to defend Gérard Depardieu, indicted following one of the two complaints against him in France and who refutes these accusations.
The recent broadcast of a report on the actor, in the program Complément d’investigation on France 2, caused a shock wave. In these images, Gérard Depardieu multiplies misogynistic and insulting remarks while addressing women, not sparing a little girl with comments of a sexual nature.