French film star Gérard Depardieu today insisted he is ‘neither a rapist nor a predator’ as he broke his silence on claims he is a serial sexual abuser.
The 74-year-old accused enemies of subjecting him to a media “lynching” and expressed his anger in an open letter in French newspaper Le Figaro.
They are his first public comments since at least thirteen women joined alleged rape victim Charlotte Arnould, 33, in accusing the actor of criminal behavior.
Paris-based investigative news site Mediapart has published a dossier outlining the allegations against him, accusing Depardieu of regularly preying on victims during productions such as Netflix’s crime drama Marseille.
Depardieu – who made his name with hits such as Green Card, The Last Metro and a film adaptation of Cyrano de Bergerac – vehemently rejects all claims, including the claim that he raped Ms Arnould in his Parisian mansion.
French film star Gérard Depardieu today insisted he is ‘neither a rapist nor a predator’ as he broke his silence on claims he is a serial sexual abuser
Depardieu is on trial for the attack, but writes in Figaro’s letter: ‘Never, never have I abused a woman.
“Hurting a woman would be like kicking my own mother’s stomach.”
He said he decided to speak out because feminist protests regularly disrupted his last show, which featured songs written by Barbara Brodi, the late French singer.
“All this affects me,” Depardieu said. “Worse, it’s extinguishing me.”
Depardieu said Ms Arnould, whom he has known since she was a little girl, had consented to sexual relations with him.
“Between us there was neither coercion, nor violence, nor protest,” he writes in the letter, saying Arnould was angry because he had refused to give her the opportunity to perform with him on stage.
Depardieu further admitted that his often drunken behavior may have been hurtful and shocking, but said: “I am neither a rapist nor a predator.”
Ms Arnould waived her legal right to anonymity at the end of 2021, in protest at the length of the investigation, after Depardieu was accused of rape and sexual assault.
Within days of his indictment, Depardieu was back working on the Paris set of the police drama ‘Maigret And The Dead Girl’, in which he starred with Jade Labeste.
There is CCTV footage of Depardieu performing a sex act with Arnould in August 2018.
The Mediapart report, published in Aprilreads: ‘In addition to Charlotte Arnould’s complaint, we have collected thirteen stories from women who say they have been subjected to sexually inappropriate gestures or propositions from the famous actor, with varying levels of severity.’
These new allegations come after French actress Charlotte Arnould (pictured) went public with her accusation that Depardieu, 74, raped her at his Parisian mansion
The report continues: ‘Across the different stories the same scene seemed to repeat itself. They are actresses, make-up artists and crew members.
‘They testify that they have been subjected to a hand on their buttocks, between the legs, or on their thighs or stomach – but also to obscene sexual propositions and sometimes persistent moaning.’
None of the thirteen allegations – some of which were made anonymously – are currently formal criminal complaints.
Mediapart claims that the incidents were often brushed aside with laughter and the words, “Oh, okay, it’s just Gérard!”
Mediapart suggests that many alleged victims feared that a complaint could lead to a response that would leave them never able to work again.
Mediapart notes: ‘The asymmetry between, on the one hand, often young, precarious women starting their careers, and on the other hand, a world-famous actor, whose presence sometimes makes it possible to finance the film.’
French outlet Médiapart published a dossier in April detailing how Depardieu had allegedly preyed on victims during recent productions, including Netflix crime drama Marseille
The Charlotte Arnould case is currently before the French courts after an attempt by Depardieu’s counsel to quash the charges was rejected.
The accusations against Dépardieu follow a series of #MeToo complaints against powerful men in the Paris art establishment, who allegedly raped or otherwise abused young women working as models and actresses.
Such scandals have led to demonstrations by women’s groups at high-profile show business events, calling on female actors to stop working with allegedly abusive men.
The #MeToo movement has also been seen in various forms around the world, especially following allegations against disgraced Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein.