Verdict due in Gérard Depardieu trial for alleged sexual assaults

Gérard Depardieu volition look successful tribunal connected Tuesday to perceive the verdict successful his proceedings for allegedly sexually assaulting 2 women during a movie sprout successful 2021.

Depardieu, 76, is the highest-profile figure successful the French movie manufacture to look allegations of intersexual battle since the #MeToo movement. If convicted, helium could look up to 5 years successful situation and a good of €75,000 (£63,000).

Depardieu is charged with the intersexual battle of a 54-year-old acceptable dresser and a 34-year-old adjunct manager during the shooting of the diagnostic movie Les Volets Verts (The Green Shutters) successful Paris successful 2021. He denied each the charges, telling the tribunal helium had been “dragged done the mud by calumny and lies”.

Depardieu is accused of trapping the set decorator, identified lone arsenic Amélie, betwixt his legs connected the movie acceptable and grabbing her buttocks, pubis and chest. She said helium grabbed and trapped her with force, utilized obscene connection and had to beryllium pulled disconnected her.

Amélie told the Paris transgression court: “It was the information that helium knew I was acrophobic – I saw his eyes airy up with a benignant of pleasance successful making idiosyncratic afraid. I retrieve that savagery. He truly terrified me, and that amused him.”

She said that astatine the clip of the onslaught she had been moving connected acceptable trying to way down parasols for the film. “That’s wherever I understood the spot helium had, helium held maine very, precise hard,” she told the court. “I retrieve his eyes, I saw this large face, reddish eyes, precise angry, precise agitated. And helium was saying: ‘Come interaction my large parasol,’ with a brainsick look.”

Depardieu is besides accused of sexually assaulting an assistant director, who has not been named successful the media. She told the tribunal Depardieu touched her buttocks and breasts connected 3 occasions.

Depardieu admitted successful tribunal that helium sometimes utilized vulgar connection connected set, specified arsenic shouting “Dick! Pussy!”. He said this was simply “like saying wee wee poo poo for a child”. He denied intersexual assault.

The authorities authoritative Laurent Guy told the trial that Depardieu should beryllium recovered guilty, denouncing what helium called the actor’s “total denial and nonaccomplishment to question himself”.

Guy said the onslaught connected the acceptable dresser was an “indisputable” intersexual battle with 3 witnesses. He said Depardieu’s grabbing of the adjunct manager was besides intersexual battle and unit members were made alert of the incidents astatine the time.

The women’s lawyers described Depardieu, who has made much than 200 films and TV series, arsenic a “sexual predator”. They said helium was an “all-powerful” prima who deliberately targeted inferior women.

“Everyone knew,” said a 30-year-old histrion who was called arsenic a witness. She said that during her archetypal role, aged 20, successful the Netflix bid Marseille, Depardieu abruptly enactment his manus wrong her shorts and underwear, against her skin. She pushed him distant and helium did it again, she said. When she protested, helium said: “What? I thought you wanted to win successful cinema,” the tribunal heard.

Depardieu told the proceedings that the media had utilized allegations against him to harm his reputation. He attacked the #MeToo movement arsenic good arsenic the women who had held protestation placards extracurricular a performance circuit helium was connected astatine the clip of the allegations. “This question is going to go a terror,” helium said.

The actor’s lawyer, Jérémie Assous, said the 2 complainants were lying and portion of a conspiracy to “bring down” a large man. “Today, being charged with intersexual battle has an atomic effect; it neutralises you, kills you socially,” Assous said.

The Paris prosecutor’s bureau has requested Depardieu look a further proceedings for rape and intersexual battle successful a abstracted lawsuit brought by the histrion Charlotte Arnould, but nary day has been set.

In an unfastened missive to Le Figaro successful 2023, Depardieu denied the allegations, saying immoderate brushwood with Arnould had been consensual.