A disciplinary procedure has been opened against Gérard Depardieu concerning his Legion of Honor. The actor, indicted for rape, reacts on Saturday December 16.
Will the Legion of Honor of Gérard Depardieu, targeted by two complaints for rape and sexual assault, be taken away from him? The Minister of Culture Rima Abdul Malak indicated on the set of C à vous, Friday December 15, that a “disciplinary procedure” would be initiated to decide whether the Legion of Honor should be withdrawn from the actor. He received it from the hands of Jacques Chirac in 1996. In a press release published on Saturday December 16, Gérard Depardieu’s lawyers indicated that he was placing his Legion of Honor “at the disposal” of the Minister of Defense. Culture, indicates Le Parisien. However, her lawyers wonder if the minister does not contribute to participating “actively in the manhunt” and “in the media lynching”, and if she “does not thus deal […] an additional blow to a presumption of innocence already dying”.
Gérard Depardieu has been indicted for rape since 2020 following a complaint from an actress, recalls Franceinfo. The actor disputes these accusations. Thursday December 7, 2023, the magazine Complément d’investigation broadcast images of Gérard Depardieu during a trip to North Korea. In these, he multiplies obscene allusions, sexualizes a little girl who rides a horse and makes sexist remarks towards his translator. Following this broadcast, the Minister of Culture said she had received “messages from all over the world” from shocked partners.
Friday December 15, Rima Abdul Malak recalled that a Legion of Honor distinguishes “a man, an artist and an attitude, values”. “A council of the order will meet,” she indicated, before adding that she was campaigning to prevent acts of harassment and sexual and gender-based violence from taking place on film sets.
The actor is accused of rape and sexual assault by actress Charlotte Arnould. He has been indicted since 2020. Since then, other women have denounced his behavior. Thirteen testified to sexual violence in a Mediapart article. Among them is the actress Hélène Darras, who accuses Gérard Depardieu of having sexually assaulted her on the set of the film Disco in 2007. She filed a complaint against him in September 2023. The actor has always denied these accusations, claiming in an open letter having “never abused a woman”.
