“Gérard Depardieu victim of lynching”: the open letter of 60 artists to defend the actor from the accusation of rape
Almost 60 French actors and other personalities prominent figures have denounced the “lynching” of disgraced screen legend Gerard Depardieu, accused of rape and facing a string of other sexual assault charges. An open letter entitled “Don't cancel Gerard Depardieu”, which sees the British Charlotte Rampling among its promoters, from the former French first lady and singer Carla Bruni and by Depardieu's ex-partner, the actress Carole Bouquetclaims the star is the victim of a “torrent of hate.”
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“Gerard Depardieu he is probably the greatest of all actors,” reads the letter published by the French newspaper Le Figaro late in the evening of Christmas Day. Depardieu, who has made more than 200 films and television series, was accused of rape in 2020 and has been accused of sexual harassment and assault by more than a dozen women. Despite the absence of a judicial sentence against him, in recent days many have been quick to distance themselves from the actor. His supporters said: “We can no longer remain silent in the face of the lynching that he is facing.” The letter says that Depardieu was attacked “in defiance of the presumption of innocence from which he would have benefited, like everyone else, if he were not the giant of cinema that he is”.
Depardieu called the signatories “courageous” and praised the letter. “I found her beautiful,” said the actor who spoke to the RTL broadcaster by telephone. Depardieu admitted having received the letter before its publication, but reiterated that he had not requested it. The actor is facing renewed scrutiny for sexually explicit comments, including one about a young girl riding a horse during a 2018 trip to North Korea, that were first broadcast in a documentary on national television this month. “When people attack Gerard Depardieu in this way, they are attacking art”, reads the letter, adding “France owes him a lot. Cinema and theater cannot do without his unique and extraordinary personality”, they say celebrities.
“No one will be able to erase the indelible mark of his work on our times” he insists. Even French President Emmanuel intervened on the matter Macron that declared that Depardieu had become the target of a “manhunt“, while his family denounced an “unprecedented conspiracy”. Rights activists condemned Macron's comments as an “insult” to all women who have suffered sexual violence. Politicians also called Macron into question, including former French President Francois Hollande.
The letter, titled “Don't write off Gerard Depardieu“, sparked a new wave of indignation in France. Laurent Boyet, founder of Les Papillons (Butterflies), a group that fights against violence against children, said the letter was “indecent” and added that the organization was abandoning one of the signatories, the actor Pierre Richard, as its ambassador.”We are and will always be on the side of the victims,” declared Boyet.
Anne-Cecile Mailfert, director of the Women's Foundation, told AFP that “no one is above the law”, while activist Emmanuelle Dancourt, of the group #MeTooMedias, said she was “saddened” and “shocked” by the letter, but also said she understood how Depardieu's friends felt compelled to defend him. “The people who do this are our friends, our fathers, our husbands, our neighbors, our colleagues, people we know,” she told BFMTV. Meanwhile, Culture Minister Rima Abdul Malak said the actor could be deprived of Legion of Honourthe country's highest award.
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