The French actor Gérard Depardieu appeared on Monday before a Paris court to face two charges of sexually assaulting two women working on the set of a film in which he was starring.
The trial is the first time Mr. Depardieu will have to answer in court to accusations of groping, sexual assault, harassment and rape that have piled up against him for years, and which he has denied.
The charges were filed after two women on the set of “Les Volets Verts,” a movie by the French director Jean Becker that was released in 2022, made police complaints that he had groped their genitals, buttocks and breasts. If found guilty, Mr. Depardieu would face up to five years in prison and a fine of 75,000 euros, about $81,000.
Mr. Depardieu has denied all accusations. His lawyer, Jérémie Assous, demanded the case be thrown out before it was heard, arguing that the investigation was faulty and biased with an aim to “make Depardieu fall.” He was unsuccessful.
The trial was scheduled for October but was postponed after Mr. Depardieu did not appear, citing health reasons. Mr. Assous presented medical assessments that showed Mr. Depardieu had long-term diabetes and heart problems.
For many, the case represents a breakthrough for the #MeToo movement in France, which was stalled for years, particularly in the film industry.
Considered among the most famous and powerful actors France has produced in generations, Mr. Depardieu, 76, has dominated the French screen for decades, appearing in more than 230 films, including “Cyrano de Bergerac” and “The Man in the Iron Mask.”
At least six women, including the two whose cases were being heard on Monday, have filed police complaints against him.
“He’s truly an artist, on a par with directors, given his aura,” said Geneviève Sellier, the author of “The Cult of the Auteur,” a book about sexual abuse in a segment of the movie industry. “So the fact that Depardieu was charged and is going to trial means that, from now on, the artist in France is no longer above the law.”
While the #MeToo movement toppled scores of powerful men in Hollywood, in France it was viewed suspiciously by some as a puritanical American import that was tainting an essential part of France’s intellectual and cultural identity.
The movement has brought some small structural changes to the cinema industry, including mandatory training for producers in preventing sexual violence on sets if movies are to receive important government subsidies. But it has otherwise faced strong resistance from a sector that is considered near sacred in France and run largely by men.
“Up until now, the French institutions of the cinema covered up all these excesses,” Ms. Sellier said. “All these institutions are run by men — who are immovable and who have turned a blind eye to these abuses for as long as possible.”
In recent months, however, a number of cases have gone to trial and resulted in convictions. Last fall, the film director and actor Nicolas Bedos was convicted of sexually assaulting two women in 2023 and sentenced to one year in prison, which was reduced to six months of house arrest with electronic surveillance.
Last month, a French court convicted the director Christophe Ruggia of sexually assaulting the actress Adèle Haenel when she was a minor, handing him a four-year sentence — two years under house arrest and the rest suspended. Mr. Ruggia has appealed.
It is too soon to determine if the rulings signal a shift for #MeToo in French cinema, said Marie Lemarchand, an actress who is a member of the Association of Actors and Actresses, which was formed in 2021 to lobby for changes in the industry. “But symbolically, it’s very powerful,” she said, “because these people who filed complaints were recognized as victims.”
The first allegations against Mr. Depardieu in the #MeToo era arose in 2018, when an aspiring actress, Charlotte Arnould, told the police that the actor raped her twice when she was 22.
An investigation into those allegations was dropped, then picked up again in 2020 and is continuing, according to the Paris prosecutor’s office.
After Ms. Arnould stepped forward publicly, others followed.
At least three other investigations into allegations of sexual assault and rape against Mr. Depardieu, brought by French actresses and a Spanish journalist, were begun. Two were dropped because they were past the statute of limitations.
Many prominent people have rushed to Mr. Depardieu’s defense. Most notable among them is President Emmanuel Macron of France, who condemned what he called a “manhunt.” The actor, he said, “makes France proud.”
Mr. Depardieu sat in the front of the court on a special stool he brought with him. By the time the judges had ruled to proceed with the hearing, little time was left for witnesses — as Mr. Depardieu’s ill health has limited the hearings to six hours a day. He is expected to testify on Tuesday.
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