French actor Jean-Paul Belmondo says he’s done all he ever wanted in life
Charismatic 83-year-old who was equally at home in action and art-house movies receives standing ovation at Venice Film Festival as he accepts Golden Lion lifetime achievement award
Veteran French actor Jean-Paul Belmondo says he has done everything he wanted in life.
Before accepting the Venice film festival’s Golden Lion for lifetime achievement on Thursday, the charismatic 83-year-old said: “I would say I’ve done everything I wanted to. I love the sun. I love the sea, [there you are].”
Belmondo, known for movies such as the 1964 hit L’Homme de Rio (That Man from Rio), received a long standing ovation as he walked on stage, leaning on a cane, to receive the coveted award. Of the Golden Lion, he said: “It’s a great feeling, I’m very happy and really honoured to be here in Venice.”
Belmondo said he hadn’t always known he wanted to be an actor. As a young man, the Frenchman trained to become a professional boxer, but then got involved in theatre, from where his acting career took off, lasting more than half a century.
While he has done a lot of work in French art-house cinema, many think of him today as a star of action films, where he almost always insisted on doing his own stunts.