French actor Gerard Depardieu faces being stripped of Legion of Honour medal, France’s highest award
- Culture Minister Rima Abdul Malak said on Friday disciplinary proceedings have been started against the actor, who was awarded the order in 1996
- The minister described comments made in a TV report by Depardieu, who has been under investigation for allegations of rape since 2020, as ‘disgusting’
French actor Gérard Depardieu, 74, could lose his Legion of Honour medal, France’s highest distinction.
Disciplinary proceedings have been initiated against the actor, who appeared in many films including Cyrano de Bergerac, Culture Minister Rima Abdul Malak said on the television channel France 5 on Friday.
A council of the order will meet to decide whether Depardieu should be stripped of his honour, she explained. Depardieu was awarded the order in 1996.
On Friday, the minister of culture described the actor’s comments in the television report about his trip to North Korea in 2018, which was broadcast at the beginning of December, as “disgusting”.
In the film, he repeatedly makes misogynistic and questionable comments. In a scene showing him at a stud farm, he said that women like to ride because their clitoris rubs against the saddle. They are big sluts, he continued.
As the media reported on Saturday with reference to Depardieu’s lawyers, the actor will make his medal available to the minister of culture.