French actor Gérard Depardieu has been ordered to stand trial over allegations of rape and sexual assault in 2018. His accuser, actor Charlotte Arnould, said she was relieved the case was going to court, seven years after she filed a complaint.
Depardieu, 76, has denied the charges, insisting his relationship with Arnould was consensual. He was previously convicted in May of sexually assaulting two members of a film production crew four years ago—though he was not jailed and is now on a list of sex offenders.
Seven years later, seven years of horror and hell... I think I'm having trouble realising how huge this is. I'm relieved, Arnould wrote on social media.
Arnould's lawyer, Carine Durrieu Diebolt, confirmed that Depardieu had been ordered to stand trial for the alleged assault and rape by digital penetration on two occasions at his Paris home in August 2018. She expressed confidence in the case, emphasizing that it represents a path towards judicial truth for her client.
The trial date has not been set and was initially dismissed due to insufficient evidence, but gained traction after Arnould pursued her case as a civil party, leading to a judicial investigation in 2020.
In a letter published in Le Figaro in 2023, Depardieu denied the allegations, stating: Never, ever, have I abused a woman. He insisted that there was never any coercion or violence involved in his interactions with Arnould.
