Gerard Depardieu summoned for questioning about sexual assault allegations

Actor Gerard Depardieu has been summoned for police questioning about allegations made by two women that he sexually assaulted them on movie sets, according to French media.

Broadcaster BFMTV and the daily Le Parisien both reported that the 75-year-old actor was called in for police questioning in Paris on Monday.

The Paris police force said it was not authorised to comment and directed questions to the Paris prosecutor’s office, which said it had no comment “at this stage”.

“We have no information to communicate or confirm before having assessed any eventual charges and directions,” the office said in an emailed response to questions from The Associated Press.

One of Depardieu’s lawyers, Christian Saint-Palais, was seen walking into a police station in the 14th district of Paris after lunching at a nearby restaurant.

“No need to ask me any questions,” he said. “You know very well that a lawyer cannot speak at this stage of the procedure, and personally I regret that other persons have spoken, so I won’t make any comment.”

A lawyer for one of the alleged victims did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment.

Depardieu denies wrongdoing. In an open letter last October, he said: “I have never, ever abused a woman.”

BFMTV and Le Parisien reported that the police summons relates to accusations of sexual assault filed by two women who accuse him of groping during filming — one in 2014, the other in 2021.

Depardieu has also been accused by more than a dozen other women of harassing, groping or sexually assaulting them.

He was handed preliminary rape and sexual assault charges in 2020 following allegations from actor Charlotte Arnould.

Depardieu was long seen as a national icon in France. He has been a global ambassador for French film and enjoyed international fame with several roles in Hollywood.