It seems the French film industry is taking further steps to address sexual misconduct, which their government found is “systemic, endemic and persistent” in their ranks. Shortly following the high-profile conviction of Gérard Depardieu, actor Théo Navarro-Mussy was banned from the Cannes Film Festival red carpet after being accused of rape by three women. Navarro-Mussy has a supporting role in Dossier 137, which has its Cannes premiere on Thursday.
Théo Navarro-Mussy stands accused of not only sexual abuse but also of physical and psychological violence by his former partners, in incidents that allegedly occurred in 2018, 2019, and 2020, per Deadline. Though the court case was dropped last month, the women reportedly plan to appeal. Cannes Film Festival Delegate General Thierry Fremaux confirmed the ban to the French magazine Télérama (via ABC News), explaining, “It is because there is an appeal, and therefore the investigation is still active, that the case is not suspended. When a legal decision becomes final, the situation changes.”
Navarro-Mussy’s attorney told Télérama regarding the appeal, “I have received no information indicating that any proceedings are ongoing. This proposed complaint with civil party status has, to my knowledge, not been legally filed.”
Nevertheless, in a statement to Variety, Dossier 137 producers Caroline Benjo and Carole Scotta said, “Even though the alleged facts largely predate the production of the film, we decided with the festival management that the person in question would not accompany the film to Cannes, out of respect for the plaintiffs and for the victims’ word, and without prejudice to the presumption of innocence of the accused. The management of the Cannes Film Festival has been very clear about not highlighting any person suspected of sexist or sexual violence. For [production company] Haut et Court, these issues are very close to our hearts, so this decision was a matter of course, as well as for [director] Dominik Moll, whose position on these issues has always been very clear.”
French news agency AFP reports (via Variety) that this is the first time an actor has been banned from the festival due to sexual abuse allegations. (Johnny Depp, accused of physical and sexual abuse by ex Amber Heard, staged a minor comeback at the 2023 festival despite a U.K. judge ruling Heard’s allegations “substantially true.”) This year’s Cannes jury president, French film legend Juliette Binoche (who’s had her own personal issues with Depardieu), reacted to his conviction by observing (via Deadline), “He’s not a sacred monster, he’s a man who lost his aura owing to facts that occurred and were looked at by a court.”
“The festival is following this trend in social and political life. There have been great changes occurring in the world; sometimes it follows the trend, sometimes it spearheads it,” Binoche said at the Cannes press conference. “I think the festival is in step with what’s happening today. #MeToo took some time to gain strength. We reacted very strongly recently.”
