A French Parliamentary Investigation Highlights Sexual Violence in the Entertainment Sector

A French parliamentary inquiry into sexual violence has denounced what it describes as “endemic” abuse within the nation’s entertainment sector.

The scathing report, details of which were shared with French media prior to its presentation in parliament on Wednesday, advocates for a comprehensive reform in funding and regulations to safeguard vulnerable actors and minors on film sets.

“Moral, sexist, and sexual violence in the cultural sector is systemic, endemic, and persistent,” stated French MP Sandrine Rousseau, who chaired the investigation.

Some of France’s most prominent figures, including Juliette Binoche, Jean Dujardin, and Pierre Niney, agreed to provide testimony. The inquiry was initiated last October following allegations from French actress Judith Godrèche, who accused veteran directors Jacques Doillon and Benoît Jacquot of raping her at the age of 15 and criticized the film industry’s failure to address ongoing abuse.

The findings come on the heels of last week’s sexual assault trial involving French star Gerard Depardieu (Green Card, Cyrano de Bergerac), marking the most high-profile case in a surge of recent #MeToo allegations that have shaken the nation’s cultural institutions. Depardieu is accused of sexually assaulting two women on a film set in 2021, which he denies. A verdict is expected on May 13.

The parliamentary report presents 86 recommendations aimed at enhancing protections for the vulnerable, including mandates that all casting sessions occur “in professional locations during working hours” with at least two adults present, the necessity of intimacy coordinators for sex scenes, and a blanket prohibition on the sexualization of minors in film and fashion shoots.

Additional suggestions include modifications to actor contracts to stipulate “precise and detailed terms” concerning the filming or staging of intimate scenes, ensuring informed consent and safeguarding actor rights, and granting actors the legal right to review and approve any edited scenes that depict their intimate body parts, with the French film board, the CNC, mediating any disputes. The report also advocates for extending French law to lengthen the statute of limitations for adults to report cases of childhood sexual abuse.

Depardieu’s trial is merely the latest in a series of #MeToo scandals and legal challenges that have unsettled the French film industry in recent years, prompting a significant transformation that many in the sector believe is long overdue.

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