In our previous post, we talked about 10 famous French actors. We learned details about their lives and careers and came to a better understanding of why they are/were who they are/were. But let’s not forget the ladies! That’s why today we will talk about 10 famous French actresses.

Many of those ladies rose to prominence and just like men, showed us the best of themselves on screen. Some of them had hard lives but despite that, they reached important positions and left a valuable legacy for future generations. Let’s learn more about these amazing ladies, shall we?

Catherine Deneuve

Catherine Deneuve is undoubtedly one of the greatest French actresses of all time. Although she focused on her acting career, Deneuve has also worked as a singer, a model, and a producer.

Deneuve has an artistic background since both of her parents were stage actors. She debuted on screen when she was only 13 years old.

She often portrayed the role of a mysterious, sophisticated woman in her movies. Her talent landed her important roles in projects led by renowned directors like Roman Polanski, François Truffaut, and Luis Buñuel.

Some of her most notable works include The Umbrellas of Cherbourg, Repulsion, Belle de Jour, Tristana, Indochine, and Place Vendôme. She has also participated in English-speaking films like The April Fools, Hustle, The Hunger, Dancer in the Dark, and The Musketeer.

Deneuve’s beauty opened many doors for her. For instance, she appeared on Playboy and modeled for renowned designers like Yves Saint Laurent and Louis Vuitton.

She continues participating in movies and is actively engaged in charitable works and politics.

Brigitte Bardot

Brigitte Bardot was one of the most well-known sex symbols during the 1950s and 1960s. She was famous for playing the role of a liberated, hedonistic woman.

Bardot was born in Paris. She lived a luxurious life but resented her parents due to their strictness. This is probably one of the reasons that explains her rebellious attitude in life.

Bardot was interested in ballet and took classes for three years. When she was 15, she was hired as a fashion model and appeared on the cover of Elle. This would later land her a movie offer.

She appeared in 47 movies, but four of them were decisive in her career: Naughty Girl, Plucking the Daisy, The Bride Is Too Much Beautiful, and And God Created Woman. This last movie turned her into an international star. It was a huge success in Europe but not so in the U.S. where it scandalized American viewers.

The French actress is currently 87. She retired in 1973 and became an animal rights activist.

Jeanne Moreau

Jeanne Moreau was born in Paris in 1928. Her family was split during World War II, and she lived with her mother during that time.

When she was 16, she attended a performance of Antigone, and that’s when she discovered her vocation.

Moreau debuted at the iconic Comédie-Française in 1947. She began appearing in movies a couple of years later. Some of her most notable performances were in Elevator to the Gallows, Les Amants, La Notte, Jules et Jim, Diary of a Chambermaid, and Viva Maria!

Moreau was an icon of the French New Wave. Her roles were the combination of a femme fatale and an intellectual. She helped redefine feminism in an era where women were seen as either virgins or prostitutes.

She was active in the show business for almost 70 years and earned numerous awards. Moreau was called “the greatest actress in the world” by Orson Welles. She passed away in 2017.

Simone Signoret

Simone Signoret was born in Germany in 1921. She grew up in Paris. At an early age, she was responsible for supporting her family during the Nazi occupation.

During this time, she became involved with a group of actors and writers that met at a café. She developed an interest in acting, and her friends encouraged her to pursue her dream.

Due to her sensual looks, she was often given the role of a prostitute. Some of her most famous movies include La Ronde, Casque d’or, Thérèse Raquin, Les Diaboliques, and The Crucible.

Her career continued well into her 60s despite sexist and ageist comments from critics. She died of pancreatic cancer in 1985.

Danielle Darrieux

Darrieux was born in Bordeaux in 1917. She studied music in Paris and got her first movie role when she was only 14. Due to her versatility (she could also dance and sing), she received numerous offers thereafter.

She was encouraged by her husband to try Hollywood and even signed a contract. When her contract ended, she returned to France, but she would come back to appear in other Hollywood films years later.

Some of her greatest films include Mayerling, La Ronde, Le Plaisir, and The Earrings of Madame de… She mastered comedy, romance, and noir throughout her 80-year career. She appeared in more than 110 movies in total.

The legendary actress died a few months after turning 100 in 2017.

Michèle Morgan

Michèle Morgan was born in one of the wealthy suburbs of Paris. She was determined to become an actress and left home at 15. She worked as an extra in several movies to pay for her acting classes.

Morgan appeared in her first major movie in 1937 and continued working until she had to escape from France during the Nazi invasion. She spent a few years in the U.S. and tried her luck in Hollywood but was not successful. She returned to Europe after the end of the war in the mid-1940s.

Some of her most famous movies include Gribouille, Le Quai des Brumes, Remorques, La Symphonie Pastorale, Les Grandes Manœuvres, and Marie-Antoinette reine de France.

She virtually retired in the 1970s and only made special appearances after that. She passed away in 2016.

Fanny Ardant

Fanny Ardant was born in France in 1949 but grew up in Monaco. At 17, she moved to France to study Political Science at the university but changed to acting in her early twenties.

Ardant gained international recognition in the early 1980s for her role in La Femme d’à côté opposite Gérard Depardieu. For this movie, she received her first César Award nomination.

She has worked with renowned European directors in movies like Les Uns et les autres, The Family, Melo, What a Drag/Pedale douce, and Ridicule.

Ardant has also starred in several Hollywood and British movies. She has received numerous awards for her performances.

At 72, she is still active in the film industry.

Leslie Caron

Leslie Caron was born in 1931. Her father was a businessman and her mother, a dancer. It was her mother who motivated her to start an artistic career after losing their wealth during World War II.

Initially, Caron was a ballerina. She worked in the Ballet des Champs Elysées ballet company until she was discovered by the American actor Gene Kelly. He would become a friend and mentor to her.

Many of Caron’s movies were successful musicals. However, she was not satisfied with them. She wanted to do more serious acting and that’s why she studied the Stanislavsky method.

She returned to France in the early 1970s but was not well received by her fellow countrymen. She once said that the French love Americans and Brits but not somebody who’s French and made it in Hollywood.

Caron is famous for movies like An American in Paris, The Glass Slipper, The Man with a Cloak, Lili, Daddy Long Legs, and Gigi.

She considered retiring during the 2020 lockdown but hasn’t made the decision just yet.

Isabelle Huppert

Isabelle Huppert was born in Paris in 1953. She was encouraged by her mother to pursue a career in acting. She became a teenage star and later attended acting school.

Huppert debuted on tv in 1971 and on the big screen in 1972. The actress started being recognized by the public after appearing in the controversial Les Valseuses, a cult film considered vulgar and immoral.

Since her debut, Huppert has worked in several countries like Italy, Russia, and the U.S. In fact, it is said that one of the three movies she makes every year is foreign.

Huppert is a versatile actress and appears in both art and commercial movies. However, she is mostly known for playing the roles of cold, disdainful, immoral women.

Some of her most memorable performances include La Dentellière, Violette Nozière, Une Affaire des Femmes, Madame Bovary, Malina, La Cérémonie, and La Pianiste.

Audrey Tautou

Audrey Tautou was born in Beaumont in 1976. At an early age, she showed an interest in acting. She started taking lessons at the Cours Florant, where she learned English and Italian.

She made her acting debut at 18. However, it wasn’t until 2001 that she gained international recognition after starring in Amélie. The movie was a success among both critics and viewers.

Although she has appeared in English-speaking movies, she has made it clear that she considers France her home and would never move to Hollywood.

Tautou is a versatile actress and has appeared in thrillers, dramas, and comedies. She is famous for movies like Dirty Pretty Things, A Very Long Engagement, The Da Vinci Code, Coco Before Chanel, and The Odyssey.

Tautou has also modeled for important brands like Chanel, Montblanc, and L’Oréal. Additionally, she has been declared a fashionista by the French media.

Conclusion

Today you learned about the lives and careers of 10 famous French actresses. There are way many more we could talk about, but it would be a super long post.

As we saw above, many of the lives of these women were not easy. They faced poverty, war, sexism, and other obstacles, but they didn’t let that put them down. That makes us admire their work even more.

I hope you liked this list. Who would you add? Let me know in the comments section below. Au revoir, les amis!

Let's Learn French!

Are you ready to take your French to the next level? I'm glad you are! Whether you are a beginner or an intermediate/advanced learner, I can recommend a few options for you.
For starters, if you're someone who likes to study on his own, I recommend the following programs:
Busuu
Mondly
Rocket Languages

However, if you would like to hire a teacher/tutor, I recommend you try the following:
italki
Lingoda
Preply

Feel free to check my site to learn about more resources. Don't forget to check back often to learn more about the French language and culture. Salut!

In my experience, one of the main reasons I started studying French was my interest in French movies and celebrities. Did you know that France is one of the main exporters of actors worldwide? Many Hollywood actors are French or of French origin, although not all migrate to the U.S. as France has an important film industry as well. We will talk about that in a future post.

Well, today we will talk about 10 famous French actors, either dead or alive. You might have heard about them, but if not, you will learn something new to talk about. If you’re interested in knowing more, keep on reading.

Gérard Depardieu

He is probably one of the most famous French actors ever. It seemed at a time that he appeared in every single French movie we saw. His prolific film career started in 1974, but he had been working on stage way before that.

Depardieu was born in 1948 in central France, more precisely, in Châteauroux. He grew up in poverty, and his life wasn’t easy. He was even put on probation when he was a teenager.

He made his debut in the movie Going Places, and the rest is history. His career has earned him numerous awards like the Cannes Best Actor Award, the César Award for Best Actor, a Golden Globe, and a nomination for an Oscar.

He is known for movies like The Last Metro, Jean de Florette, Cyrano de Bergerac, Astérix et Obélix contre César, among many others.

Depardieu is a controversial figure. He has been involved in several scandals regarding taxes, sexual assault, and family disputes. In 2013, he moved to Russia and became a Russian citizen.

Alain Delon

Delon was born in one of the wealthy suburbs of Paris. He was expelled from a Catholic school due to his unruly behavior. Later when he was 17, he was discharged from the Navy. He worked as a waiter, a porter, a secretary, and a sales assistant after that.

Brigitte Auber, an actress and friend of his, was an inspiration for him to start an acting career. He became a sex symbol due to his looks and continued that way when he worked in Hollywood.

Delon is famous for movies like Purple Noon, Rocco and His Brothers, L’Eclisse, The Leopard, Le Samourai, Le Cercle Rouge, Monsieur Klein, among others. His awards include a César, a Golden Bear, and a Palme d’Or.

Delon is not only an actor but also a singer, a film director, a screenwriter, a producer, and a businessman. He is currently 85.

Jean-Paul Belmondo

Belmondo was born in 1933 in the suburbs of Paris. He has been described as an icon and national treasure of France. He usually portrayed police officers in thrillers. Even though Hollywood producers tried to get him to work for them, the French actor always refused their offers. It is said he was not willing to risk his privileged position in France to begin a career in another country.

Belmondo was not only one of the most famous actors in France but all of Europe as well. He was also associated with the New Wave movement of the 1960s. He was called the French counterpart of American actors James Dean, Marlon Brando, and Humphrey Bogart.

He had a short boxing career but had always been interested in acting. Some of his most notable works include Breathless, That Man from Rio, Pierrot le Fou, Borsalino, and The Professional. He passed away on September 6, 2021.

Jean Reno

Reno was born in Morocco and is of Spanish origin. His mother died when he was a teenager. He moved to France with his family when he was 17 and obtained his citizenship after serving in the military.

His real name is Juan, but he changed it to the French version for commercial purposes. He was always given the “heavy guy” role when starting due to his large build.

Reno has worked for many years with the director Luc Besson. He has worked in American, English, Japanese, Spanish, Italian, and of course, French productions throughout his career. His filmography includes Crimson Rivers, Godzilla, The Da Vinci Code, Mission: Impossible, The Pink Panther, Ronin, and Les Visiteurs.

Reno is currently 73 and lives between Paris, Malaysia, and Los Angeles.

Louis de Funès

Born from Spanish parents in 1913, “Fufu” spoke French, English, and Spanish. He was fired many times from work. He studied acting for one year, and that’s where he made useful contacts for his career.

Louis made his film debut when he was 31. Once he reached stardom, he never stopped working on stage, unlike other actors. Although he was not widely known in the English-speaking world, he was one of the most popular actors at the time in Europe and some Asian countries.

He was often given the role of a middle-aged man with tendencies of hyperactivity and anger. His short height combined with his wide range of facial expressions resulted in a special comic effect. However, it is said that in real life he was a very shy person.

Some of his most notable works are Ah! Les belles bacchantes,  Le Mouton à cinq pattes, La Traversée de Paris, Pouic-Pouic, and Le gendarme de Saint-Tropez.

He passed away on January 27, 1983.

Jean Gabin

Jean Gabin was an important actor and singer. Due to his significance in French cinema, he was given the Légion d’honneur, the highest French order of merit.

Gabin was born in Paris and left school early. At the age of 19, he entered show business and performed various minor roles. After his return from the military, he worked in diverse music halls and operettas, including the legendary Moulin Rouge.

His film career started in the era of silent films. After making the transition to sound films a couple of years later, Gabin continued playing secondary roles until his breakthrough in Maria Chapdelaine.

During World War II, he escaped the German occupation of France and moved to the U.S., where he performed in two movies. However, they were not successful. During that time, he held a long romantic relationship with German actress Marlene Dietrich.

After a long stall in his career, he made a comeback in 1954. His most acclaimed films include Pépé le Moko, La grande illusion, Le Quai des brumes, La bête humaine, Le jour se lève, and Touchez pas au grisbi.

He died on November 15, 1976, and his ashes were scattered in the sea with military honors.

Yves Montand

Yves Montand was another important actor and singer. He was born in Italy in 1921 but grew up in Marseille. He began his career as a music-hall singer until he was discovered by Edith Piaf and joined her act in 1944. His songs about Paris became classics and earned him international recognition.

As an actor, he appeared in American movies and Broadway productions. His prolific career includes films such as I comme Icare, Garçon!, Jean de Florette, and Manon des Sources.

He was married to French actress Simone Signoret until she died in 1985. He died from a heart attack on November 9, 1991, on the set of a movie. Coincidentally, the character in his movie dies from a heart attack, too.

Gérard Philipe

Gérard Philipe is one of the icons of French cinema probably due to his early death at the peak of his popularity. His career was short but prolific encompassing 32 films between 1944 and 1959. He was active in both movies and theater.

He studied acting at the Conservatoire of Dramatic Art. His film debut was in Les Petites du quai aux fleurs. However, it wasn’t until he performed in the play Caligula that he rose to prominence. He was only 20 at the time.

Some of his most notable appearances were in The Idiot, Devil in the Flesh, Such a Pretty Little Beach, All Roads Lead to Rome, and Beauty and the Devil.

His last film was Fever Mounts at El Pao, directed by the internationally acclaimed director Luis Buñuel. He died of liver cancer a few days before his 37th birthday.

François Cluzet

Cluzet is a movie and theater actor. He debuted on stage in 1976. His first appearance on the big screen was three years later.

Many of Cluzet’s movies lean toward drama. He has often played the role of a tormented writer. He tried his luck out of France in 1994 but came back home in 1995.

Some of his most famous movies include Coup de foudre, Round Midnight, Rue du départ, Chocolat, Force majeure, Trop belle pour toi, and La Révolution française. However, his most acclaimed project is, without a doubt, Intouchables. This movie was based on the true story of a rich quadriplegic and a young caregiver that got out of jail recently. It became the highest-grossing non-English language movie in 2012.

Cluzet is currently 66 and keeps active in the film industry.

Romain Duris

Romain Duris is one of the most popular French actors in our day. He is better known for his role as exchange student Xavier Rousseau in the Spanish Apartment trilogy: L’Auberge Espagnole, Russian Dolls, and Chinese Puzzle.

Duris has a strong interest in music and even formed a band, but it was acting that made him popular in show business.

He is known for his versatility. He has played a gangster, a superhero, a heartbreaker, a strict boss, and even a priest.

Besides the Spanish Apartment trilogy, other famous movies include The Beat That My Heart Skipped, Dobberman, Heartbreaker, Populaire, All the Money in the World, and Arsène Lupin.

He lives in Paris with his girlfriend.

Wrap-up

There you have it. Today we learned about 10 famous French actors that have left their mark in French cinema. Some of them are no longer with us but became international legends.

Their lives are far from perfect, which reminds us they’re just humans like us.

Have you seen any of the movies they appeared in? Which ones? Did you like them?

Which French actor would you add to the list? Let me know in the comments section below. Au revoir, les amis!

Let's Learn French!

Are you ready to take your French to the next level? I'm glad you are! Whether you are a beginner or an intermediate/advanced learner, I can recommend a few options for you.
For starters, if you're someone who likes to study on his own, I recommend the following programs:
Busuu
Mondly
Rocket Languages

However, if you would like to hire a teacher/tutor, I recommend you try the following:
italki
Lingoda
Preply

Feel free to check my site to learn about more resources. Don't forget to check back often to learn more about the French language and culture. Salut!

Politics may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but it’s an unavoidable topic. We’re likely to hear about it at home, at work, or in the least expected places. During one of those times, you may have heard the name of Macron. Macron said this, Macron did that. But who is Macron?

Macron is unquestionably one of the most important political figures in the last few years. He is the president of France and is popular not only in France but all over the world too. He’s drawn attention from sectors of society that normally don’t care for politics or politicians for that matter.

Many people seem to be interested not only in his career as a politician but in his personal life as well. In fact, we could say he’s a celebrity. He’s not an actor or singer, but that doesn’t matter. Traditional media and social media have helped to increase his popularity and spark people’s interest.

Today we will provide some important details about Macron’s life so you can know who he is and why people seem to be interested in his life. C’est parti!

Early Life

His full name is Emmanuel Jean-Michel Frédéric Macron. He was born on December 21, 1977, in Amiens, a city in northern France. His parents are Françoise Macron, a physician, and Jean-Michel Macron, a professor of neurology at the University of Picardy. He has two siblings: Laurent and Estelle.

His great-grandfather was of English origin and a World War I hero. So, technically he is one-eighth British, although he didn’t know anything about it until recently.

He was raised in a non-religious family, but he asked to be baptized Catholic when he was 12.

He wanted to study at the École normale supérieure, one of the most prestigious universities in Paris but was rejected twice. Instead, he was admitted into the University of Paris-Ouest Nanterre La Défense, where he studied philosophy. He then obtained a master’s in public affairs at the Paris Institute of Political Studies.

Professional Career

Macron has held various jobs throughout his career. One of his first jobs was as an editorial assistant to Paul Ricoeur, a French Protestant philosopher.

After graduating in 2004, Macron became an Inspector of Finances in the Inspection générale des finances, which is a branch of the French Ministry. In 2007, he was appointed deputy rapporteur Jacques Attali’s “Commission to Unleash French Growth”.

Macron left his government job in 2008 due to the election of Nicolas Sarkozy as president. He became an investment banker at Rothschild & Cie Banque, one of the world’s largest financial companies. He was part of important deals like Nestlé’s acquisition of one of Pfizer’s largest subsidiaries in 2010.

Political Career

In 2012, Macron became the deputy secretary general of the Élysée. He quit in 2014 to create an investment firm that would fund educational projects. That same year, he declined the offer to be a candidate in the municipal elections in his hometown.

In August 2014, he replaced Arnaud Montebourg as the Minister of Economy and Industry. A year later he broke ties with his political party, the Socialist party, and became independent. This put a strain on his relationship with the government and tensions increased as many started to question his loyalty. He eventually created his own political party, En Marche, in April 2016, and resigned from his position in the cabinet in August of the same year. One of the main reasons for doing so was his opposition to some key socialist policies, including the 35-hour working week.

His Ascent to the Presidency

There was much speculation about Macron’s next move after his resignation, but it wasn’t until November 2016 that he officially announced he was running for president.

His campaign received considerable coverage from the media. It was reported that there were over 50 magazine covers dedicated to him. During his campaign, Macron stated that he was “neither left nor right,” but experts claim he has been slowly drifting toward the far right in efforts to survive.

On May 7, 2017, Macron crushed his opponent, Marine Le Pen, in the elections and was elected President of France. At 39, he became the youngest president in French history.

His Political Stances

During his first months as president, he pressed for reforms on public ethics, labor laws, taxes, and law enforcement agency powers.

One of his first moves was proposing a law banning elected representatives from hiring family members.

Regarding labor law and unions, he aimed to move toward a more flexible, consensus-driven system like the one in Germany and Scandinavian countries.

He supports better healthcare coverage that includes optics, hearing, and dental care.

He also supports giving more autonomy to schools and universities and increasing teachers’ salaries.

In 2018, Macron stated that there was no migrant crisis in Europe as compared to 2015, but he toughened measures in 2019 to control immigration in France and has been pushing for more control this 2020.

His economic plan, nicknamed the “Macronomy”, included reforms to unemployment and income and corporate taxes. However, it turned out that the losers in this plan were the poorest, the unemployed, and the retired. He has always opposed raising taxes on the highest earners. This earned him the nickname of “president of the rich” earlier this year.

He is a strong advocate of abortion and LGBT rights.

He is also a strong advocate of protecting the environment. In 2019, he stated he would block the EU-Mercosur Free Trade Agreement if Brazil didn’t commit to protecting the environment after the disastrous Amazon fires that same year.

One of his greatest challenges has been the war on terrorism and the integration of Muslim immigrants into French society. He has clashed with Muslim leaders in recent years due to his opinions about religion and freedom of speech involving Muhammad and Islam.

He has been described by some as Europhile and federalist. This has always been controversial since many French people believe he puts the EU’s interests ahead of France’s interests. Even though he denies this, the truth is he has always been one of the main and most influential figures in the European Union.

Personal Life

Macron’s personal life seems somewhat of a soap opera. He fell in love with Brigitte Trogneux, a high school teacher. He was 15, and she was 39 at the time. His parents tried to separate them by sending him away to Paris, but they reunited after his graduation. They became a couple when he was 18 and got married in 2007. They don’t have any children together.

Many sources claimed Macron was gay, particularly after the publication of a gay magazine in 2017 where he appeared topless on the cover. The cover read, “Coming out: a necessary fight”. However, it was later revealed that it had been photoshopped. He has always claimed he supports the LGBT community, but that he’s happily married to his wife Brigitte.

Macron is widely popular among women. His looks have drawn attention from gossip magazines like Elle and People, not to mention his name has constantly appeared on newspapers and social media, who named him one of the hottest politicians from around the world. There have even been polls that compare him to the Canadian Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau.

Macron enjoys sports like skiing, boxing, and tennis. He also loves football (soccer) and is a fan of the French club Olympique de Marseille.

He is proficient at playing the piano since he studied it for 10 years when he was younger. He particularly enjoys Schumann and Liszt.

As we mentioned earlier, he doesn’t have children of his own. In 2017, he and his wife Brigitte adopted Nemo, a black Labrador. They all live together in the Élysée Palace.

He is constantly portrayed on social media for various reasons. One of his most remembered incidents was when he scolded a teenager for calling him Manu. You can watch the video below.

Final Thoughts

As you can see, Macron is quite a character. He is loved and admired by many but loathed by others as well.

The next presidential election will take place in 2022, so we will still hear from Macron for at least two more years…if he’s not reelected then.

His looks, his personality, and his opinions have earned him a privileged place in history. Maybe other leaders before him might equal or surpass him in popularity and other aspects, but social media didn’t exist back then. Who knows?

Did you know Macron? What do you think about him? Let me know in the comments below. Au revoir, les amis!

*Featured image credit: Kremlin.ru, CC BY 4.0 , via Wikimedia Commons.