Gerard Depardieu, 72, charged with 2018 rape of actress in Paris

French actor Gerard Depardieu has been charged with rape and sexual assault allegedly committed against a 22-year-old actress in 2018, according to a judicial source.

An initial investigation into the rape accusations against Depardieu, 72, was dropped in 2019 for lack of evidence but reopened last summer, leading to criminal charges filed in December, the source told AFP on Tuesday.

The actress accuses Depardieu of having raped and assaulted her at his Parisian home in August 2018.

Depardieu’s lawyer, Herve Temime, told AFP that the actor, who is free but under judicial supervision, “completely rejects the accusations”.

A judicial source told Reuters that Depardieu had not been held in custody or asked to post bail.

The woman’s lawyer told AFP that she hoped her client’s “private sphere will be respected” as the case unfolds.

Depardieu was one of the leading celebrities who faced sexual harassment and assault claims as part of the #MeToo movement.

The star, who has made more than 180 films, was nominated for an Oscar for his title role in 1990’s Cyrano de Bergerac and won a Golden Globe best comedy actor award in 1991 for box office hit Green Card. But he has had a chequered past off-screen.