FRENCH cinema legend Gerard Depardieu was stripped of Quebec’s top honour on Wednesday over his “scandalous” comments against women recently broadcast in a report.

“The scandalous remarks made by Gerard Depardieu in front of the cameras shocked the international public, with good reason. His behaviour tarnishes the reputation of the members of the National Order of Quebec,” Francois Legault, the leader of the Canadian province, said in a statement.

“I therefore took the decision to order his removal from the Order, effective immediately,” he said.

Depardieu has faced mounting accusations of sexual harassment. And earlier this month France 2 showed the actor on a 2018 trip to North Korea repeatedly making explicit sexual comments in the presence of a female interpreter and sexualising a small girl riding a horse.

A fellow actor filed a sexual assault complaint in September against Depardieu, adding to a string of allegations targeting the French actor. In 2020, he was charged in Paris after allegations of rapes and sexual assaults.

This is the first time the Council of the Order has unanimously recommended the removal of a member, the ultimate sanction for misconduct.

Founded in 1984, the National Order of Quebec is the most prestigious recognition awarded by the province. Depardieu was named a knight in 2002.

A national icon in the same way as Alain Delon or Brigitte Bardot, the globally known Depardieu is seen as an extraordinary actor whose career has been punctuated by excesses and scandals. 

He has more than 200 films in cinema and television to his credit. – AFP, December 14, 2023.