The actor and director Nicolas Bedos was sentenced this Tuesday, October 22, to one year in prison, including 6 months of suspended prison, by the Paris Criminal Court for sexual assault. He was also tried for acts of sexual harassment.
At the end of the discussions on September 26, the prosecutor requested a one-year suspended prison sentence and a care obligation.
“A blackout”
During the hearing, Nicolás Bedos denied being “a sexual offender,” but admitted to having problems with alcohol and “a lot of sympathy” when he was drunk.
“I don’t remember anything, it’s a blackout,” the accused declared on numerous occasions, although he flatly denied having engaged in inappropriate behavior.
One of the three files dates back to the night of June 1 to 2, 2023, during an evening at a nightclub in Paris. The complainant accuses the director of walking towards her with his head bowed before extending his right hand to her genitals, over her jeans.
“His eyes scared me”
During the hearing, the plaintiff, very emotional, recounted the evening, with sobs in her voice. “I saw who this man was, his eyes scared me,” he explained. Two other women testified in court about the director’s behavior and filed a civil lawsuit.
One of them, a waitress in a Parisian bar, told the court that Nicolas Bedos had grabbed her by the waist and kissed her neck on the night of May 11 to 12, 2023, while the latter was drunk.
The other alleged act, described as sexual harassment, dates back to June 2018. The director is suspected of having touched a young woman’s stomach and asking her to kiss him before following her while she went to the bathroom, also in an advanced state of poisoning.
“Worrying repetitive behaviors”
Referring to these facts, the defense lawyer asked the court not to recognize the assault and harassment. “A kiss on the neck is unpleasant but it is not sexual assault,” said attorney Julia Minkowski.
“Could we be wrong? No, there is no ambiguity,” denounced the prosecutor, referring to “worrying repetitive behaviors.”
Nicolas Bedos is the author of four films, three of which were presented at the Cannes Film Festival. It became the cream of French cinema, by Jean Dujardin (OSS 117: Red alert in black Africa) to Isabelle Adjani (Masquerade), through Daniel Auteuil, Guillaume Canet and Fanny Ardant (The Beautiful Age).
Several figures in French cinema have been involved in accusations of sexual violence for several months.
Source: BFM TV
