Inside Gerard Depardieu sexual abuse hearing – as trial postponed due to health issues | World news

There is great interest in the trial of Gerard Depardieu in Paris.

Warning: This article contains details of alleged sexual violence that some readers may find disturbing.

Despite the fact, members of the public queued to gain entry to the criminal court DepardieuThe actor’s lawyer had said the actor was too ill to attend on Monday.

When the proceedings began, there was no empty seat in the courtroom.

In the front row, flanked by their lawyers, were the women who allege the French film star sexually assaulted them on the set of a 2021 film.

On their left, the city’s slick legal team representing the 75-year-old actor.

Depardieu is accused of two sex crimes. If found guilty, it could carry a prison sentence of five years and a €75,000 (£62,000) fine.

Both women claim the actor pinned them between his legs on separate occasions and touched their genitals, buttocks and chest over their clothing, the court heard.

One of them said that while she was a set decorator for the film Les Volets Verts (The Green Shutters), she heard Depardieu make several sexual comments.

She claims that one day, as she passed him in a hallway, he grabbed her, pulled her towards him, held her down with his legs and knead her on the waist, hips and chest, accompanying his gestures with obscene comments.

The second woman stated that Depardieu touched her buttocks in the street, touched her breast on the set of the shoot a few days later and touched her buttocks again on another occasion.

The actor denies all allegations.

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Depardieu, who starred in more than 200 films, is considered an icon of French cinema.

He has been accused of sexual assault by more than a dozen other women and is embroiled in a separate case in which he is accused of rape.

In an open letter he says that he has never “abused a woman”.

The court decided that his trial would be postponed until March next year due to his health problems.

Depardieu’s legal team has asked for a six-month delay in the procedure with a health check within three months after a doctor confirmed he was suffering from conditions including high blood pressure and complications from diabetes.

They said his health means he is currently unable to sit for long periods of time and the stress would affect his ongoing health problem.

The actor’s legal team also demanded that more time be set aside for the trial so that they can call more witnesses.

The president of the court repeatedly asked Depardieu’s lawyer not to deviate from the subject of the possible postponement.

Lawyers for the women told the jury that the delay had to be as short as possible to avoid adding to their trauma.

They also called for further independent health checks.

The actor has received support from a group of actors and directors, who said an attack on Depardieu meant “an attack on art itself”.

The trial is seen as a big moment for the cultivation Me, too movement inside Francewith Depardieu being the most high-profile person to be accused.

MeToo, which became known in America during the Harvey Weinstein rape case, exists to draw attention to sexual violence against women and to urge more action from the authorities.

It has often emphasized areas such as filmmaking – industries that have long been male-dominated.

French president Emmanuel Macron has described Depardieu as “the pride of France”, sparking angry reactions from campaigners who claimed he was undermining efforts to protect women from violence.

French actress Lea Seydoux, known for her role in the Bond film No Time To Die, described Macron’s words as “crazy” and said “it gives a very bad image of our country”.