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Tag: Gerard Depardieu (1-3 of 3)

Apr 5 2013 08:45 AM ET

Gerard Depardieu skips court date for drunk-driving charges

Gerard Depardieu again couldn’t make it to trial to face drunken driving charges, but a lawyer for the combative French actor wrested yet another court date Friday.

A Paris criminal court adjourned Friday’s hearing after scheduling a new one on May 24, said defense attorney Eric de Caumont. The actor wasn’t there because he was in the United States filming a movie about another Frenchman known for run-ins with the law, former IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the lawyer said.

The court agreed to the delay because investigators turned up new evidence about the harmless incident in November, when Depardieu toppled over on his scooter in Paris and was charged with drunken driving, the lawyer said. If convicted, Depardieu could face up to two years in prison and a 4,500-euro ($5,700) fine, according to the Paris prosecutor’s office. READ FULL STORY »

Jan 3 2013 03:44 PM ET

Gerard Depardieu, in tax fight, gets Russian citizenship

by Associated Press

Tags: Gerard Depardieu

The Kremlin has cast Gerard Depardieu in one of the most surprising roles of his life — as a new Russian citizen.

The announcement Thursday that President Vladimir Putin has approved Depardieu’s application for citizenship is almost a real-life analogue to the French actor’s 1990 comedy Green Card, in which his character enters into a sham marriage in order to work in the United States.

But in this version, taxes appear to be at the heart of the matter. Depardieu has waged a battle against a proposed super tax on millionaires in his native country.
French President Francois Hollande plans to raise the tax on earned income above €1 million ($1.3 million) to 75 percent from the current 41 percent, while Russia has a flat 13-percent tax rate.

A representative for the former Oscar nominee declined to say whether he had accepted the Russian offer.
READ FULL STORY »

Nov 29 2012 04:25 PM ET

Report: Gerard Depardieu briefly held for alleged drunk driving

by Associated Press

Tags: Crime, Gerard Depardieu

French actor Gerard Depardieu was briefly detained by police for allegedly driving drunk on his motorcycle, according to a news report.

Sipa news agency quoted police as saying the 63-year-old actor was brought in Thursday afternoon by Paris police after falling off his motorcycle.

The burly actor, who has appeared in more than 150 films, allegedly failed a sobriety test and was taken to a police station, Sipa said. Police then escorted him home, but he’ll have to appear in court, the news agency reported.

It was one of several encounters with the law for Depardieu. He grabbed headlines when he urinated in the aisle of a plane before takeoff on a Paris to Dublin flight. He was removed from the aircraft.

Depardieu was nominated for an Academy Award for his role in 1990 film Cyrano de Bergerac.