(Paris) French actor and director Nicolas Bedos is on trial Thursday before the Paris Criminal Court for sexual assault and harassment of three women between 2018 and 2023.
Son of comedian Guy Bedos, Nicolas Bedos, aged 45, has made several films with famous French actors, from Jean Dujardin (OSS117: Red alert in black Africa) to Isabelle Adjani (Masquerade), passing by Guillaume Canet and Fanny Ardant.
The defendant will be present at the hearing, according to his lawyer Julia Minkowski.
The first file dates back to the night of the 1ster on June 2, 2023, during a nightclub party. A young woman accuses the director of walking towards her, head down before reaching out with his right hand to her genitals, over her jeans.
“She is determined and she will be present to discuss the facts as well as the consequences on her mental health,” said her lawyer, M.e Tewfik Bouzenoune, specifying that his client remains shocked by what happened.
Nicolas Bedos’ lawyer did not wish to comment before the hearing, but after her client was taken into custody in June 2023, she stated that “such an act, which he does not remember, which allegedly occurred on the dance floor of a nightclub, could only have been accidental while intoxicated.”
The trial, which was due to take place in February, was postponed to allow statements from two other women to be examined.
One of them, a waitress in a bar in the French capital, told investigators that Nicolas Bedos grabbed her by the waist and kissed her on the neck on the night of May 11 to 12, 2023, while he 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.
Neither of these two women filed a complaint.
A willingly provocative artist, Nicolas Bedos wears several hats, in addition to being a director: playwright, columnist, screenwriter and actor.