French film star, Gérard Depardieu, is being tried on two alleged sexual assaults, which date back to the filming of Jean Becker’s The Green Shutters in France in 2021

French actor Gerard Depardieu arrives for the opening of his trial (Image: AFP via Getty Images)

A court-appointed medical expert has now determined he is fit to stand trial. Depardieu is expected to attend the two-day hearing, reportedly with scheduled breaks.

The Oscar-nominated actor, who has starred in a host of box office hits, including The Life of Pi and Hamlet, insists he has “never abused a woman”. He was summoned for questioning in April after being accused of molesting two female members of staff on two separate film sets in in 2014 and also in 2021

One of the complainant’s lawyers told French TV channel BFMTV that her client was “passing through a corridor where Mr Depardieu was sitting” and then “he grabbed her, trapped her between his legs and touched her body up to her breasts. She felt completely powerless, incapable of escaping this trap.”

Depardieu denies any wrongdoing,(Image: AP)

Depardieu’s lawyer told the French radio station RMC that his client “wants to tell his truth because he is the victim of false accusations,” and added that “we are going to move from a damning case to one that will be in favour of Gérard Depardieu.”

This is the first time Depardieu, one of France’s most famous film actors, has been tried over sexual assault allegations. He has previously been accused publicly or via formal complaints of misconduct by over 20 women, but no other case has gone to court. Some were dropped due to lack of evidence.

As part of a separate case, the actor has been, since December, 16, 2020, indicted over allegations of rape and sexual assault filed in 2018. In August 2024 prosecutors requested it go to trial, but a magistrate has yet to make the decision.

Depardieu was also accused by 13 women of sexually inappropriate behaviour in a report published by French investigative news website Médiapart in April 2023.

The French actor is facing trial for the alleged sexual assaults of two women on a film set in 2021(Image: AP)

He vehemently denied all the accusations, claiming in an open letter published in Le Figaro in October 2023: “To the media court, to the lynching that has been reserved for me, I have only my word to defend myself.

“Never, but never, have I abused a woman. To think that I have hurt someone or made them feel uncomfortable is intolerable to me.”

Claiming he has “only ever been guilty of being too loving”, the actor added: “I have only ever been guilty of being too loving, too generous, or of having a temperament that is too strong.”