Judith Godrèche

Judith Godrèche
Godrèche in 2007
Born	(1972-03-23) 23 March 1972 (age 52) Paris, France
Occupation(s)	Actress, author, film director, screenwriter
Years active	1985–present
Spouses	Philippe Michel ​ ​ (m. 1996; div. 1996)​ Dany Boon ​ ​ (m. 1998; div. 2002)​
Partner	Maurice Barthélemy (2004–2014)
Children	2

Judith Godrèche (French: [ʒydit ɡɔdʁɛʃ]; born 23 March 1972) is a French actress and author. She has appeared in more than 30 films.

Early life

Godrèche was born in the 17th arrondissement of Paris. Her father is a psychoanalyst, and her mother a child therapist. Her parents separated when she was eight years old. Her father is Jewish; his parents were Holocaust survivors from Poland and Russia who changed their surname from Goldreich.^[1] After being discovered for her first role at the age of 14, Godrèche left school and moved away from her parents to begin her acting career. In 1987, at the age of 14, she was in a relationship with director Benoît Jacquot,^[2] 25 years her senior, who was directing her in The Disenchanted.^{[3] [4] [5][6] [7] [8] [9]} In later years, Godrèche would accuse Jacquot of raping her.^[10]

Career

Her early work included commercial modeling for a Japanese chocolate maker, as well as a teen magazine. Her first film appearance was as Claudia Cardinale's daughter in L'été prochain. At 14, she obtained her first major role, in Jacquot's Les mendiants, with Dominique Sanda.

In 1989, Godrèche starred in Jacques Doillon's The 15 Year Old Girl with Melvil Poupaud, which brought her fame. The following year, she turned to a full-time career in film. In 1990 she was nominated for the César Award for Most Promising Actress for her performance in Jacquot's La désenchantée.

In 1991, she was a member of the jury at the 41st Berlin International Film Festival.^[11]

In 1994 her novel Point de côté was published in France by Broché Publishers to good reviews.

Godrèche was not well known to American audiences until Patrice Leconte's Ridicule was released in 1996. The film introduced her to Americans in the role of Mathilde de Bellegarde. In 1998 she starred with Leonardo DiCaprio and Jeremy Irons in The Man in the Iron Mask.

Godrèche was nominated for a 2002 César Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in the surprise European hit, L'Auberge espagnole.

Her first record inspired from the film Toutes les filles pleurent was released by Because Music.

In 2012, she began playing the continuing character of Claudette Von Jurgens in season 3 of Royal Pains.^[12]

Godrèche's performance as Charlotte in the film The Overnight has led to her being called a "breakout" star of 2015. She is also starring in an upcoming HBO comedy about a French actress who moves to Los Angeles.^[13]

Personal life

Godrèche had a long-term relationship since 1987 with Benoît Jacquot who was 25 years her senior.^{[14] [15]} She was briefly married to Philippe Michel, an architect, in 1996.^[16][17] She was later married to comedian Dany Boon from 1998 to 2002. Together they have a son, Noé, born 4 September 1999.^[18] In 2004, she began a relationship with actor and director Maurice Barthélemy, who is the father of her daughter, Tess, born 19 April 2005.^[1] The couple split in 2014.^[19]

Godrèche has considered formally converting to Judaism as an adult, which she attributed to her close relationship with her paternal grandparents.^[1]

Sexual violence claim against Benoît Jacquot and Jacques Doillon

In February 2024, Godrèche filed police complaints against Jacques Doillon and Benoît Jacquot for sexual assault committed in the 1980s when she was a minor.^{[20][21][22][23]} At the 49th César Awards on 23 February 2024, Godrèche gave a speech on sexual violence and addressed France's omertà around #MeToo.^[24] In May 2024, Godrèche was added to the Official Selection at the 77th Cannes Film Festival, where she presented her short film Moi aussi (Me Too). The film highlights the stories of victims of sexual violence. It was created after Godrèche made a public appeal through her Instagram account, after which around 6,000 people replied. It was screened during the opening ceremony of the festival's Un Certain Regard section and free to the public on 15 May as part of the Cinéma de la Plage program.^{[25] [26]}

On 1 July 2024, Jacquot and Doillon were each questioned over Godrèche's rape and sexual assault claim.^[27] The two directors would also be taken into custody by the Juvenile Protection Brigade.^[27] On 3 July 2024, Jacquot was criminally charged with raping two other actresses.^[28]

Filmography

Actress

Year	Title	Role	Director
1985	L'été prochain	Nickie	Nadine Trintignant
1987	Les mendiants	Catherine	Benoît Jacquot
1987	Les saisons du plaisir	Ophélie	Jean-Pierre Mocky
1988	La méridienne	Stéphanie	Jean-François Amiguet
1988	Un été d'orages	Laurence	Charlotte Brandström
1989	Sons	Florence jr.	Alexandre Rockwell
1989	La fille de quinze ans	Juliette	Jacques Doillon
1990	The Disenchanted (La désenchantée)	Beth	Benoît Jacquot
1991	Ferdydurke	Zoo	Jerzy Skolimowski
1991	Paris s'éveille	Louise	Olivier Assayas
1992	Emma Zunz TV	Emma Zunz	Benoît Jacquot
1993	Tango	Madeleine	Patrice Leconte
1993	Une nouvelle vie	Lise	Olivier Assayas
1994	Grande petite	Bénédicte	Sophie Fillières
1995	L'aube à l'envers		Sophie Marceau
1995	Beaumarchais, l'insolent	Marie-Antoinette	Edouard Molinaro
1995	Ridicule	Mathilde	Patrice Leconte
1997	Le rouge et le noir	Mathilde de La Mole	Jean-Daniel Verhaege
1998	The Man in the Iron Mask	Christine Bellefort	Randall Wallace
1998	Bimboland	Cécile Bussy	Ariel Zeitoun
1999	Entropy	Stella	Phil Joanou
2001	L'auberge espagnole	Anne-Sophie	Cédric Klapisch
2001	South Kensington	Susanna	Carlo Vanzina
2002	Parlez-moi d'amour	Justine	Sophie Marceau
2002	France Boutique	Estelle	Tonie Marshall
2003	Quicksand	Lela Forin	John Mackenzie
2004	Tu vas rire mais je te quitte	Elise Vérone	Philippe Harel
2004	Tout pour plaire	Marie	Cécile Telerman
2004	Papa	Maman	Maurice Barthélémy
2006	Human Bomb		Maurice Barthélémy
2007	Je veux pas que tu t'en ailles	Carla	Bernard Jeanjean
2008	Home Sweet Home		Benoît Lamy
2009	Fais-moi plaisir!	Claire	Emmanuel Mouret
2010	Potiche	Elisabeth	François Ozon
2010	Holiday	Nadine Trémois	Guillaume Nicloux
2011	The Art of Love (L'art d'aimer)	Amélie	Emmanuel Mouret
2013	Stoker	Doctor Jacquin	Park Chan-wook
2015	The Overnight	Charlotte	Patrick Brice
2018	Under the Eiffel Tower	Louise	Archie Borders
2019	The Climb	Ava	Michael Angelo Covino
2020	Medical Police (Netflix series)	Anaïs Desjardins	Bill Benz

Director and writer

• Toutes les filles pleurent (2010)
• Moi aussi (2024)

References

1. Champenois, Sabrina (27 March 2000). "La tiraillée". Libération. Retrieved 7 August 2015.
2. ""Ça m'a rendue malade» : Judith Godrèche dénonce les propos de Benoît Jacquot dans «Quotidien"". TV Magazine (in French). 9 January 2024. Retrieved 9 January 2024.
3. Hohenadel, Kristin (6 July 2012). "Auteur Credo: Cherchez la Femme". The New York Times.
4. "Judith Godrèche tells Benoît Jacquot: I was 15 — it was wrong". The Times.
5. Cumming, Ed (10 January 2024). "Why the French are still reluctant to get on board with #MeToo". telegraph.
6. Chrisafis, Angelique (20 January 2024). "'What happened to me mustn't happen to the next generation': Judith Godrèche on grooming and France's #MeToo". the guardian.
7. "French Actress Judith Godrèche Makes Official Rape Complaint Against Director Benoît Jacquot: Reports". deadline. 7 February 2024.
8. "French actress Judith Godrèche accuses directors of historical abuse". BBC news. 8 February 2024.
9. "Judith Godrèche On The Scars Of Sexual Violence, Harvey Weinstein & Why She Is Shaking France's Foundations: "I Won't Let Go…I'm Waiting To See Change" — Deadline Q&A". Deadline. March 2024.
10. Yossman, K.J. (3 July 2024). "French Prosecutors Request Director Benoit Jacquot Be Charged With Rape – Report". Variety. Retrieved 4 July 2024.
11. "Berlinale: 1991 Juries". berlinale.de. Retrieved 21 March 2011.
12. Kate Stanhope (18 January 2012). "5 Teases From Royal Pains' Return". tvguide.com.
13. D’Addario, Daniel (17 June 2015). "Meet Judith Godrèche, the Surprise Comic Standout From The Overnight". TIME. Retrieved 7 August 2015.
14. "Has France Finally Embraced #MeToo As Actress Judith Godrèche Condemns Teen Relationship With Director Benoît Jacquot?". Deadline. 11 January 2024.
15. Grassin, Sophie (3 April 2009). "Benoît Jacquot, le cinéaste amoureux". Le Figaro. p. 2. Archived from the original on 8 April 2009.
16. "Actress Puts Accent On U.S. Audience / French star Judith Godreche's 'Ridicule' may give her recognition in this country". sfgate.com. December 1996.
17. "Ridicule At Your Peril". www.newspapers.com. 26 December 1996.
18. "Judith Godreche Biography (1972–)". filmreference.com. Retrieved 29 July 2009.
19. "Judith Godrèche séparée de Maurice Barthélemy selon Voici". www.legossip.net. 2 July 2014. Archived from the original on 18 July 2016. Retrieved 2 July 2014.
20. "Judith Godrèche accuse le réalisateur Jacques Doillon d'abus sexuels dans les années 1980". Le Monde. 8 February 2024. Retrieved 8 February 2024.
21. "French actress Judith Godrèche accuses directors of historical abuse". BBC News. 8 February 2024.
22. "Laure Murat: 'The Judith Godrèche affair marks the turning point of French cinema's #MeToo'". Le Monde. 17 February 2024.
23. Chrisafis, Angelique (7 February 2024). "Rape inquiry opened after Judith Godrèche files complaint against director". The Guardian.
24. Willsher, Kim (21 February 2024). "Judith Godrèche to address French cinema's 'omertà' around #MeToo". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 23 February 2024.
25. Roxborough, Scott (7 May 2024). "French #MeToo Film to Open Cannes Un Certain Regard". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 7 May 2024.
26. "Judith Godrèche Launched A New Wave Of #MeToo In France, And Now Brings Her Survivors Film 'Moi Aussi' To Cannes". Deadline. 15 May 2024.
27. Keslassy, Elsa (1 July 2024). "French Directors Benoit Jacquot, Jacques Doillon Questioned by Police Over Rape, Sexual Assault Accusations by Judith Godreche". Variety. Retrieved 4 July 2024.
28. Breeden, Auralein (3 July 2024). "French Director Benoît Jacquot is Charged with Rape". New York Times. Retrieved 4 July 2024.

External links

• Judith Godrèche at IMDb 
• Judith Godrèche at AlloCiné (in French)