Get the latest gossip
French Cesar Academy Implements Zero-Tolerance Policy on Sexual Violence, Suspends Members Under Investigation
France's Cesar Academy will now suspend voting rights for members charged with sexual assault, while expelling those convicted.
This rule change follows a number of past controversies, most notably Roman Polanski’s 2020 Cesar win for best director – a move that caused “Portrait of a Lady on Fire” star (and by then two-time acting winner) Adèle Haenel to storm out of that year’s ceremony in protest before leaving the film industry writ large. Two years later, the academy faced a similar maelstrom when up-and-coming actor Sofiane Bennacer (“Forever Young”) made the shortlist for the best male newcomer award with recently filed sexual assault charges against him. French cinema’s own MeToo reckoning hit a landmark moment at last year’s Cesar ceremony, once actress and activist Judith Godrèche challenged industry omertà as she encouraged those in the room to be make a clean break from past practices.
Or read this on Variety