Greta Gerwig Just Shared Her Honest Thoughts About France's #MeToo Movement
Greta Gerwig has addressed the growing #MeToo movement in France on the opening day of this year’s Cannes Film Festival, during which she is serving as the president of this year’s competition jury.
’I think people in the community of movies telling us stories and trying to change things for the better is only good,’ Gerwig said when asked how she felt about the country’s #MeToo movement, which has gained momentum in recent weeks. ‘I have seen substantive change in the American film community, and I think it’s important that we continue to expand that conversation. So I think it’s only moving everything in the correct direction. Keep those lines of communication open.’
FIND OUT MORE ON ELLE COLLECTIVE
Speaking to Variety ahead of the festival beginning, the Cannes Film Festival's president, Iris Knobloch, said: 'For reasons I can’t explain, it took much longer in France than in the U.S. for women to dare to speak out, and maybe it also took longer for women to be heard.'
He added: 'I think that for many societal evolutions, Europe is still a little behind the United States. We’re catching up a little later, and it’s not even just a French issue.'
Léa Seydoux also addressed the #MeToo movement at the press conference for Quentin Dupieux’s satirical comedy The Second Act, which opened proceedings on Tuesday night.
'It’s a wonderful thing that women are now speaking out. Things are clearly changing and it was high time it did,' the French actor said. '#MeToo is very important. It’s a very serious issue.'
Gerwig and Seydoux's comments came on the same day that French-Polish film director, Roman Polanski, was acquitted of defaming a British actor who accused him of raping her when she was a teenager. In 2019, Polanski told Paris Match magazine that Charlotte Lewis, who starred in his 1986 film Pirates, had lied about being sexually assaulted by him four decades ago.
The Chinatown director fled the United States in 1978 after admitting having sex with a 13-year-old girl. He has since evaded various extradition attempts by American authorities. It is believed that more allegations are set to be made about other prominent figures in the French film industry.
ELLE Collective is a new community of fashion, beauty and culture lovers. For access to exclusive content, events, inspiring advice from our Editors and industry experts, as well the opportunity to meet designers, thought-leaders and stylists, become a member today HERE.
You Might Also Like
