Cannes Film Festival director Thierry Fremaux said that on May 15, Théo Navarro-Mussy was not allowed to attend the event due to an appeal in a sexual assault case. He played a minor role in Dominik Moll’s movie Case 137, which is in the main competition.
According to the French magazine Télérama, which first reported the news, three former partners accused the actor of sexual assault, which took place in 2018, 2019 and 2020. Last month, the case was dismissed due to lack of evidence, but the women plan to file an appeal and a civil lawsuit.
In a commentary to the magazine, Thierry Frema said that Théo Navarro-Mussy was excluded due to the appeal, as “the process is still ongoing.” The Cannes Film Festival confirmed this decision to AFP.
Earlier this week, the head of the Cannes Film Festival jury, Juliette Binoche, said that Gerard Depardieu, who was sentenced to 18 months of suspended imprisonment for sexual offenses, “is no longer sacred to her.”
This decision regarding Navarro Mussi may mean that in the future, any actor or director under investigation for sexual abuse may not be allowed to attend the festival. In this way, Cannes joins the César Awards, which announced in January 2023 that nominees convicted of or under investigation for sexual assault would not be allowed to attend the ceremony.
Dominik Moll, the director of Case 137, told AFP that he was unaware of the allegations before working with Théo Navarro-Mussy, “and nothing happened during the filming.” His previous film, The Night of the 12th, dealt with violence against women, so the director said he was “very sensitive to this issue.”