PARIS – French actor Gerard Depardieu’s trial on sexual assault charges began on October 28 in the absence of the celebrity, who had declared himself ill.

His lawyer, Mr Jeremie Assous, said earlier that Depardieu, 75, was “extremely affected” by ill health and had asked for the proceedings to be postponed until he could attend in person.

“Unfortunately, his doctors have forbidden him from appearing here today,” the lawyer said upon arriving at the trial.

He said he would ask the court for a six-month stay of the trial, which comes after numerous other complaints and with a possible second court case already pending.

The actor is the most high-profile character to face charges in the French film version of the #MeToo movement, sparked in 2017 by allegations against American producer Harvey Weinstein.

Depardieu faces allegations of abuse that allegedly took place during a shoot in 2021. The names of the two women accusing him have not been released.

One of the plaintiffs, a now 55-year-old decorator, reported in February that suffered sexual assault, sexual harassment and sexist insults while filming director Jean Becker’s “Les Volet Verts” (The Green Shutters) in a private house in Paris.

“I expect the justice system to be the same for everyone and that Mr. Depardieu will not receive special treatment just because he is an artist,” the plaintiff’s lawyer, Mrs. Carine Durrieu-Diebolt, told AFP.

Mr Assous said Depardieu’s defense would provide “witnesses and evidence to show that he was simply targeted by false allegations”.

He accused the plaintiff of trying to “make money” by claiming 30,000 euros (US$42,000) in damages.

The plaintiff told French investigative website Mediapart that Depardieu began loudly asking for a cooling fan during filming because he “couldn’t even lift it” in the heat.

She claimed the actor boasted he could “give women an orgasm without touching them”.

The plaintiff claimed that an hour later she was “brutally grabbed” by Depardieu as she left the set.

The actor grabbed her by “closing his legs” around her before groping her waist and stomach, continuing to her breasts, she added.

Depardieu made “obscene remarks” during the incident, she said, including: “Come and touch my big umbrella. I’m going to stick it in your puppy.”

She described the actor’s bodyguards dragging him away as he shouted: “We’ll see each other again my dear.”

“My client expects the justice system to find Gerard Depardieu a serial sex offender,” Ms Durrieu-Diebolt said.