Gerard Depardieu faces charges of sexually assaulting two women during the shooting of a film four years ago.

The trial of French actor Gerard Depardieu, who has been charged with sexually assaulting two women during a film shoot in 2021, has begun in a Paris court.

It is thought to be a pivotal moment in France’s #MeToo movement.

On Monday, Depardieu, 76, sat on a seat opposite the judge while the two plaintiffs were also present in the courtroom.

Prosecutors alleged the assaults against the women, whose full identities have not been revealed, took place during the filming of Les Volets Verts (The Green Shutters).

They accuse Depardieu of groping one of the women on the film set, pulling her towards him and trapping her with his legs before touching her waist, hips and breasts while saying obscene words. Three people witnessed the scene, prosecutors said.

They said the second woman was groped by Depardieu on set and in the street.

Before the trial began, Depardieu, his hand on his lawyer’s shoulder, walked calmly past reporters, looking straight at the cameras without saying a word, before entering the courtroom and chatting with a couple of actors there.

His lawyer, Jeremie Assous, told reporters that the accusations were false and based on lies.

“Truth is on our side,” he said.

‘Fear because he is a cinema giant’

A towering figure of French cinema, Depardieu has faced a growing number of sexual assault allegations in recent years.

Overall, about 20 women have accused Depardieu of improper behaviour, but several cases have been dropped due to the statute of limitations.

French actor Charlotte Arnould was the first woman to file a criminal complaint against Depardieu in 2018.

He has consistently denied any wrongdoing, and Monday’s case is the first in which he will stand trial.

A lawyer for one of the women told the Reuters news agency before the proceedings that her client had been scared to come forward against Depardieu.

“There’s a fear because he’s a cinema giant,” Carine Durrieu-Diebolt said. “It’s a struggle between David and Goliath, and they are afraid of retaliation as they all work in cinema but at a much lower level than Depardieu.”

The second plaintiff, an assistant director, also alleged sexual violence.

“What my client wants is for the trial to take place, but I am also worried about how Mr Depardieu’s defence will treat the civil parties at the hearing,” lawyer Claude Vincent told the AFP news agency.

Important development for #MeToo in France

On Monday, dozens of protesters stood outside the court, chanting, “We believe you,” to show their support for the two plaintiffs.

If found guilty, Depardieu could face up to five years in jail and a 75,000-euro ($81,000) fine.

Depardieu’s trial is the highest profile #MeToo case in the media industry to come before the courts in France, a country where the protest movement over sexual violence has struggled to gain the same traction as in the United States.

Recently, however, there have been signs of a change.

Last year, Gisele Pelicot became a global feminist icon after she waived her right to anonymity during the trial of her former husband, who was convicted of drugging her and inviting dozens of men to their home to sexually abuse her over the course of nearly a decade.

Last month, a French court found film director Christophe Ruggia guilty of sexually abusing actress Adele Haenel when she was underage.