French film director Benoît Jacquot placed under formal investigation for rape

French film director Benoit Jacquot has been placed under formal investigation for the rape of actors Isild Le Besco and Julia Roy in a significant #MeToo case that has rocked French cinema.

An examining magistrate on Wednesday placed prominent arthouse film director Benoit Jacquot under formal investigation for rape, the Paris prosecutor's office said, in a high-profile case in France's #MeToo movement.

Jacquot, 77, has been placed under formal investigation for the rape of actors Julia Roy, now 34, in 2013 and Isild Le Besco, now 41, between 1998 and 2000, it said.

He was to be freed after two days of questioning in custody but remain under judicial supervision, it added.

Investigators launched an investigation after Judith Godreche, 52, filed a complaint earlier this year against Jacquot, alleging that he raped her during a relationship that began in the 1980s when she was 14 years old and he was 25 years her senior.

Le Besco, 41, had filed a complaint over alleged rape during her own relationship with Jacquot that also started when she was underage.

(FRANCE 24 with AFP)


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