The French always seemed to be so chic. The food was better, the clothes were better, the makeup was better, the hair was better. Everything was better in France.
Helen Mirren
For many of us, we often associate France with a romantic and aesthetic view. Our perception of the country and its culture is often shaped by famous people like actors, actresses, fashion icons, and even sportspersons. In this article, we'll take a look at 20 amazing French celebrities from different fields who have made their name in the global arena.
| Number | French Celebrities | Career Fields |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Brigitte Bardot | Actress, Singer, Model |
| 2 | Catherine Deneuve | Actress |
| 3 | Gérard Depardieu | Actor |
| 4 | Jean Reno | Actor |
| 5 | Luc Besson | Film Director, Producer |
| 6 | Jacques-Yves Cousteau | Oceanographer, Filmmaker |
| 7 | Serge Gainsbourg | Singer, Songwriter |
| 8 | Edith Piaf | Singer |
| 9 | Coco Chanel | Fashion Designer |
| 10 | Alizée | Singer |
| 11 | Eva Green | Actress |
| 12 | Zinedine Zidane | Footballer |
| 13 | Adèle Exarchopoulos | Actress |
| 14 | Omar Sy | Actor |
| 15 | Vincent Cassel | Actor |
| 16 | Kylian Mbappé | Footballer |
| 17 | Sophie Marceau | Actress |
| 18 | Teddy Riner | Judoka (Judo athlete) |
| 19 | Juliette Binoche | Actress |
| 20 | Aya Nakamura | Singer |
🎭 Brigitte Bardot
Born in Paris in 1934, Brigitte Anne-Marie Bardot was a truly iconic figure of French cinema, having starred in many French films. She is also known for influencing pop culture, feminism and philosophy during that era, being featured in French philosopher Simone de Beauvoir’s essay “The Lolita Syndrome” in 1959. She has since retired in 1973 and focused on animal rights advocacy.
Bardot's role in The Truth (La Vérité) won her many awards and recognition, including Best Foreign Actress of the 1961 David di Donatello Awards (Italy). She broke free from the stereotypes of being a pretty face and a sex symbol with a compelling performance as Dominique Marceau, a young woman accused of murdering her lover.
🎭 Catherine Deneuve
Another icon of French cinema is Catherine Deneuve. Born Catherine Fabienne Dorléac in 1943, she chose her mother’s maiden name of Deneuve as her stage name so as not to be confused with her sisters, who also acted. Deneuve won the César for Best Actress for her role in François Truffaut’s The Last Metro in 1980 and was nominated for an Oscar for her portrayal of plantation owner Éliane Devries in the 1992 film Indochine.
🎥 Gérard Depardieu
Gérard Xavier Marcel Depardieu was born in 1948 in Châteauroux. He became known internationally for the title role in Jean de Fleurette in 1986, where he played a hunchback who found love. His portrayal of another physically deformed man in Cyrano de Bergerac, an adaptation of the play by famous French writer Edmond Rostand, won him international acclaim in 1990, earning him a second César, an award at the Cannes Film Festival and a nomination for the Oscars.
Depardieu became known on the French film circuit and won his first César for Best Actor for his work in Truffaut’s The Last Metro in 1980, where he starred alongside Catherine Deneuve, who also won a César for Best Actress.
🎥 Jean Reno
Born in Morocco to Spanish parents while Morocco was still a French protectorate in 1948, Leno's family moved to France in 1970 and acquired French citizenship.
He started acting in 1978 and first truly became noticed for his role as the Drummer in Subway (1985), directed by Luc Besson, who first noticed him on the set of Le Dernier Combat and who would give him his greatest successes. It was Luc Besson’s 1994 classic Léon: The Professional that cemented his international success.
🎬Luc Besson
Luc Besson is perhaps one of the most famous French directors of all time. He became known for his contribution to the cinéma du look movement through movies like Subway and The Big Blue. Subway came out in 1985 and won three Césars. This success allowed him to make The Great Blue, inspired by the life of two freedivers (Besson’s own parents were scuba-diving instructors).
Besides directing, he is also known for his great writing and producing skills behind the scenes. Some of his famous creations include Léon: the Professional (1994), the iconic sci-fi extravaganza The Fifth Element (1997), Taxi (1998), The Transporter franchise and Taken franchise.
Influenced by his parents, Besson initially wanted to become a marine biologist. However, a diving accident caused him to rethink his career direction. His love for writing and images eventually led him to become a film director.
🌊 Jacques-Yves Cousteau
Born in Saint-André de Cubzac, Cousteau studied at the École Navale to become a gunnery officer in the French navy. He broke both his arms in an automobile accident, cutting short his dreams of becoming a naval pilot but allowing him to indulge in his passion for underwater exploration.
In 1943, he and Émile Gagnan, an engineer, revolutionized diving worldwide when they co-invented Aqua-Lung, which is the first self-contained underwater breathing apparatus (SCUBA). Later in 1956, he co-directed the first feature-length color underwater documentary, The Silent World with Louis Malle. The documentary went on to win the Palme d’Or at Cannes and the Academy Award for Best Documentary.
🎤 Serge Gainsbourg
Born as Lucien Ginsburg in Paris in 1928, he changed his name to Serge in honour of his Ukrainian ancestry. A multitalented artist, he is best known for his music, which spans a wide range of styles, from chanson to disco, reggae, and funk.
He worked with such influential singers and artists as Michèle Arnaud, Jacques Brel, Minouche Barelli and his longtime partner, Jane Birkin. His biggest hits, Je t'aime... moi non plus" and "Bonnie and Clyde", made him an internationally recognized artist, even in Belgium and the UK.
Gainsbourg wrote the winning Eurovision song for Luxembourg, “Poupée de cire, poupée de son” in 1965.
🎤 Edith Piaf
Vocally the best known French singer, Edith Piaf, was born Édith Giovanna Gassion in 1915 and specialised in chanson and love ballads. She started as a cabaret singer and gradually gained attention and fame with her emotive performance, which resonated with the audience, even during World War II.
By the 50s, she achieved global stardom with hits like "La Vie en Rose" and "Non, je ne regrette rien", and is one of the first French chanson singers to headline three consecutive years at Carnegie Hall from 1956 to 1958.
👗 Coco Chanel
Gabrielle Bonheur Chanel was born in 1883. Her father was an itinerant peddler, and after her mother’s death when she was 12, he sent her and her sisters to the convent orphanage of Aubazine, where she learned to sew.
Coco had started designing hats as a hobby but became a licensed milliner in 1910. Her hats became popular after a famous French actress, Gabrielle Dorziat modeled them onstage and for the magazine Les Modes. By 1921, her brand and fashion creations had become a household name and epitome of French etiquette, which covered clothing, hats, accessories, jewelry, and perfume, including the iconic Chanel N°5.
The little black dress (LBD) is one of Coco Chanel’s most famous contributions to fashion. Its first design was first published in Vogue, where the magazine compared it to the Model T car of Ford — because it was affordable, versatile, and accessible to many women.
🎤 Alizée
Alizée became a famous French celebrity as a teen singer when she won the talent show Graines de star in 1999. Her debut album "Gourmandises" was released in 2000, earning platinum certification within three months and making her the highest-selling female French singer in 2001.
Over the years, she has experimented with various song genres such as pop-rock and electronic pop, which solidified her fanbase across different countries like Mexico and Latin America, where she also covered Madonna's "La Isla Bonita”.
🎭 Eva Green
Fans of the latest James Bond franchise will immediately recognize the eccentric and intriguing Vesper Lynd as Eva Green, who acted alongside Daniel Craig in Casino Royale (2006).
Green's solid acting and fluent English skills are no accident. As a child, she was exposed to acting through her mother (who's also a French actress), and had acting training in both London and Paris. She is one of the few French actresses who successfully balanced her time between Hollywood productions and local independent projects.
Did you know Eva Green has a twin sister named Joy? Joy is the younger of the fraternal twins — Eva was born first.
⚽ Zinedine Zidane
When we talk about French football legends, nobody tops Zidane (also known as Zizou). He was best known for leading France during the country's golden era during the late 90s and early 2000s, while playing for top clubs, like Juventus and Real Madrid.
He scored 2 goals in the final against Brazil during the 1998 World Cup, and also helped pave the way for France's great finale against Italy at Euro 2000. After retirement, he joined Real Madrid as the football manager and won three consecutive Champions League titles (2016–2018).
🎭 Adèle Exarchopoulos
Adèle Exarchopoulos is one of the few new-wave French actresses who have brought French cinema into the limelight in recent years. Her breakthrough role came in the movie Blue Is the Warmest Colour (2013), which opened the doors to many collaboration opportunities in Hollywood.
One of her most recent and exciting Hollywood productions is voice acting for Pixar's Inside Out 2 (2024), in which she voices Ennui for both the English and French versions.
Exarchopoulos became the youngest winner in history to win a Palme d'Or at the age of 19 during the 2013 Cannes Festival.
🎥 Omar Sy
Before Omar Sy became an acclaimed movie star for his role as Driss in The Intouchables (2011), he was known for his TV comedic roles. Until today, The Intouchables is one of the biggest box office successes in French cinema history, where Omar also won his first ever Cesar Award.
He later starred in many other amazing productions, such as X-Men: Days of Future Past and Jurassic Park. Now, he is widely known as the titular character in the hot Netflix series, Lupin.
🎥 Vincent Cassel
The turning point of Cassel's acting career is definitely his role in La Haine, where he played Vinz, a young Jewish man who was involved in riots and police brutality. The success of La Haine helped him launch a Hollywood career, where he starred in acclaimed movies like Elizabeth, Ocean's Twelve, Black Swan, and Jason Bourne.
Cassel was influenced by his father, Jean-Pierre Cassel, who was also an established French actor. His half sister, Cécile Cassel, is also an actress.
⚽ Kylian Mbappé
If Zidane made the French audience's hearts go wild during the 1998 World Cup, Mbappé certainly set the audience's hearts on fire again during their second World Cup win in 2018 against Croatia!
He became the second teenager to score in a World Cup final (after the legendary Pelé in 1958). He has been playing for Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) since 2017, and after 7 years, he transferred to Real Madrid with a contract of 5 years.
🎭 Sophie Marceau
Fans of 80s movies and culture would certainly remember the captivating scene when Mathieu places headphones over Vic’s (Sophie Marceau) ears, and the world around them fades as Richard Sanderson’s song “Reality” starts playing. To many, Marceau's presence was a symbol of teenage first love and French culture.
Marceau's debut in La Boum at the age of 14 made her a superstar worldwide. She has since starred in many iconic Hollywood films, such as Braveheart alongside Mel Gibson and The World is Not Enough, alongside Pierce Brosnan.
Marceau directed her first feature, Speak to Me of Love (2002), which won the Best Director award at the Montreal World Film Festival.
🥋 Teddy Riner
Born in Guadeloupe and raised in Paris, Riner is considered one of the most successful judokas of all time. He is a nine-time world champion under the 100kg weight class division, a 3 times Olympic gold medallist, and also a five-time European champion.
As he started learning judo at the age of 5, he had an early sports career, enabling him to compete in five consecutive Olympics from 2008 to 2024. He was also one of the two flag bearers for France at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.
🎭 Juliette Binoche
Binoche became well known in the English-speaking audience through her Oscar-winning role in The English Patient (for Best Supporting Actress) alongside Ralph Fieness in 1996.
A regular face at major international film festivals around the world, she often worked with talented directors and producers for movies across different genres, spanning a successful career of over 30 years.
Juliette Binoche is the first actress in history to win the “triple crown” of European film: Cannes, Venice, Berlin.
🎤 Aya Nakamura
Born Aya Danioko, Aya adopted her stage name from the character Hiro Nakamura from the TV show Heroes. Her breakthrough hit was Djadja, which topped charts in France, the Netherlands, and many other countries.
She is also known as the Queen of Streaming France, and her stage presence is well-loved by music fans. One of her highlight performances was at the Paris 2024 Olympics opening ceremony.
Master French Like the Francophone Celebrities
If you want to learn more about French media and culture, celebrities, and French language history, feel free to connect with an experienced private tutor. On Superprof, you can find a private tutor in your city in a few simple steps. All you need to do is head to the Superprof Canada homepage and start browsing a wide selection of tutors' profiles. From there, the system will direct you to the perfect tutor according to your personalization, such as tutoring experience, qualifications, methodology, tutoring level (beginner to advanced), and hourly rates.
Who knows, you might even get a chance to meet a real French celebrity soon and impress them with your French skills!
References
- The 50 best French actors and actresses. (n.d.). IMDb. https://www.imdb.com/list/ls009712565/
- French celebrities. (n.d.). https://www.grevin-paris.com/en/french-celebrities
- Paris, R. (2024, February 9). 25 Most famous French people of all time. Roaming Paris. https://www.roamingparis.com/famous-french-people/
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