Hands on buttocks and breasts, attempts at forced kisses… The actor Édouard Baer was accused on Thursday by six women who accused him of “harassment and sexual assault” in a joint investigation by Mediapart and Cheek, online feminist media . None of these six women, aged around twenty at the time of the events and who testified anonymously, filed a complaint, specify the two media outlets.
These women tell the story of “acts of harassment and sexual assault over a period spanning from 2013 to 2021 (…) mainly in professional contexts”, in his Parisian office, when he plays in the theater, at the opportunity for broadcasts on Radio Nova or at the Maison de la Radio in Paris.
According to one of these women, Édouard Baer grabbed her “left breast with his hand” in an elevator. Another accuses him of having touched her “breasts several times”, of having “grabbed her by the waist” and of having “put his hand on [s] ‘s buttocks’. “He tries to kiss me on the neck and on the mouth. I push him away,” reports yet another. Some also mention repeated requests and compliments on their physique.
“Stupor”
This investigation also focuses on the fascination exercised by the actor on several of these women, who voluntarily agreed to meet him or talk with him as part of his activities. One also explains that she did not file a complaint because she thought it would be “her word against the [s] ienne”.
“It is with astonishment and great sadness that I discovered the testimonies that you brought me,” reacted Édouard Baer, in a written statement sent to Mediapart and Cheek. “I do not recognize myself in the words or gestures attributed to me, but I can only express my regret that my behavior made these women uncomfortable or hurt. I didn’t have the intelligence to perceive it. I am deeply sorry. I never intentionally tried to hurt them. I apologize to them all.”
According to both outlets, the actor further maintains that no woman has ever told him that he had “gone too far.” He assured them: “That has not happened to me in life, that is not at all the nature of my relationships, neither with men nor with women nor with people in general.”
When questioned, Édouard Baer’s lawyer referred to this statement. The Antoine theater in Paris, where Édouard Baer is due to perform in June and July, also made no comment.
