Niels Arestrup died at the age of 75 this Sunday, December 1st. If the actor was very popular with the public, he also left a tarnished image and it is not Clovis Cornillac who will say the opposite.
On December 1, Niels Arestrup, renowned actor, died at the age of 75 in Ville-d'Avray, surrounded by his family.
Clovis Cornillac expressed his contempt for Niels Arestrup, citing personal reasons linked to inappropriate behavior.
Discover the accusations of violence that marred Niels Arestrup's career and the striking testimonies of his colleagues.
The world of cinema is in mourning. This Sunday, December 1, Niels Arestrup died at his home in Ville-d'Avray, surrounded by his family, after a long fight against illness. ” I am extremely sad to announce the death of my husband, the immense actor Niels Arestrup, after a courageous fight against illness. He passed away surrounded by the love of his family.” declared Isabelle Le Nouvel, his wife, in a press release. If the actor was very popular with the public, he was also the subject of very notable criticism. In 2017, Clovis Cornillac gave a very blunt opinion on Niels Arestrup, not mincing his words.
Clovis Cornillac had openly expressed his contempt for Niels Arestrup. “I hate this man. It's one of the rare ones”, he said before continuing: “He knows why and there’s no problem about that.”. Subsequently qualifying him as “great actor”he had made it clear that he did not appreciate it for “personal reasons”. But what is it about? “There are people who behave badly and in general, those who behave badly, I don’t like them” , he declared before adding: “We avoid crossing paths and I think that’s better.”
Clovis Cornillac and Niels Arestrup: what happened between the two men?
The story dates back to 1997 when Myriam Boyer, Clovis Cornillac's mother, shared the stage with Niels Arestrup. Both were playing in the room Who's afraid of Virginia Woolf? and the experience would have turned into a real nightmare for the actress. In her autobiography, the main person concerned, replaced by Catherine Arditi, had confided on this subject. “I discovered, with Niels Arestrup, what perversity was. After bouts of violence, he ensured that I was fired” she said.
This story got people talking and it notably tarnished the reputation of Myriam Boyer. In September 2021, it's on the show Boomerang that she had agreed to return to this period. ” It's a nightmare. You feel like you're going to wake up because it wasn't possible “, she declared. Subsequently, she was delighted that mentalities had changed. “I believe that we will no longer be able to do what happened and that is very good news.”, she said, specifying that, in her mother’s time, domestic violence was borderline normal. You were lucky when you weren't with a man who didn't hit. It was the opposite, it’s still crazy,” she lamented.
Niels Arestrup: an actor who is the subject of numerous accusations
Niels Arestrup was an immense actor known for his talent but also for the accusations he was the subject of. In 1983, Isabelle Adjani left the role of the play she was playing, accusing her partner, Niels Arestrup, of having slapped her. Facts that the main person concerned has never denied, simply declaring that the actress would have attacked him first. In November 2017, Isabelle Adjani provided details during an interview, stating: “An actor with real physical violence. He even broke the arm of an actress later and was taken to court by another. Escaping him became so obsessive for me that I fell ill.”
Myriam Boyer and Isabelle Adjani are not the only ones to have accused Niels Arestrup of this type of act. There is also the actress Miou-Miou who, according to the known facts, had her eardrum burst due to a slap from Niels Arestrup. The actor allegedly broke Maria Schneider's coccyx on the same day. Very notable accusations and, for his part, the main person concerned simply stated: “I have always hated brutality, which I find desperately stupid.” Although he was well known and appreciated for his talent, Niels Arestrup will have left his mark with accusations of very violent acts.
