Niels Arestrup, Icon of French Cinema, Dies at 75

On Sunday, December 1st, Niels Arestrup passed away at his home in Ville-d’Avray, Hauts-de-Seine, at the age of 75. His wife, Isabelle Le Nouvel, shared the sad news with France Télévisions, stating that he died “after a courageous battle with illness” and “surrounded by the love of his family.” The actor, who had twins in 2012, leaves behind a remarkable legacy in French cinema, winning three César Awards for Best Supporting Actor for The Beat That My Heart Skipped (2006), A Prophet (2010), and The French Minister (2014).

A Career Marked by Diversity and Intensity

Niels Arestrup began his career on stage in the 1960s before making his film debut in the 1970s, working with directors such as Samy Pavel, Alain Resnais, and Claude Lelouch. It was in the second half of his career that he truly made his mark on French cinema, particularly through Jacques Audiard, who cast him in memorable roles: a ruthless father in The Beat That My Heart Skipped and a Corsican mafia boss in A Prophet.

In addition to his film successes, Arestrup was nominated multiple times for César Awards and won the Molière for Best Actor in 2020 for his performance in Rouge. The César Academy praised his “charisma, talent, and simplicity,” while Jean-Michel Ribes, author and director, described him as one of “the greatest actors” of his generation.

A Complex and Human Personality

Despite his successes, Arestrup was not without controversy. He was sometimes perceived as a “difficult” actor and had incidents of violent behavior, notably in 1983 when Isabelle Adjani withdrew from a play after an altercation with him, and in 1996 when Myriam Boyer was dismissed from Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? following a physical altercation. Jean-Michel Ribes pointed out that while Arestrup could be difficult, he was “a sensitive and very kind man” and deeply regretted his past actions.

As he aged, the actor managed to soften his image. Becoming a father of twins at 62, he spoke about fatherhood as a period of newfound stability. In 2014, he told Paris Match, “To consider having children, I had to be very much in love, to reach a moment in my life where I was finally stable.” His career and life remain a testament to the complexity and intensity that defined both the man and the artist.