French filmmakers Benoît Jacquot and Jacques Doillon were taken into police custody in Paris on Monday over accusations they had committed acts of sexual abuse in the 1980s, the BBC reports.
Actress Judith Godrèche, also French, filed police complaints against both men earlier this year – claiming Jacquot, 77, had raped her when she was 14 years old, and accusing Doillon, 80, of sexual assault on set. A police investigation followed.
Doillon’s lawyer has been quoted saying that no legal criteria could justify his being detained for questioning “36 years” after the alleged incident – implying Godrèche, who is now 52, was about 16 when the assault allegedly took place.
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Both men have denied Godrèche’s version of events.
Godrèche has starred in two of Jacquot’s films, one in 1987 (The Beggars) and the other in 1990 (The Disenchanted). She also starred in Dillion’s 1989 film, The 15 Year Old Girl.
The actress, who is known as France’s “ambassador of #MeToo”, was in a relationship with Jacquot during her teenage years and has claimed he had an unhealthy hold over her at the time. Her short film about abuse in the film industry was screened at this year’s Cannes Film Festival, in May.
