Fanny Ardant

Fanny Ardant — Biography

Fanny Ardant (born 1949 in Saumur) is a French stage and screen actress, director, and screenwriter. Because her father served as a military attache in Monaco, she spent her childhood there before returning to France at seventeen and studying political science in Aix-en-Provence while training in theater. She made her stage debut in 1974 in Corneille's Polyeucte. Her performance in the 1979 television series Les Dames de la côte caught the attention of director François Truffaut, leading to a leading role opposite Gérard Depardieu in his 1981 film La Femme d'à côté, which brought her first César nomination. She went on to appear in well-known productions such as Le Colonel Chabert, Ridicule, and Huit Femmes, working with filmmakers including Agnès Varda and Sydney Pollack. She won the César Award for Best Actress for Pédale douce in 1997 and the César for Best Supporting Actress for La Belle Époque in 2020, earning six César nominations across her career. She portrayed opera singer Maria Callas in Callas Forever.