Brigitte Bardot, French screen icon, dead aged 91
Brigitte Bardot, the French icon who became a celebrated sex symbol in the 1950s and 1960s, has passed away at the age of 91.
The star, who shot to international fame in 1956 after starring in the film And God Created Woman, has reportedly passed away due to a sudden illness.
In October, Bardot took to social media to deny reports that she had passed away, after it was reported that she attended Saint-Jean private hospital for three weeks, where she underwent surgery.
Now, it has been revealed that the star has died from complications while recovering from her surgery. The Brigitte Bardot Foundation, a charity she began, which remains dedicated to animal protection, broke the news.
The Foundation shared a statement which read, “The Brigitte Bardot Foundation announces with immense sadness the death of its founder and president, Madame Brigitte Bardot, a world-renowned actress and singer, who chose to abandon her prestigious career to dedicate her life and energy to animal welfare and her foundation.”
Bardot was reportedly at her home in Saint-Tropez when she was suddenly rushed to a hospital near Toulon, where she died.
After studying ballet as a child, Bardot began acting at the age of 17. She married the screenwriter Roger Vadim at the age of 18, and made over a dozen movies before starring in his directorial debut. As the 1950s drew to a close, she was the highest-paid actor in all of France.
As the 1960s dawned, Bardot acted in high-profile French films such as the Oscar-nominated Henri-Georges Clouzot picture, The Truth, Louis Malle’s Very Private Affair, and, notably, Jean-Luc Godard’s Contempt.
She performed in a handful of Hollywood movies but mostly remained loyal to European cinema. However, later in her career, the actor admitted that she “was never really prepared for the life of a star,” and eventually announced her retirement from the industry in 1973, not before releasing her debut album Brigitte Bardot Sings in 1963.
Between 1997 and 2008, Bardot was taken to court five times on charges of inciting racial hatred. Earlier this year, she also made headlines after denouncing the MeToo movement and feminism at large, deeming it “not my thing.”
During a rare 2024 interview with the French newspaper, Le Monde, to celebrate her 90th birthday, Bardot provided an update on her life since stepping out of the limelight.
She shared, “My isolation is a choice. It’s a luxury. Silence. Being quiet, with very few people around. Having peace. Without a madding crowd around you. Without being put on display. Solitude, as I embrace it, has always been my dream, and now I embrace it, my dream. I am delighted with my current condition.”
Bardot is survived by her fourth husband, Bernard d’Ormale, and her son Nicolas-Jacques Charrier.
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