Brigitte Bardot Bela Zola/Mirrorpix/Getty Images Share on Facebook Share on X Google Preferred Share to Flipboard Show additional share options Share on LinkedIn Share on Pinterest Share on Reddit Share on Tumblr Share on Whats App Send an Email Print the Article Post a Comment Logo text What's up with reactionary old French screen legends? Is it something in the wine? Obituaries for sex kitten turned animal rights activist Brigitte Bardot, who died Dec. 28 at age 91, tended to mention her far-right politics in the first paragraph. Indeed, B.B. was an outspoken Islamophobe - her animus evidently stemming from her objection to ritual goat-slaughtering practices during Muslim festivals - who was convicted multiple times by French courts for inciting racial hatred. But she was not as much of an outlier as the postmortems made it seem. Related Stories TV 'Red Eye' Star Jing Lusi on the "Perfect Binge-Fest" That Is Season 2 -- And Why She's Still Waiting for the U.K.'s 'Crazy Rich Asians' Moment Movies "Speaking Authentically Is Threatening": How a Palestinian Film Made It to Palm Springs While the French film industry, like Hollywood, is overwhelmingly liberal (think of the walkouts at the César Awards when accused statutory rapist Roman Polanski won best director in 2020), some of the biggest Gallic stars of yesteryear have loudly bucked the trend. Take Catherine Deneuve, who though no fan of the far right, nevertheless became the most vocal opponent of #MeToo in France. Or tax exile Gérard Depardieu, who was personally handed a Russian passport by Vladimir Putin and was more recently convicted of multiple instances of sexual assault (with Bardot among his few sympathizers). And then there was late film star Alain Delon, a longtime friend of Holocaust-denying far-right leader Jean-Marie Le Pen and a sometime supporter of his National Rally party who had been called the "male Brigitte Bardot." Sure, it might be a generational thing. Or maybe their views are increasingly representative of the French public's: Recent polls have National Rally leader Jordan Bardella the runaway favorite to be the country's next president. *** Also in Rambling Reporter: THR looks into the free app that displays every public restroom and drinking fountain around Los Angeles, as well as the Adult Video News Awards, porn's version of the Oscars. This story appeared in the Jan. 2 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. Click here to subscribe. THR Newsletters Sign up for THR news straight to your inbox every day Subscribe Sign Up NYC mayor Eric Adams Fires Back at Andy Cohen's "Sloppy Drunken Rant" on New Year's Eve: "He Should Seek Help" THR, Esq Will Smith Sued by Tour Violinist For Wrongful Termination, Retaliation Tommy Lee Jones Victoria Jones, Actor and Daughter of Tommy Lee Jones, Found Dead in San Francisco Hotel Betty Boop Betty Boop and 'Blondie' Enter Public Domain in 2026 international French Government Defends Granting Citizenship to George and Amal Clooney Zohran Mamdani NY Mayor Zohran Mamdani Refuses to "Reset Expectations" in Rousing Inaugural Address: "I Will Not Abandon My Principles for Fear of Being Radical" NYC mayor Eric Adams Fires Back at Andy Cohen's "Sloppy Drunken Rant" on New Year's Eve: "He Should Seek Help" THR, Esq Will Smith Sued by Tour Violinist For Wrongful Termination, Retaliation Tommy Lee Jones Victoria Jones, Actor and Daughter of Tommy Lee Jones, Found Dead in San Francisco Hotel Betty Boop Betty Boop and 'Blondie' Enter Public Domain in 2026 international French Government Defends Granting Citizenship to George and Amal Clooney Zohran Mamdani NY Mayor Zohran Mamdani Refuses to "Reset Expectations" in Rousing Inaugural Address: "I Will Not Abandon My Principles for Fear of Being Radical"