Jean-Louis Xavier Trintignant (; 11 December 1930 – 17 June 2022) was a French actor. He made his theatrical debut in 1951, and went on to be regarded as one of the best French dramatic actors of the post- war era. He starred in many classic films of European cinema, and worked with many prominent

auteur An (; , ) is an artist with a distinctive approach, usually a film director whose filmmaking control is so unbounded and personal that the director is likened to the "author" of the film, thus manifesting the director's unique style or thematic ...

directors, including

Roger Vadim Roger Vadim Plemiannikov (; 26 January 1928 – 11 February 2000) was a French screenwriter, film director, and producer, as well as an author, artist, and occasional actor. His best-known works are visually lavish films with erotic qualities, s ...

Costa-Gavras Konstantinos "Kostas" Gavras (; born 12 February 1933), known professionally as Costa-Gavras, is a Greek-French film director, screenwriter, and producer who lives and works in France. He is known for political films, such as the political thril ...

Claude Lelouch Claude Barruck Joseph Lelouch (; born 30 October 1937) is a French film director, writer, cinematographer, actor and producer. Lelouch grew up in an Algerian Jewish family. He emerged as a prominent director in the 1960s. Lelouch gained critical ...

Claude Chabrol Claude Henri Jean Chabrol (; 24 June 1930 – 12 September 2010) was a French film director and a member of the French New Wave (''nouvelle vague'') group of filmmakers who first came to prominence at the end of the 1950s. Like his colleagues an ...

Bernardo Bertolucci Bernardo Bertolucci ( ; ; 16 March 1941 – 26 November 2018) was an Italian film director and screenwriter with a career that spanned 50 years. Considered one of the greatest directors in the history of cinema, Bertolucci's work achieved inte ...

Éric Rohmer Jean Marie Maurice Schérer or Maurice Henri Joseph Schérer, known as Éric Rohmer (; 21 March 192011 January 2010), was a French film director, film critic, journalist, novelist, screenwriter, and teacher. Rohmer was the last of the Post-war, p ...

François Truffaut François Roland Truffaut ( , ; ; 6 February 1932 – 21 October 1984) was a French filmmaker, actor, and critic. He is widely regarded as one of the founders of the French New Wave. He came under the tutelage of film critic Andre Bazin as a ...

Krzysztof Kieślowski Krzysztof Kieślowski (, 27 June 1941 – 14 March 1996) was a Polish film director and screenwriter. He is known internationally for ''Dekalog'' (1989), ''The Double Life of Veronique'' (1991), and the Three Colours trilogy, ''Three Colours'' ...

, and

Michael Haneke Michael Haneke (; born 23 March 1942) is an Austrian film director and screenwriter. His work often examines social issues and depicts the feelings of estrangement experienced by individuals in modern society. Haneke has made films in French, Ge ...

. He made a critical and commercial breakthrough in '' And God Created Woman'' (1956), followed by a starmaking romantic turn in '' A Man and a Woman'' (1966). He won the

Silver Bear for Best Actor The Silver Bear for Best Actor () was an award presented at the Berlin International Film Festival from 1956 to 2020. It was given to an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance and was chosen by the International Jury from the films i ...

at the 1968 Berlin International Film Festival for his performance in '' The Man Who Lies'' and the Best Actor Award at the 1969 Cannes Film Festival for

's ''Z''. Trintignant's other notable films include '' The Great Silence'' (1968), '' My Night at Maud's'' (1969), '' The Conformist'' (1970), '' Three Colours: Red'' (1994), and ''

The City of Lost Children ''The City of Lost Children'' () is a 1995 science fantasy film directed by Marc Caro and Jean-Pierre Jeunet, written by Jeunet and Gilles Adrien, and starring Ron Perlman. An international co-production of companies from France, Germany, ...

'' (1995). He won the 2013 César Award for Best Actor for his role in

's '' Amour''.

Early life

Trintignant was born on 11 December 1930 in Piolenc, Vaucluse. He had a brother four years older. During World War II, his father joined the resistance against the Nazi regime by aiding Jews, and his mother began an affair with a Nazi officer. This horizontal collaboration affected Jean-Louis his entire life. He grew up with the intention of studying law and enrolled in

Aix-Marseille University Aix-Marseille University (AMU; ; formally incorporated as ) is a Public university, public research university located in the Provence region of southern France. It was founded in 1409 when Louis II of Anjou, List of rulers of Provence, Count of ...

. However, he soon discovered an interest in acting and moved to Paris at the age of 20 to study drama, making his theatrical debut in 1951.

Career

After touring in the early 1950s in several theater productions, his first motion picture appearance came in 1955, and the following year he gained stardom with his performance opposite

Brigitte Bardot Brigitte Anne-Marie Bardot ( ; ; born 28 September 1934), often referred to by her initials B.B., is a French former actress, singer, and model as well as an animal rights activist. Famous for portraying characters with Hedonism, hedonistic life ...

's '' And God Created Woman''. Trintignant's acting was interrupted for several years by mandatory military service. After serving in

Algiers Algiers is the capital city of Algeria as well as the capital of the Algiers Province; it extends over many Communes of Algeria, communes without having its own separate governing body. With 2,988,145 residents in 2008Census 14 April 2008: Offi ...

, he returned to Paris and resumed his work in film. He had the leading male role in

's film '' A Man and a Woman'' (''Un homme et une femme'', 1966), which was the most commercially successful French film internationally for some years. In Italy, he was always dubbed into Italian, and he worked with Italian directors including

Sergio Corbucci Sergio Corbucci (; 6 December 1926 – 1 December 1990) was an Italian film director, screenwriter and Film producer, producer. He was one of the main exponents of the Spaghetti Western genre during the 1960s and 1970s, with his most notable work ...

in '' The Great Silence'', Valerio Zurlini in '' Violent Summer'' and '' The Desert of the Tartars'',

Ettore Scola Ettore Scola (; 10 May 1931 – 19 January 2016) was an Italian screenwriter and film director. He received a Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign Language Film, Golden Globe for Best Foreign Film in 1978 for his film ''A Special Day'' and over ...

in '' La terrazza'',

in '' The Conformist'', and

Dino Risi Dino Risi (23 December 1916 – 7 June 2008) was an Italian film director. With Mario Monicelli, Luigi Comencini, Nanni Loy, and Ettore Scola, he was one of the masters of ''commedia all'italiana''. Biography Risi was born in Milan. He had an ...

in '' The Easy Life''. Throughout the 1970s, Trintignant starred in many films, including the English-language films '' The Outside Man'' in 1971 and '' Under Fire'' in 1983. Following this, he starred in

's final film, '' Confidentially Yours'', and reprised his best-known role in the sequel '' A Man and a Woman: 20 Years Later'' (''Un homme et une femme, 20 ans dejà'', 1986). In 1994, he starred in

's final film, '' Three Colors: Red''. For the remainder of his career, he took an occasional film role but focused on stage work. After a 14-year gap, Trintignant came back to the screen for

's film '' Amour''. Haneke sent Trintignant the screenplay, which had been written specifically for him. Trintignant said he chose film projects on the basis of the director and said of Haneke that "he has the most complete mastery of the cinematic discipline, from technical aspects like sound and photography to the way he handles actors". He worked with Haneke again in 2017 when he starred in '' Happy End''. On 20 July 2018, Trintignant announced his retirement from cinema, but, in March 2019, he accepted a role in Claude Lelouch's film '' The Best Years of a Life'' (''Les plus belles annees d'une vie''), a follow-up to ''A Man and a Woman'' and its sequel ''A Man and a Woman: 20 Years Later''.

Personal life and death

Trintignant came from a wealthy family. He was the nephew of racecar driver Louis Trintignant, who was killed in 1933 while practising on the Péronne racetrack in

Picardy Picardy (; Picard language, Picard and , , ) is a historical and cultural territory and a former regions of France, administrative region located in northern France. The first mentions of this province date back to the Middle Ages: it gained it ...

. Another uncle,

Maurice Trintignant Maurice Bienvenu Jean Paul Trintignant (; 30 October 1917 – 13 February 2005) was a French racing driver and winemaker, who competed in Formula One from to . Trintignant won two Formula One Grands Prix across 15 seasons. In endurance raci ...

(1917–2005), was a

Formula One Formula One (F1) is the highest class of worldwide racing for open-wheel single-seater formula Auto racing, racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The FIA Formula One World Championship has been one ...

driver who twice won the

Monaco Grand Prix The Monaco Grand Prix () is a Formula One motor racing event held annually on the Circuit de Monaco, in late May or early June. Run since 1929, it is widely considered to be one of the most important and prestigious automobile races in the wo ...

as well as the

24 hours of Le Mans The 24 Hours of Le Mans () is an endurance-focused Sports car racing, sports car race held annually near the city of Le Mans, France. It is widely considered to be one of the world's most prestigious races, and is one of the races—along with ...

. Jean-Louis himself was an enthusiastic amateur rally driver and competed in a number of high-level rallies in the 1970s and 1980s, including several rounds of the

World Rally Championship The World Rally Championship (abbreviated as WRC) is an international rallying series owned and governed by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile, FIA. Inaugurated in 1973, it is the oldest FIA world championship after Formula One. E ...

; he finished first in his class in the 1981

Monte Carlo Rally The Monte Carlo Rally or Rallye Monte-Carlo (officially Rallye Automobile Monte-Carlo) is a rallying event organized each year by the Automobile Club de Monaco. From its inception in 1911 by Albert I, Prince of Monaco, Prince Albert I, the rally ...

. Raised in and around automobile racing, Trintignant was the natural choice of film director

for the starring role of a racecar driver in the 1966 film '' A Man and a Woman''. He suffered a leg injury from a motorbike accident in June 2007. His first wife was actress Stéphane Audran. His second wife, Nadine Marquand, was an actress, screenwriter, and director. They had three children: Vincent, Pauline (who died of crib death in 1969), and Marie Trintignant (21 January 1962 – 1 August 2003). At age 17 Marie performed in ''La terrazza'' alongside her father and later became a successful actress. She was killed at age 41 by her boyfriend, rock musician

Bertrand Cantat Bertrand Lucien Bruno Cantat (, ; born 5 March 1964) is a French singer, songwriter, and murderer. Known for being the former frontman of the rock band Noir Désir, in 2003, he was proven guilty without a doubt and convicted of the murder ("murde ...

, in a hotel room in

Vilnius Vilnius ( , ) is the capital of and List of cities in Lithuania#Cities, largest city in Lithuania and the List of cities in the Baltic states by population, most-populous city in the Baltic states. The city's estimated January 2025 population w ...

, Lithuania. In 2018, Trintignant announced that he was diagnosed with

prostate cancer Prostate cancer is the neoplasm, uncontrolled growth of cells in the prostate, a gland in the male reproductive system below the bladder. Abnormal growth of the prostate tissue is usually detected through Screening (medicine), screening tests, ...

and would not be seeking treatment. In November 2021, it was reported that he was gradually losing his sight and was in declining health. Trintignant died at his home on 17 June 2022, at the age of 91.

Filmography

Source:

Awards and honours

References

External links

Jean-Louis Trintignant biography
o
newwavefilm.com
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''Jean-Louis Trintignant'' at ''New Wave Film''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Trintignant, Jean-Louis 1930 births 2022 deaths 20th-century French male actors 21st-century French male actors 24 Hours of Le Mans drivers Best Actor César Award winners Best Actor Lumières Award winners Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actor winners Deaths from prostate cancer in France European Film Award for Best Actor winners French film directors French male film actors French male screenwriters French male stage actors French military personnel of the Algerian War French screenwriters Male Spaghetti Western actors People from Vaucluse Male actors from Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Silver Bear for Best Actor winners World Sportscar Championship drivers Institut des hautes études cinématographiques alumni