Nathalie Marie Andrée Baye (born 6 July 1948) is a French film, television and stage actress. She began her career in 1970 and has appeared in more than 80 films. A ten-time César Award nominee, her four wins were for '' Every Man for Himself'' (1980), '' Strange Affair'' (1981), '' La Balance'' (1982), and '' The Young Lieutenant'' (2005). In 2009, she was made a Chevalier of the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon ...

. Her other films include '' Day for Night'' (1973), '' Catch Me If You Can'' (2002), '' Tell No One'' (2006) and '' The Assistant'' (2015).

Early life

Baye was born in

Mainneville Mainneville () is a commune in the Eure department in Normandy in northern France. Population See also *Communes of the Eure department The following is a list of the 585 communes of the Eure department of France. The communes cooperate in ...

, Eure,

Normandy Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...

, to Claude Baye and Denise Coustet, two painters. At 14, she joined a school of dance in Monaco. Three years later she went to the United States. On returning to France she continued with dance but also registered for the Simon Course and was admitted to the Conservatoire, from where she graduated in 1972 with a second prize in comedy, dramatic comedy and foreign theatre.

Career

Her second cinema appearance was in '' Two People'' (1973) directed by

Robert Wise Robert Earl Wise (September 10, 1914 – September 14, 2005) was an American film director, producer, and editor. He won the Academy Awards for Academy Award for Best Director, Best Director and Academy Award for Best Picture, Best Picture for h ...

. She became better known as the script girl in '' Day for Night'' (''La Nuit américaine'', 1973) by

François Truffaut François Roland Truffaut ( , ; ; 6 February 1932 – 21 October 1984) was a French film director, screenwriter, producer, actor, and film critic. He is widely regarded as one of the founders of the French New Wave. After a career of more tha ...

. Throughout the 1970s, she played the good girlfriend or nice provincial girl in film and television. She won her first César, as best supporting artist, for '' Every Man for Himself'' (''Sauve qui peut (la vie)'', 1980) directed by

Jean-Luc Godard Jean-Luc Godard ( , ; ; 3 December 193013 September 2022) was a French-Swiss film director, screenwriter, and film critic. He rose to prominence as a pioneer of the French New Wave film movement of the 1960s, alongside such filmmakers as Fran ...

. There then followed '' The Return of Martin Guerre'' (''Le Retour de Martin Guerre'', 1982) and '' La Balance'' (also 1982). Baye won two more César Awards, Best Supporting Actress, for '' Strange Affair'' (''Une étrange affaire'', 1981), and Best Actress for ''La Balance'', 1982). Her four-year relationship with

Johnny Hallyday Jean-Philippe Léo Smet (; 15 June 1943 – 5 December 2017), better known by his stage name Johnny Hallyday, was a French rock and roll and pop singer and actor, credited for having brought rock and roll to France. During a career spanning 57 ...

made them a celebrity couple and their daughter is Laura Smet, now an actress. After changing her image by playing a streetwalker in ''La Balance'', she widened her scope with more obscure characters in ''J'ai épousé une ombre'' (1983) and ''En toute innocence'' (1988). In 1986, she returned to the theatre with an interpretation of ''Adriana Monti''. In 1999, she was voted Best Supporting Actress at

Venice Film Festival The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival ( it, Mostra Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica della Biennale di Venezia, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival h ...

for '' Une liaison pornographique'' and starred in ''

Vénus Beauté (Institut) ''Venus Beauty Institute'' (french: Vénus beauté (institut)), also known as ''Venus Beauty'', is a 1999 French romantic comedy. The story centers on three employees of a beauty parlor and their search for love and happiness. The film is directed ...

'' (2000) by Tonie Marshall which won multiple

César Awards The César Award is the national film award of France. It is delivered in the ' ceremony and was first awarded in 1976. The nominations are selected by the members of twelve categories of filmmaking professionals and supported by the French Min ...

including Best Film. She has worked with

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 a ...

and

Steven Spielberg Steven Allan Spielberg (; born December 18, 1946) is an American director, writer, and producer. A major figure of the New Hollywood era and pioneer of the modern blockbuster, he is the most commercially successful director of all time. Spi ...

Filmography

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Baye, Nathalie 1948 births Living people 20th-century French actresses 21st-century French actresses French National Academy of Dramatic Arts alumni French film actresses French stage actresses French television actresses Best Actress César Award winners Best Supporting Actress César Award winners Chevaliers of the Légion d'honneur Magritte Award winners Volpi Cup for Best Actress winners People from Eure