France is known for its croissants, the Eiffel Tower, La Marseillaise, and the Palace of Versailles. But who are the people who have shaped our perception of France — the celebrity ambassadors of the tricolour? In this article, we will review 15 of the most famous French men and women from various fields who have made their mark as cultural icons and representatives of their country.
| No | French celebrities | Profession |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Brigitte Bardot | Actress, Dancer |
| 2 | Catherine Deneuve | Actress |
| 3 | Gérard Depardieu | Actor |
| 4 | Jean Reno | Actor |
| 5 | Luc Besson | Director |
| 6 | Jacques-Yves Cousteau | Naval officer and oceanographer |
| 7 | Serge Gainsbourg | Singer-songwriter, Actor |
| 8 | Edith Piaf | Singer |
| 9 | Coco Chanel | Fashion designer |
| 10 | David Guetta | Disck Jockey (DJ) and record producer |
| 11 | Alain Prost | Race driver |
| 12 | Vincent Cassel | Actor |
| 13 | Jean-Paul Charles Belmondo | Actor |
| 14 | Maurice Ravel | Composer and pianist |
| 15 | Alain Delon | Actor and film producer |
1. Brigitte Anne-Marie Bardot
Brigitte Bardot initially trained as a ballet dancer before becoming a model at 14. Her breakthrough in cinema came in 1956, with notable films including And God Created Woman. Her first Hollywood hit was Viva Maria! directed by Louis Malle in 1965, for which she was nominated for a BAFTA award as Best Foreign Actress. She retired from acting in 1973 and has since focused on animal activism.
An iconic figure of French cinema, Bardot was widely remembered for influencing pop culture (Andy Warhol painted her) and even feminism and philosophy, being featured in French philosopher Simone de Beauvoir’s essay “The Lolita Syndrome” in 1959.
2. Catherine Fabienne Dorléac
Catherine Deneuve is an iconic figure in French cinema. Initially using her mother's maiden name to distinguish herself from her acting sisters, she gained fame with Jacques Demy's musical The Umbrellas of Cherbourg in 1964. She went on to star in Roman Polanski’s thriller Repulsion in 1965 and Luis Bunuel’s Belle de Jour in 1967, where she perfected the “ice maiden” persona.
Deneuve won the César for Best Actress for her role in François Truffaut’s The Last Metro in 1980 and was nominated for an Oscar for her portrayal of plantation owner Éliane Devries in the 1992 film Indochine.
Known as the French equivalent of the Oscars, it was first organised in 1976 and viewed as the highest honour in the French film industry.
3. Gérard Xavier Marcel Depardie
Gérard Depardieu is a French actor known for his headline-worthy career. Leaving school at thirteen, he became an actor at the Café de la Gare in Paris. He gained recognition with a César for Best Actor in Truffaut's The Last Metro (1980) alongside Catherine Deneuve. Internationally acclaimed for his roles in Jean de Florette (1986) and Cyrano de Bergerac (1990), an adaptation of the play by famous French writer Edmond Rostand, which earned him a second César in the same year and a nomination for the Oscars.
Depardieu is also recognized for his recent roles in The Man in the Iron Mask and as Obelix in live-action Asterix films. His unconventional antics, in defiance of French etiquette (or, indeed, etiquette anywhere), such as baring his buttocks on a plane, have added to his notoriety.
Since he started his career in 1967
4. Juan Moreno y Herrera-Jiménez
Born in Morocco in 1948 to Spanish parents during the French protectorate, Jean Reno moved to France in 1970, acquired French citizenship, and began his acting career in 1978. Notably, he gained attention for his role in Luc Besson's Subway (1985) and later starred in The Big Blue (1988) and Les Visiteurs (1993).
His international breakthrough came with Besson's Léon: The Professional (1994), earning him acclaim and leading to roles in Hollywood films like Godzilla (1998) and The Da Vinci Code (2006).
Jean Reno is known to dedicate his time to be fluent in many languages, including French, Spanish, English, and Italian for his film work.
5. Luc Paul Marice Besson
Luc Besson, born in Paris in 1959, began his career with the post-apocalyptic film The Last Battle (Le Dernier Combat) and gained attention with the detective film Subway in 1985. This success led to The Big Blue, inspired by freedivers and a box-office hit.
Besson went on to be part of these acclaimed films through directing and writing work, including Léon: The Professional (1994), the sci-fi classic The Fifth Element (1997), Taxi (1998), The Transporter series (2002 & 2005), District 13 (2004), and the Taken franchise (2008-2014) featuring Irish actor, Liam Neeson.
6. Jacques-Yves Cousteau
Jacques-Yves Cousteau was a pioneering figure in underwater exploration and documentary filmmaking. Initially studying to become a naval pilot, an accident led him to focus on underwater exploration. In 1943, he produced the first French underwater documentary, Par dix-huit mètres de fond, and co-invented the Aqua-Lung for extended underwater stays.
Leaving the Navy in 1949, he founded the French Oceanographic Campaigns and leased the Calypso, transforming it into a mobile laboratory. His film The Silent World (1956), created with Louis Malle, won at Cannes. Cousteau's advocacy for environmental issues continued through the Cousteau Foundation, and he produced over 120 documentaries. He passed away in 1997.
7. Lucien Ginsburg
Serge Gainsbourg, born Lucien Ginsburg was a highly versatile French artist known for his roles as a singer, pianist, composer, songwriter, painter, actor, and director. Renowned for his diverse musical styles ranging from chanson to disco, reggae, and funk, he collaborated with influential artists such as Michèle Arnaud, Jacques Brel, Minouche Barelli, and his longtime partner Jane Birkin.
Notably, he wrote songs for the Eurovision Song Contest for various countries. His provocative lyrics and public appearances marked by frequent drunkenness became part of his public image. He passed away in 1991.
Fun fact: The house of the late Serge Gainsbourg has been made public by his daughter and is now designated as a museum in Paris which showcases his music and art collection.
8. Édith Giovanna Gassion
Édith Piaf is renowned as one of the most iconic French singers, specialising in chanson and love ballads. Raised in a brothel by her paternal grandmother, she began her career as a street singer and was later discovered by Louis Leplée in 1935. Performing as "La Môme Piaf," she gained popularity, but Leplée's murder led her to collaborate with Raymond Asso, adopting the stage name Édith Piaf. If you want to appreciate her lyrics on a deeper level, consider learning with an online French teacher.
Despite challenges during the German occupation, she flourished and achieved international fame after the war. Her most famous song, "La Vie en Rose," written in 1945, became a timeless classic. Piaf battled alcohol and opiate addiction, succumbing to liver cancer in 1962.
9. Gabrielle Bonheur "Coco" Chanel
Gabrielle Bonheur Chanel overcame a challenging childhood and began her career as a seamstress and cabaret singer, earning the nickname Coco. Chanel started as a milliner in 1910 and expanded into clothing, revolutionizing women's fashion after the Great War with airy and shorter styles. Her shops in Deauville and Biarritz thrived, offering a full range of fashions, including the iconic Chanel N°5 perfume.
Despite her once avant-garde designs becoming conservative, Chanel remained in business until she died in 1971. Though controversial for her anti-Semitic views and wartime activities, her lasting impact on French fashion, epitomised by Chanel N°5, endures.
10. Pierre David Guetta
You can't talk about the electronic dance music (EDM) genre without mentioning the French DJ, David Guetta. Guetta started his career as a DJ in Paris before eventually turning to record producing for celebrated artists like Usher, Bruno Mars, Justin Bieber and Rihanna.
Guetta's international breakthrough came when he released "When Love Takes Over," featuring Kelly Rowland, and also when he produced the sensational tune " I Gotta Feeling" by Black Eyed Peas. He is also known for his energetic live DJ sessions, making him one of the highest-paid and most streamed DJs ever.
From Guetta's top 500 streaming songs
11. Alain Marie Pascal Prost
Widely known as "The Professor", Alain Prost is the most successful French race driver in Formula One history. Prost stood out for his tactical strategies when finishing a race instead of going all out with high speed like his all-time archrival, Brazilian racing driver Ayrton Senna, during the 80s and 90s. To this date, their rivalry remains one of the most legendary F1 rivalries of all time.
Throughout his racing career, Prost has worked with several teams, including Ferrari, McLaren and Williams. He has won Four Championships in 1985, 1986, 1988 and 1993. He retired from competitive race driving in 1993, the same year after winning his final World Championship title.
12. Vincent Cassel
Vincent Cassel is one of the few French actors who have made a name for themselves in both French cinema and Hollywood. His father, Jean-Pierre Cassel, was also a well-known actor in France.
Cassel’s early breakthrough came with La Haine, a critically acclaimed film by director Mathieu Kassovitz. In 2008, he starred in the Mesrine film series, where his portrayal of the real-life French gangster Jacques Mesrine earned him the César Award for Best Actor in 2009.
Due to his rising fame in the 2010s, Cassel was chosen as the face of a men's perfume released by the renowned French brand Yves Saint Laurent.
13. Jean-Paul Charles Belmondo
Jean-Paul Belmondo was one of France’s most beloved movie stars with a celebrated cinematic legacy, especially during the French New Wave movement. A suave actor with a rugged persona, he was constantly compared to his fellow American greats like Humphrey Bogart, Marlon Brando and James Dean.
Affectionately nicknamed "Bébel" by the French public and media, Belmondo never participated in any Hollywood movies, choosing to explore many film genres locally, such as comedy, action, and drama. Some of his notable movies include Jean-Luc Godard's Breathless, That Man from Rio, and The Professional. He passed away in 2021.
A film movement that began during the late 50s and 60s, where improvisation played a big role in dialogues and plots and shooting took place in actual locations instead of a studio, emphasising natural lighting and sound recording.
14. Joseph Maurice Ravel
Maurice Ravel is certainly a household name when it comes to French composers, besides Claude Debussy. He is known for his impressionist and neoclassical music style, whether in terms of piano solos or orchestra composition.
Besides being a talented and meticulous composer, Ravel also performed extensively with concert tours spanning countries in Europe including Spain, Italy, Austria, Denmark, and even ventured into a four-month tour of North America during the 1920s. He passed away in 1937 at the age of 62.
15. Alain Fabien Maurice Marcel Delon
We have another famous Alain on our list. Alain Delon was not only a distinguished film actor in France but also a huge cultural icon when it comes to the history of European cinema. His astonishing looks, captivating media presence, and fashion style made him a well-loved celebrity across the globe. And yes, he launched the famous high luxury fashion brand after his own name, Alain Delon.
His star-studded filmography includes Plein Soleil, Le Samouraï, The Leopard and Borsalino which he starred together with Jean-Paul Belmando. He won a César Award for his role in Our Story in 1984. Delon passed away in 2024.
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