Product Code Database
Alain Fabien Maurice Marcel Delon (; 8 November 1935 – 18 August 2024) was a French actor, film producer, screenwriter, singer, and businessman. Acknowledged as a cultural and cinematic leading man of the 20th century, Delon emerged as one of the foremost European actors of the late 1950s to the 1980s, and became an international sex symbol. He is regarded as one of the most well-known figures of the French cultural landscape. His style, looks, and roles, which made him an international icon, earned him enduring popularity.
Delon achieved critical acclaim for his roles in films such as Women Are Weak (1959), Purple Noon (1960), Rocco and His Brothers (1960), L'Eclisse (1962), The Leopard (1963), Any Number Can Win (1963), The Black Tulip (1964), The Last Adventure (1967), Le Samouraï (1967), The Girl on a Motorcycle (1968), La Piscine (1969), Le Cercle Rouge (1970), Un flic (1972), and Monsieur Klein (1976). Over the course of his career, Delon worked with many directors, including Luchino Visconti, Jean-Luc Godard, Jean-Pierre Melville, Michelangelo Antonioni, and Louis Malle.
Delon received many film and entertainment awards throughout his career. In 1985, he won the César Award for Best Actor for his performance in Notre histoire (1984). In 1991, he became a member of France's Legion of Honour. At the 45th Berlin International Film Festival, he won the Honorary Golden Bear. At the 2019 Cannes Film Festival, he received the Honorary Palme d'Or.
In addition to his acting career, Delon also recorded the spoken part in the popular 1973 song "Paroles, paroles", a duet with Dalida as the main singing voice. He acquired Swiss citizenship in 1999.
Delon's maternal grandfather, Alfred Louis Arnold (1876–1959), was born in Paris and was a rider of the French army, gendarme. His parents were Just Arnold, born in 1847 in Bürglen, Uri, a shoemaker by trade, and Marie-Adéle Lienemann, born in 1849, a cook. He married Maria Minard (1881–1913), a model for Jeanne Lanvin. The couple had two children: a daughter, Édith Marie Suzanne Arnold, and a son, Henri Arnold.
When Delon was four years old his parents divorced in 1939. Both of his parents remarried, as a result he had two half brothers and an adopted sister on his father's side, and two half siblings on his mother's side. He was then entrusted to a foster family called Nero, who lived on Rue de la Terasse. This would remain for him a childhood wound that never healed. The father of the family was a prison guard in Fresnes Prison, Val-de-Marne. Delon, who lived next door, heard the salvo that executed the wartime collaborator Pierre Laval in the prison courtyard in 1945, the details of which he was told. While living with the foster family, Delon became passionate about bicycle racing and hoped to become a bicycle racer like Fausto Coppi.
When his foster parents died in 1946, Delon was sent back to his birth parents, who took shared custody of him. Growing up, he spent time living with his father and his second family in L'Haÿ-les-Roses and with his mother and her second family in Bourg-la-Reine. However his parents not wanting to take care of him decided to place him in the Catholic boarding school of Saint-Nicolas d'Igny (Essonne), where he spent his entire youth with one of his best friends, Gérard Salomé. There he developed his passion for music; he joined the school choir and was chosen to sing as a soloist. He was congratulated on a performance by the Apostolic Nuncio to France Cardinal Angelo Roncalli, the later Pope John XXIII.
Due to the lack of attention from his parents, Delon became unruly, constantly misbehaving in the classroom and getting into fights with other children. He was expelled from the school after he beat up one of his classmates. The priests recommended he be sent to Saint Gabriel de Bagneaux. During his four years there, Delon constantly misbehaved and was disrespectful to his teachers. He then stole the director's motorcycle which resulted in him being expelled once more. Delon was expelled from a few more schools which were Jesuit, Benedictine, Franciscan and lay schools, until the age of 13, when he entered Saint Nicolas d'Igny Institute. There he had the opportunity to perform the role of a thug in Le Rapt, a 22-second silent short film directed by Olivier Bourguignon, a friend of his father. At age 14, Delon decided he did not want to stay in the school and wished to leave France. He decided to run away to Chicago with his friend Daniel Salwadet who had an uncle living there. They left the school, determined to hitchhike to Bordeaux. When they arrived in Châtellerault, a passerby took them to the local police station. Due to Delon's temper, he and his friend were put in jail and were sent back to their families. Because of his actions, Delon was expelled from the school. His parents then decided that studies were not for him and made Delon abandon them.
His mother took him into her home and decided to make him join the business of her husband, Paul Boulogne, a butcher and delicatessen owner from Bourg-la-Reine. He later said he never really found a place in that family and never felt safe there. Delon took courses at the Au Jambon de Paris, while working part time as his stepfather's delicatessen where he would go the central markets in the morning to buy 40 kilograms of sausages. He eventually obtained a Certificate of Professional Aptitude ( Certificat d'Aptitude Professionnelle or CAP) in charcuterie. For three years he worked at his stepfather's delicatessen, which had sixteen employees, he also worked at other delicatessens as well. His family had plans for him to take over the delicatessen in the future. However during those three years, Delon developed a very bad reputation in the community. He partied constantly, got into bar fights, and was at one point a member of a gang. (2015). 9782221191446, Groupe Robert Laffont. ISBN 9782221191446
As a first-class seaman, he was then assigned to the protection company of the Saigon arsenal, in what was still French Indochina. Towards the end of the Indochina War, he was arrested for stealing a jeep and going on a trip during which the vehicle fell into a stream. His radio licence was revoked and he was given a dishonorable discharge, from the Navy. He celebrated his 20th birthday in a prison cell. This period made a deep impression on him: he discovered military discipline, a sense of honour and respect for the values represented by the flag of France. He developed a passion for weapons and was captivated by the performance of French actor Jean Gabin in Touchez pas au grisbi, a film he saw in the Indochinese capital..
After his naval service, Delon returned to France in 1956. He resented his parents for letting him go to Indochina (he was a volunteer but their permission was necessary) and did not get back in touch with them, deciding to fend for himself and having no idea what he would do for a living. His younger brother Jean-François Delon would later be the first in his family to reconnect with him in 1961 after he and his father saw Alain's name on a Rocco and His Brothers poster. Delon settled in at the Regina Hotel and did a few odd jobs, including produce handler at the Paris market Les Halles and waiter in a café near the Champs-Élysées. He met the future singer Dalida, with whom he would have an affair later in life. In Pigalle and Montmartre, he met members of the French underworld, thugs and gigolos, one of whom, a homosexual named Carlos, ensured his protection. Delon was fascinated by the values of this environment, in particular the sense of honour, friendship, respect and the law of silence. His slim physique and his pleasant face attracted women and allowed him to be housed and fed by several prostitutes, which was not to his displeasure. His future at that point seemed to be heading towards a career as a pimp.Bernard Viollet, Les Mystères de Delon, Flammarion, 2000.
In Rome, he lived with Gian Paolo Barbieri, who would become a famous photographer.Voir l'entretien donné par Renzo Barbieri à Graziano Origa en 2002. In the Cinecittà studios, on the sidelines of the filming of Charles Vidor's A Farewell to Arms, he underwent conclusive auditions and Selznick offered him a seven-year contract in the United States on the condition that he learn English. Delon returned to Paris and began to study English, but the actress Michèle Cordoue, whose lover he had become, convinced her husband, the director Yves Allégret, to hire him to shoot his first film , Quand la femme s'en mêle. Delon initially rejected the offer from Allégret but eventually accepted, and Selznick allowed him to cancel the contract. he played a small role alongside the star Edwige Feuillère. Delon recounted: "I didn't know how to do anything. Allégret looked at me like that and he said: 'Listen to me, Alain. Speak as you speak to me. Look at how you look at me. Listen as you listen to me. Don't play, live.' It changed everything. If Yves Allégret hadn't told me that, I wouldn't have had this career."
He then appeared in the comedy Be Beautiful But Shut Up by Marc Allégret (Yves' brother), alongside Mylène Demongeot and Henri Vidal, as well as another fledglingactor, Jean-Paul Belmondo. During the shooting, he borrowed the Renault 4CV belonging to Pascal Jardin, the director's second assistant, against Jardin's advice. In the Saint-Cloud, the borrowed car rolled over five times. The vehicle was destroyed and Delon escaped, suffering only a minor injury that left a scar under his chin which became characteristic of his image.
In 1958, he became a leading man when he was chosen by the German actress Romy Schneider, who had become a world celebrity following the success of the Sissi film trilogy, to play her male partner in Christine by Pierre Gaspard-Huit. The producers arranged an interview with the press at Orly Airport in Paris on 10 April 1958: the two young actors met for the first time when Romy got off the plane. Their relationship was initially stormy: Schneider didn't speak French, Delon didn't speak German, and while she found him uninteresting and in bad taste, he found her unattractive. Filming began two months later and the two actors did not get along at all. However, they ended up falling in love and the "fiancés of Europe" celebrated their official engagement, organized by Romy's mother and stepfather in Morcote, Switzerland, on the shores of Lake Lugano, in front of the international press, without planning a date for a possible wedding. They embodied beauty, youth, success and became a couple celebrated by showbusiness and the public.
After Christine, where he played his first important role, Delon had his first success in Michel Boisrond's Weak Women, where he reunited with Mylène Demongeot and also shared the bill with other young leads, Pascale Petit and Jacqueline Sassard. In Le Chemin des écoliers, based on Marcel Aymé, he played the son of the character played by Bourvil. His model was Jean Gabin.
In a 1959 interview first aired on the French television program Cinépanorama, conducted during the filming of Rocco and His Brothers, Alain Delon expressed his admiration for Jean Marais, stating that he idolized the actor. "Everything is happening very quickly for you, you must be caught in a whirlwind, do you manage to find yourself?" He answered: "I try to not let myself be overwhelmed. To remain what I was before, to remain as simple. I took as a model an actor that I love and that is Jean Marais, who always remained the same."
Delon next made two films that ensured his international reputation. In 1960, he appeared in René Clément's Purple Noon, released in the US as Purple Noon, which was based on the Patricia Highsmith novel The Talented Mr. Ripley. Delon played protagonist Tom Ripley to critical acclaim; Highsmith was a fan of his portrayal.Peary, Gerald. , geraldpeary.com; accessed 8 February 2018. The movie was a hit in France and on the art house circuit in English-speaking countries. He then played the title role in Luchino Visconti's Rocco and His Brothers (1960). Critic Bosley Crowther of The New York Times wrote that Delon's work was "touchingly pliant and expressive". Crowther, Bosley . The New York Times, film review, 28 January 1961.
Delon made his stage debut in 1961 in the John Ford play 'Tis Pity She's a Whore alongside Romy Schneider in Paris. Visconti directed the production which broke box office records."Powerless Gallic Critics: Parisian Theatregoers Flock to Play That Is Slashed And Stay Away From Another That Is Hailed". Jean-Pierre Lendir. The New York Times 4 June 1961, p. X3. He was reunited with René Clément in the Italian comedy film about fascism, The Joy of Living (1961). It was a minor success. More popular was an all-star anthology film Famous Love Affairs (1961); Delon's segment cast him as Albert III, Duke of Bavaria, opposite Brigitte Bardot. Around this time Delon was mentioned as a possibility for the lead in Lawrence of Arabia."Two Stars Signed for 'Lawrence' Film" Hopper, Hedda. Chicago Daily Tribune 22 March 1961: b5.
Peter O'Toole was cast instead, but then Delon was signed by Seven Arts to a four-picture deal, including a big budget international movie of the Marco Polo story and The King of Paris, about Alexandre Dumas. Neither project came to fruition. Instead he was cast by Michelangelo Antonioni opposite Monica Vitti in L'Eclisse (1962), a major critical success, although audiences were small. More popular was another all-star anthology film, The Devil and the Ten Commandments (1963); Delon's segment cast him with Danielle Darrieux.
Producer Jacques Bar was making a heist film starring Jean Gabin with backing from MGM, titled Any Number Can Win (1963). Gabin's co-star was going to be Jean-Louis Trintignant until Delon lobbied Bar for the role. He took the film's distribution rights in certain countries instead of a straight salary. Because such an arrangement had never previously been made in France, it became known as "Delon's method". Delon's gamble paid off handsomely, with Jean Gabin later claiming that Delon earned 10 times more money than he did as a result. However, in 1965, Delon claimed "no one else has tried it since and made money".
The experience gave Delon a taste for producing. He signed a five-picture deal with MGM, of which Any Number Can Win was the first. His reputation was further enhanced when he worked with Visconti again in Il Gattopardo ( The Leopard) with Burt Lancaster and Claudia Cardinale. It was the seventh biggest hit of the year in France. Any Number Can Win was the sixth. The Leopard was widely screened in the U.S. through 20th Century Fox. Delon was now one of the most popular stars in France. He starred in a swashbuckler, The Black Tulip (1964), another hit.
Les Félins (1964), which reunited him with Clement and co-starred Jane Fonda, was filmed in French and English versions. The latter was distributed by MGM, but it was not a success.French Movie Actor Bears Resemblance to Jimmy Dean Tinee, Mae. Chicago Tribune 16 February 1964, pg. G15. In 1964, the Cinémathèque Française held a showcase of Delon's films and Delon started a production company, Delbeau Production, with Georges Beaume. They produced a film called The Unvanquished ( L'insoumis) in 1964, in which Delon played a terrorist OAS assassin. It had to be re-edited because of legal issues. Despite being distributed by MGM, audiences were small. After finishing the film, Delon left the French cinema to pursue a career in Hollywood.
He made his debut in the British film industry starring in an all-star anthology for MGM titled The Yellow Rolls-Royce (1964), opposite Shirley MacLaine. It was popular but Delon did not have a big role in the film. He made his Hollywood debut as the lead role in the film Once a Thief (1965), where he co-starred with Ann-Margret. It was based on a novel by Zekial Marko who had written Any Number Can Win, but it was not as successful. It was financed by MGM, which announced Delon would appear in a Western to be titled Ready for the Tiger and directed by Sam Peckinpah, but the film was never made.
Instead, Delon signed a three-picture deal with Columbia Studios, for whom he appeared in the big budget action film Lost Command (1966), playing a member of the French Foreign Legion, alongside Anthony Quinn and Claudia Cardinale. The movie performed modestly in the box office but it was not a huge success. The studio announced that he would appear in the biopic Cervantes, but this was never made. Universal Studios used Delon in a Western, Texas Across the River (1966), opposite Dean Martin. Ray Stark wanted to use him in The Night of the Iguana and This Property Is Condemned. He did not appear in either film but acted in that producer's Is Paris Burning? (1966), directed by René Clément, playing Jacques Chaban-Delmas. This was a massive hit in France but performed disappointingly at the US box office – as did all of Delon's Hollywood-financed films. Delon remained a massive star in France, along with Steve McQueen and Sean Connery, and was one of the biggest foreign stars in Japan.Reisfeld, Bert. "Japan Film-makers Make Little Go Long Way", Los Angeles Times 12 September 1965, pg. N5. However, he could not make headway in the US market.
He had a role in another all-star anthology Spirits of the Dead (1968). His segment was directed by Louis Malle, and co-starred Brigitte Bardot. Delon had another attempt at English-language cinema with The Girl on a Motorcycle (1968) with Marianne Faithfull, for director Jack Cardiff. It was a surprise hit in Britain and was the sixth most popular movie in the box office, however it did not do well in France. The Girl on a Motorcycle, which was released in United States as Naked Under Leather, would be the first film to receive an X rating in the United States. Far more popular at the French box office was Farewell Friend ( Adieu l'ami), in which Delon and Charles Bronson played former foreign legionnaires who get involved in a heist. The film helped turn Charles Bronson into a genuine star in Europe."Don't page Bronson now—unless you have a million" Reed, Rex. Chicago Tribune, 23 July 1972: J7.Bronson Stars in Europe. Knapp, Dan. Los Angeles Times, 4 September 1971: a8.
The film La Piscine (1969) reunited the 1960s couple mythique ('mythical couple') Alain Delon and Romy Schneider. This was thought to be one of the reasons for its success. Schneider had dramatically broken up with Delon, who married Nathalie Delon, a couple years earlier and married German director and actor Harry Meyen in Berlin. She had a child. Delon asked the filmmaker to book her for this role. He continuously pursued her, both before and after filming "La Piscine", with persistent attempts to reconcile. Despite Romy Schneider's refusals, their shared history and emotional connection spilled onto the screen, infusing the film with raw authenticity.
While making the 1969 thriller La Piscine ( The Swimming Pool) Histoire du Cinéma Français 1966–1970, eds. Maurice Bessy, Raymond Chirat and André Bernard; ; entry 235 with Romy Schneider, the body of Delon's Yugoslav secretary and bodyguard Stefan Marković, apparently murdered, was found in a rubbish dump near Paris. The police investigation revealed claims of sex parties involving celebrities such as Delon and members of the French government, including future president Georges Pompidou, whose wife Claude Pompidou was allegedly the subject of a series of compromising photos at one such party. Corsican crime boss François Marcantoni, a friend of Delon, was suspected of involvement in the murder. The affair gained notoriety throughout France and in the French press as the "Marković affair". In a 1969 BBC interview, Delon was questioned about his alleged involvement in the death of Marković, rumors of his involvement in the sex parties, and Delon's own sexual preferences.
Delon then starred in a series of gangster films. The first was Jeff (1969), made by his own production company, Adel. In The Sicilian Clan (1969) Delon collaborated with Lino Ventura and Jean Gabin, and the film was a blockbuster. Even more popular in Europe was Borsalino (1970), which Delon produced and in which he co-starred opposite Jean-Paul Belmondo. Neither of these films was successful in the US, as Delon had hoped.Kramer, Carol. "Top Sex Symbols of French Films Feud at Drop of Hat", Chicago Tribune, 16 August 1970, pg. E-1. Neither was The Red Circle (1970), despite Delon co-starring in it with Yves Montand. For a change of pace, he produced a romantic drama, The Love Mates (1971), which was not successful. Neither was the 1971 comedy Easy, Down There!.
In 1973, he recorded a duet with Dalida, "Paroles, paroles", that went on to become one of the most recognizable French songs. He tried again for Hollywood stardom with Scorpio (1973), with Burt Lancaster for director Michael Winner. It was only a minor hit. In France, he made The Burned Barns (1973) and Creezy (1974). He produced Two Men in Town (1974) which re-teamed him with Jean Gabin, and Borsalino & Co. (1974), a sequel to his earlier hit.
After another gangster thriller, Icy Breasts (1974), Delon returned to his first swashbuckler since The Black Tulip, playing the title character in the 1975 Italian-French film Zorro. He made some more crime filmes: The Gypsy (1975), Flic Story (1975) (with Jean Louis Triginant), Boomerang (1976) and Armaguedon (1976). In 1976, Delon starred in Monsieur Klein, for which he was nominated for the César Award. It was back to crime for another series of thrillers in which he starred as well as produced: Man in a Hurry (1977), Death of a Corrupt Man (1977), Le Gang (1977), and Attention, The Kids Are Watching (1978). In 1979, Delon stated that only a quarter of his business activities involved films, that he also had "a helicopter business, built furniture, promoted prize fights, and raced horses", and that he was still interested in becoming a star in America.
In 1979 he made a final attempt at Hollywood stardom, signing with agent Sue Mengers and starring in The Concorde ... Airport '79 (1979)."Movies: A Tough Guy Goes Soft on Hollywood" Mann, Roderick. Los Angeles Times, 25 February 1979: L 36. The film was not a big success. Delon returned to acting in French films, playing in and producing The Medic (1979) and Three Men to Kill (1980).
His thrillers resumed with Parole de flic (1986), The Passage, Let Sleeping Cops Lie (1988), and Dancing Machine (1990). One notable film during this period was Jean-Luc Godard's Nouvelle Vague in 1990, in which Delon played twins. Delon's last major role was in Patrice Leconte's Une chance sur deux in 1998, alongside Jean-Paul Belmondo, another box office disappointment. Delon announced his decision to give up acting in 1997, although he still occasionally accepted roles.
Delon acquired Swiss citizenship in 1999, and the company managing products sold under his name is based in Geneva. He resided in Chêne-Bougeries in the canton of Geneva.
He directed a TV movie in 2008, co-starring Anouk Aimée, titled Love Letters based on a play by A.R. Gurney. In 2018, after a seven-year hiatus from cinema, Delon had planned to star in a new movie, titled La Maison Vide, co-starring Juliette Binoche and directed by Patrice Leconte. However, in November 2018 the French media announced that the project had been canceled. No specific reason was given for the cancellation. Among his last roles were in the 2011 television movie Une journée ordinaire, and in the 2012 Russian production S Novym godom, Mamy! in which he starred as himself. He again appeared as himself in the 2019 movie Toute Resemblance as a guest on a talkshow.
In April 2019, at 83, Delon released a new single, "Je n'aime que toi", composed by Rick Allison and Julia Paris. In 1973, Delon had scored a huge international hit duetting with Egyptian-French singer Dalida on the song "Paroles, paroles". He also collaborated with Shirley Bassey in 1983 on the international hit song "Thought I'd Ring You".
At the 2019 Cannes Film Festival, Delon received an honorary Palme d'Or for his long-standing career in movies. A retrospective of some of his films was shown at the festival. However, there was much controversy surrounding Delon receiving this award due to remarks he had allegedly made about the treatment of women during his career and in his private life. Thierry Frémaux, the artistic director of the festival, addressed the controversy during a homage at the ceremony, stating, "We know that intolerance is back. We're being asked to believe that if we all think the same, it will protect us from the risk of being disliked or being wrong. But Alain Delon is not afraid of being wrong, being disliked, and he doesn't think like others, and he's not afraid of being alone." Delon responded emotionally, saying, "For me, it's more than the end of a career. It's the end of a life. It feels as though I'm receiving a posthumous tribute while being alive." He received the award from his daughter, Anouchka Delon.
He helped develop and promote a variety of products sold under his name including wristwatches, clothing, eyewear, perfume, stationery, and cigarettes. Delon's brand of sunglasses became particularly popular in Hong Kong after actor Chow Yun-fat wore them in the 1986 crime film A Better Tomorrow, as well as two sequels. Delon reportedly wrote a letter thanking Chow for helping to promote and sell the sunglasses in Hong Kong and China. The film'a director John Woo has acknowledged Delon as one of his idols and wrote a short essay on Le Samourai as well as Le Cercle Rouge for the Criterion Collection DVD releases. In 2009 and 2015, Christian Dior used images of the young Alain Delon and excerpts of his 1960s films The Swimming Pool and The Last Adventure respectively in the Eau Sauvage cologne advertising campaigns.
On 26 February 2024, police raided Delon's home where they seized 72 firearms and 3,000 rounds of ammunition. A court-appointed official had been sent to the home of Delon, who was not authorised to own a firearm, and alerted a judge after noticing a weapon in the residence.
In 1963, Delon met the young divorcée Francine Canovas (birth name), a model known professionally as Nathalie Barthélémy. He was also involved in an affair with Marisa Mell both before and after publicly announcing his engagement to Barthélemy during a press conference. This liaison continued even after his marriage in 1964 and persisted into 1965. On 13 August 1964, he married Barthélemy due to her pregnancy, and thereafter she took the name Nathalie Delon. Their son, Anthony Delon, her second child, was born on 30 September 1964. Nathalie later revealed that Delon's love for Romy Schneider remained a constant presence in their relationship, with Delon often displaying a deep sadness indicative that his heart still belonged to Schneider. In 1964-1965, Delon's relationships also included affairs with Ann-Margret and Lana Wood. In October 1964, Delon met Dewi Sukarno, at the Tokyo Olympics, and the two began a relationship. They remained close in the following years, including a meeting in Paris in 1967. In 1967, Delon filed for divorce.Qui est qui en France, J. Lafitte, 2010, p. 686. The couple divorced on 14 February 1969.
In August 1968, during the shooting of the film Jeff (1969), Delon met the French actress Mireille Darc and asked her to appear with him in a movie. They started a relationship that lasted until 1982. He later had short relationships with the actresses Anne Parillaud, as well as Catherine Bleynie, the ex-wife of Didier Pironi.
In 1987, Delon met the Dutch model on the set of the music video for his song "Comme au cinéma" and started a relationship. They had two children: Anouchka Delon (25 November 1990) and Alain-Fabien Delon (18 March 1994). The relationship ended in 2001.
During an interview in 2013, Delon expressed sympathy for the French far-right National Front's electoral successes, saying: "The National Front, like the MCG Geneva in Geneva, is very important... I encourage it and I perfectly understand it." However, in another interview in 2018, he denied having ever voted for Marine Le Pen.
Delon was good friends with the Argentine world champion boxer Carlos Monzón, even visiting Monzon during his stint in prison. In 2022, the 86-year-old Delon was invited by Volodymyr Zelenskyy to travel to Ukraine.
In a 2021 interview with Paris Match, Delon expressed support for euthanasia, calling it "the most logical and natural thing". In 2022, Delon's son Anthony Delon revealed in his autobiography Entre chien et loup that, following the death of his (Anthony's) mother Nathalie Delon, Alain said he wanted to be removed from life support if he were to succumb to a coma, and had asked Anthony to fulfill his request if such a circumstance arose. Shortly thereafter, some news organizations reported that Delon was planning to imminently end his life through euthanasia, but the reports were adamantly denied by his son, Alain-Fabien, who said that quotes from Anthony Delon's book had been taken out of context.
In January 2024, Delon was reported to be in poor health and living a reclusive lifestyle at his La Brûlerie estate in Douchy. At the same time, a public feud concerning Delon's health arose between three of his children – Anthony, Anouchka and Alain-Fabien – all of whom acknowledge Delon was "ailing but lucid and aware of the feud". The rift began when Anthony publicly accused Anouchka, his half-sister, of "lying" and "manipulation" for concealing the results of cognitive tests Swiss doctors had performed on their father. The children, however, united in mid-2023 to successfully evict Delon's former companion Hiromi Rollin, whom they accused of abusing their father.
The Academy of Arts and Techniques of Cinema released a statement mourning the loss of "an eternal icon of the seventh art." Alberto Barbera, president of the Venice Film Festival, praised him as "a popular star who left his indelible mark on the works of the greatest authors of European cinema."
Numerous political figures also honored the actor's memory, including Emmanuel Macron, Nicolas Sarkozy, Gabriel Attal, Marine Le Pen, François Fillon, Culture Minister Rachida Dati. French President Emmanuel Macron described him as "melancholic, popular, secretive" while being "more than a star : a French monument." International reactions include those of Matteo Salvini (Deputy Prime Minister of Italy), Lucia Borgonzoni (Italian Secretary of State for Culture), Andriy Yermak (Head of the Secretariat of the President of Ukraine), Nicolae Ciucă (President of the Romanian Senate and former Prime Minister of Romania), Dominique Ouattara (First Lady of Côte d'Ivoire) and Boyko Borisov, (leader of GERB and former Prime Minister of Bulgaria)). The Ministry of Culture in Armenia offers its condolences.
On the evening of his death, several French television channels altered their programming to broadcast films featuring Alain Delon throughout his career. The same occurred in Switzerland, China, Italy, and Iran.
The next day, Alain Delon's death made headlines worldwide and garnered significant media attention. Foreign press referred to him as "the last great myth of French Cinema." The New York Times stated that "the intense and intensely beautiful French actor played cold Corsican gangsters as convincingly as passionate Italian lovers." The Guardian praised Alain Delon, calling him "a symbol of the lost beauty of the 1960s." According to the Japan Times, "his idol image and James Dean-like persona made him one of the most acclaimed actors in his country." The series Plus belle la vie paid tribute to him in episode 153 on 22 August 2024, referencing the police series Fabio Montale, filmed in Marseille.
Having declined any national tribute and ceremony, Alain Delon was buried on 24 August 2024, in a private chapel on the Brûlerie estate in Douchy, as he wished, near his thirty-five dogs. About fifty guests attended the funeral, including the actor's three children. The ceremony was officiated by Catholic bishop Jean-Michel Di Falco.
Tributes
During his lifetime and after his passing, tributes to Alain Delon take place in numerous countries around the world, reflecting the actor's international stature. In the United States, the American French Film Festival (TAFFF), the Cinémathèque Américaine, and the American Film Institute organize screenings and retrospectives in his honor.
In Brazil, the Varilux French Cinema Festival, the largest French film festival outside of France, also pays tribute to him by screening Plein Soleil and featuring him on the official poster for its 2024 edition. The French Film Festival in Cuba organized a tribute to Alain Delon during its 25th edition, screening many of the actor's films in theaters in Havana.
In Asia, from December 16, 2024, to January 16, 2025, the retrospective Remember Alain Delon in Hanoi, Vietnam, showcases three of his iconic films on the continent: Red Sun, The Red Circle, and Plein Soleil. In Tokyo, the Institut Français du Japon organizes a retrospective titled Proof of a Star's Existence, featuring screenings of his major works, conferences, and discussions led by film specialists. The 40th edition of the French Film Festival in Singapore pays homage to Delon with screenings of Le Samouraï and Plein Soleil.
In Europe, the Ciné Lumière at the Institut français du Royaume-Uni dedicate retrospectives to the actor. In his honor, the French Embassy and the Institut Français of Bulgaria organize screenings of Rocco and His Brothers in the country's three largest cities.
The 2024 Angoulême Francophone Film Festival, taking place a few days after Alain Delon's death, changed its programming to screen Notre histoire by Bertrand Blier. The 2024 Lumière Festival concluded with a screening of Purple Noon (1960) by René Clément and a speech by Anthony Delon, who recounted his father's career.
During the opening ceremony of the 2024 Venice Film Festival, images of Gena Rowlands, Roberto Herlitzka, and Alain Delon were projected in tribute.
In October 2024, the Paris Council voted on a proposal to name a street or facility in the capital in honor of Alain Delon, which included the installation of a plaque in his name on the Normandie building on the Champs-Élysées (8th arrondissement).
Delon featured in In Memoriam segments of 2025 BAFTA and SAG Awards ceremonies. However, the French actor is absent from the tribute paid at the 2025 Oscars, an omission that is causing incomprehension in France and internationally. At the opening of the 50th César Awards, a tribute was paid to Alain Delon with a sequence retracing the actor's career.
Many contemporary filmmakers such as Daniel Brühl,.. Michael Douglas,.. Stephen Frears, Jack Huston, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Kyle MacLachlan, Mickey Rourke, Mark Strong, Quentin Tarantino, Bruce Willis, have expressed respect or admiration for Alain Delon's career, roles, style, and longevity.
Leonardo DiCaprio regards Alain Delon as one of the "coolest actors in the history of cinema". The Canada actor Keanu Reeves asserts that Delon is his role model as an actor: "He's such a charismatic actor. I think he has something in him between tension and melancholy." British director Matthew Vaughn compares actor Michael Caine to Alain Delon, suggesting the unique cinematic influence of these two actors in their respective countries. British actor Clive Owen says he is fascinated by Alain Delon's "natural grace", considering Le Samouraï and La Piscine among his favorite films. Joseph Losey, an American director, expressed his admiration for Alain Delon, saying, "Alain is one of those rare talents who can be honored as being difficult. To me, this word means professionalism, demand, dedication to work, warmth, and love. He's not a man to play with, but a man you can rely on." American producer Robert Evans paid tribute to Delon in his memoirs The Kid Stays in the Picture – Hyperion Books, 1994, considering him as his "brother in life as in cinema" and "the most beautiful actor in Europe".
Director Bertrand Blier speculates that the meeting between Alain Delon and the filmmaker Jean-Pierre Melville, "historic, charged with a mutual fascination", was at the origin of the success of this classic: " The Samurai was a completely bizarre film. There has only been one film made like this in France. And it's so much like Delon, this film: a mute, completely narcissistic role, where practically nothing happens. Delon sits in front of a mirror for an hour correcting the position of his hat! It had a lot of charm, it was a fascinating film. It was an extraordinary analysis of these two men, a formidable joint portrait of Melville / Delon".
Stephen Teo calls Le Samouraï "possibly the most influential French crime thriller ever made, a mixture of a police procedural ( le film policier) and a suspenseful action thriller concentrated on a professional hit man, Jef (spelled with one "f") Costello, played by Alain Delon, giving the definitive performance of his career".
Delon and Melville crystallize a film cited as one of the most influential in history, which will become an essential reference for many filmmakers. Many New Hollywood and critical successes such as William Friedkin's The French Connection (1971) and Francis Ford Coppola's The Conversation (1974) contain explicit references to Le Samouraï and the character of Jef Costello played by Delon.
Only a few films draw more inspiration from Delon's distinctive style and personality rather than his acting performance.
Borsalino, a film released in 1969, tells the adventures of Roch Siffredi and François Cappella, two in Marseille in the 1930s. Played by Alain Delon and Jean-Paul Belmondo, Borsalino marks their only collaboration. This tandem, made up of two of the most popular French actors, inspired Robert Redford and Paul Newman to stage The Sting in 1973.
Ilaria Urbinati, stylist for Ryan Reynolds, Bradley Cooper, and Donald Glover among others, counts Alain Delon as one of the style icons who inspire her: "Alain Delon, a young Pacino and a young DeNiro are my all-time style icons. And probably Paul Newman at all ages. They'll keep you right."
Playwright Adrienne Kennedy was an admirer of Delon. A mystery novella by Kennedy, Deadly Triplets featured a fictional version of Kennedy who has written a play titled, The Heart Of Alain Delon."Deadly Triplets" page 8.
Delon was offered roles in several iconic productions, thus illustrating the international recognition bestowed upon him. For instance, he was invited by Sam Spiegel (the film's producer) to portray Sherif Ali in Lawrence of Arabia. Despite a successful audition, difficulties related to wearing brown contact lenses for the role led the French actor to decline the offer. Robert Evans also considered Alain Delon for the role of Michael Corleone in The Godfather, stating, "That's how he was described in the book." Delon, however, refused the proposal : “I would have had to learn to speak English with an Italian accent. I didn’t like that.” Evans also wanted to cast Delon in The Cotton Club to play Lucky Luciano, a role that ultimately went to Joe Dallesandro. Additionally, in 1979, Albert Broccoli, in charge of the James Bond, offered Delon the role of James Bond. Delon refused. Director André Téchiné planned to bring Delon and Isabelle Adjani together on screen in a film adaptation of Pascal Bruckner’s novel Evil Angels. Disagreements between the two actors led to the project's cancellation, and Roman Polanski ultimately directed Bitter Moon in 1992. In 1973, director and screenwriter Alejandro Jodorowsky embarked on the cinematic adaptation of Dune. Jodorowsky assembled a prestigious artistic team, including rock bands Pink Floyd and Magma for the music. Jodorowsky also envisioned an ambitious cast: Salvador Dalí, Orson Welles, and Mick Jagger among others. Alain Delon was slated to portray the character of Duncan Idaho. However, anticipating a 14-hour film, the project was abandoned due to significant financial constraints (Dalí notably demanding $100,000 per hour). Alain Delon was among Anne Rice's top choices for the role of Louis, as depicted in her book Interview with the Vampire, which was under discussion for a film adaptation. However, the project didn't come to fruition until 1994, with Brad Pitt ultimately taking on the role. Alain Delon was also slated to appear in the adaptation of André Malraux's novel Man's Fate, alongside Johnny Depp, Daniel Day-Lewis, Uma Thurman, and John Malkovich. This project, initiated by Michael Cimino, was abandoned due to financial difficulties. In 2014, a film project titled Patient was announced, a drama centered on the Armenian genocide, with Delon or Adrien Brody in a leading role. Dustin Hoffman was also set to star. This project never materialized.
According to the American Film Institute, Delon was considered for roles in Joshua Logan's Fanny (1961), Tony Richardson's The Loved One (1965), Sydney Pollack's This Property Is Condemned (1966), Henri Verneuil's The Scavengers (1968), and John Huston's Escape to Victory (1981).
Among other roles Delon declined were Magnet of Doom ( L’Aîné des Ferchaux) by Jean-Pierre Melville, Long Live Maria! by Louis Malle, The Bear and the Doll by Michel Deville, Max and the Junkmen by Claude Sautet, Last Tango in Paris by Bernardo Bertolucci (Delon suggested Marlon Brando for the part), Taxi Driver by Martin Scorsese, Close Encounters of the Third Kind by Steven Spielberg, Death Watch by Bertrand Tavernier, Marie Antoinette by Sofia Coppola, Pardonnez-moi by Maïwenn, Mesrine by Jean-François Richet, Vengeance by Johnnie To,. A Gang Story by Olivier Marchal, and Salaud, on t'aime by Claude Lelouch.
In Tiger on the Beat, Francis (Chow Yun-fat) reads out a list of names while filling his glass with raw eggs, making a pun on the word "Lung" (meaning "dragon" in Chinese). Every name he mentions contains “Lung”: Bruce Lee (Lei Siu-Lung), Jackie Chan (Sing Lung), Alain Delon (Ah Lan Daai Lung), Sylvester Stallone (Si Taai Lung), and Ti Lung.
In the film Camping, one of the campers (played by Frédéric Bonnet) is nicknamed Alain Delon and speaks in the third person. In both Camping and Camping 2, lines also reference Delon and his public persona.
In Asterix at the Olympic Games, Alain Delon plays Julius Caesar and pokes fun at his own career with a self-referential monologue: “Caesar has succeeded at everything, conquered everything. He's a leopard, a samurai, he owes nothing to anyone—not to Rocco, nor his brothers, nor the Sicilian clan. Caesar is of noble blood. In fact, the Caesar for Best Emperor was awarded to Caesar. Ave me!”
In One Day, Dexter’s mother (played by Patricia Clarkson) compares her husband to Alain Delon: “Is that Alain Delon? What? No. That’s your father,” showing just how in love she is with him.
Other humorous references to Alain Delon appear in Les Tuche, notably in a scene where Jeff Tuche (Jean-Paul Rouve) arrives at a luxury hotel in Monaco. When the receptionist announces the Alain Delon suite, Jeff, confused, says: “Wait, I don’t know Alain Delon, I don’t want to disturb him.” To which the receptionist replies: “But he’s not here.”
Alain Delon’s appearance also inspired the character Freeman, the hero of the manga Crying Freeman, written by Kazuo Koike and illustrated by Ryoichi Ikegami. Ryoichi Ikegami confessed his love for the actor.
The manga and anime series Beelzebub feature an extensive cast of fictional characters created by Ryuhei Tamura. One of the key characters is Batim do Emuna Alaindelon, a demon. The character mentioned is directly inspired by Freddie Mercury and is named after Alain Delon.
The Italian comic strip Playcolt (128 issues divided into four series from 1972 to 1979) features Alain Velon (Paronomase of the actor Alain Delon), a billionaire playboy with a Delonian physique who later transforms into Playcolt, a kind of superhero.
Monkey Punch is inspired by several French films and actors to create the relationships between his characters in his manga Lupin III. The Alain Delon-Charles Bronson duo in Adieu l'ami influences the interactions between Lupin and his accomplice Daisuke Jigen.
Alain Delon's influence in Le Samouraï can also be felt in the comic strip Corps et Âme by Jef and Alexis Nolent. In Body and Soul, the main character is Frank Kitchen, a fearsome and methodical hitman. The resemblance to Costello (played by Delon in Le Samuraï) is reflected not only in the character's physical appearance, but also in his behavior and stoic attitude in the face of adversity. As in The Samurai, where Delon's character is betrayed and must navigate a series of unforeseen challenges, Frank Kitchen finds himself in a new situation after an extreme revenge that transforms him physically.
Lost Bullets, a comic book written by Walter Hill, features protagonist Roy Nash about a professional killer who has received a life sentence in the Joliet prison in Illinois. Jef, the cartoonist, says that he chose to be inspired by the French actor to create Roy Nash's appearance because he appreciates Delon and his films.
Michaël Sanlaville, an award-winning cartoonist in Angoulême in 2015 for Lastman, found his inspiration in the works of Frédéric Dard from a very young age. Having discovered the novels of San Antonio in his parents' attic, he decided to adapt these works into comic books. To embody San-Antonio, Sanlaville chose to base himself on the image of Alain Delon. His sculptural face and piercing gaze perfectly embody the handsome, irreproachable and hieratic hero described by Dard.
A significant part of the work of Russian artist and academician Nikas Stepanovich Safronov focuses on his series titled River of Time, where he portrays various modern personalities, whether famous politicians, actors, or pop music stars. Among those depicted are Alla Pugacheva, Sophia Loren, Pierre Cardin, Elton John, and Alain Delon. These paintings have been acquired by collectors at major national and international exhibitions, and most of them are now displayed in private collections and renowned museums in Russia and Europe.
Alain Delon's puppet in Les Guignols de l'info expresses himself in a grandiloquent way, speaking of himself in the third person.
Bulgarian poet Georgi Konstantinov wrote a humorous poem called Момичето със син балон (The Girl with the Blue Balloon) which was adapted by the Popular music Bulgarian Rock music band Shturcite as lyrics for their 1982 Hit song called Ален Делон (Alain Delon). In it the actor was compared to a balloon which will burst in the end.
Box office (50 films recorded) detailed for Delon in Spain, where he totals 38 million admissions.
Numerous works (biographies, albums, novels, comics, etc.) are dedicated to Alain Delon, both in France and abroad (Germany, Spain, Greece, Italy, United States, United Kingdom, Russia).
Metadata
|
|
