Daughter of Nadine Trintignant, who directed, and of Jean-Louis Trintignant, who acted, Marie Trintignant appeared in some sixty films in twenty-five years. Corneau revealed her in Série noire, Chabrol gave her her great roles. Five times nominated for the Césars, she never won one. She died in 2003 from the blows of her partner, and the case left its mark on French public debate.
The story
Marie Trintignant was born on 21 January 1962, daughter of the director Nadine Trintignant and the actor Jean-Louis Trintignant. She was on screen at four, in a film of her mother's, and began working in earnest at the end of the 1970s: some sixty films and television films.
Alain Corneau brought her out in “Série noire”, then Claude Chabrol gave her the great parts — “Story of Women”, “Betty”. She was nominated five times for a César between 1989 and 1999, and never won one.
Her acting rested on a presence without effect, a way of staying level with the character. The directors who worked with her spoke of an actress who never cheated.
She died at Neuilly-sur-Seine on 1 August 2003, of the injuries inflicted by her partner Bertrand Cantat. The case brought violence against women into French public debate, and her name is still attached to it.
She was buried on 6 August 2003 in Division 45. The director Alain Corneau, who had brought her out and who lived with her mother, joined her there in 2010.
On site, do not miss
Two names on the same stone, seven years apart: the actress, and the filmmaker who had revealed her.
Visitors' questions
Where is Marie Trintignant's grave?
In Division 45, Avenue Transversale No. 1, first row, in the centre of the cemetery — the same path as Gilbert Bécaud's grave. The film director Alain Corneau, who died in 2010, rests with her beneath the same stone.
Gilbert BécaudHow did Marie Trintignant die?
On 1 August 2003 at Neuilly-sur-Seine, from the blows dealt by her partner. She was forty-one, and the case lastingly changed the way France talks about domestic violence.
Claude ChabrolWhat are her best-known films?
“Série noire” by Alain Corneau, which made her name, then “Une affaire de femmes” and “Betty” by Claude Chabrol. She made some sixty films and television films in a career of twenty-five years.
Patrice ChéreauWho rests with her?
Alain Corneau, the director who had discovered her in “Série noire” and who lived with her mother, Nadine Trintignant. He died in 2010, seven years after her, and the inscription carries both names.
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