According to The Hollywood Reporter, Adele Haenel, Juliette Binoche and Swann Arlaud and 600 other French actors petitioned for billionaire Vincent Bolloré to own one of France’s largest cinema chains in an open letter.
Bolloré’s media company Vivendi allows him to have full control over Canal+, CNews and the European film production company Studiocanal. Vivendi has been notorious for its conservative notions. The letter where the actors were against Bolloré’s actions was published in Libération, a liberal French Newspaper. With the Benedict’s that Vivendi gives him, he also has access to hold 34% of UGC cinema chain that he planned to own in 2028.
The letter stated that various creatives working for Bolloré are now depending on his income to fund their salaries and projects. The letter reads as follows: “While the influence of this ideological offensive on film content has been discreet so far, we are under no illusions: it won’t last.” There are also financial power concerns with how Bolloré controls the French movie business.
The event follows up with a previous scandal regarding Bolloré where over 100 workers quit at one of his publishing houses Grasset for spreading right-wing propaganda. Bolloré rejected the idea that he was political in any of his media forms during a 2022 French senate hearing. The CNews has also raised concerns for democrats as they are giving nationalists a space to spread their ideas.
“Do we want to risk a future where only propaganda films serving an ideology are funded?” The letter solicits with regard to the National Rally party tearing down other institutions like the French public broadcasting system and national film board CNC.
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