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From Paris with love: Depardieu votes in Russian election
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This file photo taken on September 5, 2017 shows French actor Gerard Depardieu arriving for the screening of the restored version of the movie 'Novecento - Atto Primo' by Bernardo Bertolucci, presented as part of Venice Classics selection at the 74th Venice Film Festival at Venice Lido. Gerard Depardieu will release a book 'Monstre' (Monster) on October 26, 2017. (AFP/Tiziana Fabi)
O
ne of Russia's most famous citizens, French film star Gerard Depardieu, joined the millions who cast ballots in Sunday's presidential election.
Depardieu, a friend of President Vladimir Putin who presented him with a Russian passport in 2013 during a tax row between the actor and French authorities, voted at the Russian embassy in Paris.
The embassy tweeted a picture of the 69-year-old, wearing a coat with fur trim and sunglasses perched on his head, popping his ballot in the box.
"Gerard Depardieu voted in the Russian presidential election at a polling station at the Russian embassy in France. Come!," it tweeted, urging other Russians in France to follow suit.
Жерар Депардьё проголосовал на участке в Посольстве России во Франции на выборах Президента России. Приходите! #Париж #ВаженКаждыйГолос #Выборы2018@CIKRussia pic.twitter.com/bKdSAp8wAj
— Посольство в Париже (@ambruspresse) March 18, 2018
A video of the moment, tweeted by a reporter from Russian broadcaster RT, was widely circulated on French news sites, where it triggered a tide of mostly contemptuous responses.
"I don't like insults but for me this man is a sellout," one person tweeted in French. Another posted a GIF of a man vomiting.
Gérard Depardieu a voté ! #RussiaElections2018 pic.twitter.com/Hggrt03akI
— Lucas Léger (@lucas_rtfrance) March 18, 2018
Depardieu caused an uproar in 2012 when he declared he would hand back his French passport and move to Belgium to avoid a tax hike by the then Socialist government.
His popularity slumped further after he accepted a Russian passport -- and a bear hug -- from Putin.
The larger-than-life star of "Cyrano de Bergerac" and the Asterix & Obelix franchise, who is still a French citizen, has since become a staunch defender of the Kremlin's policies, including its annexation of Crimea.
"I'm a citizen of the world," he told Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera in 2016. "France is likely to become a Disneyland for foreigners, populated by imbeciles making wine and stinky cheese for tourists."
