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After one British movie and four Hollywood movies Delon returned to France to rejoin the French cinema. He starred in the film The Last Adventure opposite Lino Ventura. It was one of Delon's most popular films of the 1960s but was not popular in North America. He was meant to work again with Visconti in The Stranger but this did not happen. Instead, he appeared on the Paris stage in Les Yeux Crevés and starred in the neo-noir crime thriller Le Samouraï ('The Samurai') with Nathalie Delon, directed by Jean-Pierre Melville, which became another film classic. He played an amnesiac in Diabolically Yours (1968) for Julien Duvivier. |
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. |
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) 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 rumors of unlawful parties involving celebrities such as Delon and members of the French government, including future president Georges Pompidou, whose wife Claude 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". |
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. 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!. |
Established actor and more international films |
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1970s |
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In the early 1970s, Delon made another attempt at the English-speaking market. The Assassination of Trotsky (1972) for Joseph Losey was poorly received, but Red Sun (1972), with Charles Bronson and Toshiro Mifune, did well. In France he appeared opposite Simone Signoret in The Widow Couderc (1971). He starred in his third film with Melville, Un flic in 1972 as well. He then produced and starred in a romantic drama, Indian Summer (1972), and subsequently appeared in the thrillers, Traitement de choc (1973), and Tony Arzenta (1973). |
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). 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). |
Later career |
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1980s and 1990s |
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Teheran 43 (1981) was a change of pace. In this big Soviet production he co-starred with Claude Jade and Curd Jürgens (Curt Jurgens) in a co-starring role beside Russian actors. Then it was back to crime: For a Cop's Hide (1981), Le Choc (1982, opposite Catherine Deneuve), Le Battant (1983). He was awarded the Best Actor César Award for his role in Bertrand Blier's Notre histoire (1984), and portrayed the aristocratic dandy Baron de Charlus in a film adaptation of Marcel Proust's novel Swann in Love in the same year. |
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. |
Mature years and retirement |
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2000s and 2010s |
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In 2001, Delon starred in the French television drama Fabio Montale. He played an ageing policeman dressed in stylish clothes, a "signature Delon" role for audiences. The show was a big hit. In 2003, Delon tried to recreate the success of Fabio Montale and produced and starred in another French television police drama, Frank Riva. It did well but less so than Fabio Montale. |
He starred in 2008 as Julius Caesar in the box-office hit Asterix aux jeux Olympiques, which co-starred Gérard Depardieu. Around this time he mostly took roles in TV movies and also played some roles on the French stage. |
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. |
2020s |
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In a July 2021 interview on TV5Monde, his first since having two strokes, Delon said that he planned to act in one more film. Also on TV5Monde, Delon interviewed Ukrainian President Zelensky in September 2022 as part of a special programme on the war in Ukraine, Face à Zelensky. Delon expressed his support for the Ukrainian people during the interview. |
Business career |
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In the 1970s, Delon expanded his commercial interests, buying harness racing trotters and promoting boxing matches. He began working as a professional boxing promoter having been introduced by Nino Cerruti to world middleweight champion Carlos Monzón. The largest fight he promoted was Monzón's defense against José Napoles. |
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. |
Legal troubles |
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Marković affair |
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On 1 October 1968, the body of Stefan Marković, Delon's bodyguard, was found in a public dump in Élancourt, Yvelines, a village on the western outskirts of Paris. Delon and François Marcantoni, a Corsican gangster, came under investigation, partly because of a letter from Marković to his brother Aleksandar, in which he had written: "If I get killed, it's 100% the fault of Alain Delon and his godfather François Marcantoni." Following some articles in the press and testimony by Boriboj Akov, the investigation involved the former prime minister (and future president) of France, Georges Pompidou, who testified that he and his wife, Claude Jacqueline Pompidou, had been present at certain parties with Marković and Delon. |
Hiromi Rollin case |
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On 5 July 2023, Delon's three children filed a complaint against his companion, Hiromi Rollin, alleging psychological harassment, interception of correspondence, animal cruelty, intentional violence, unlawful confinement, and abuse of weakness. According to Anthony Delon, his father requested in writing that Mrs. Rollin leave the residence in Douchy-Montcorbon. An investigation was opened on 6 July. On 7 July, Yassine Bouzrou, lawyer for Hiromi Rollin, stated that she disputed "the entirety of the facts". Bouzrou added that she would file a complaint against members of the Delon family and their bodyguards for aggravated voluntary violence suffered by Rollin on 5 July 2023. The prosecutor of Montargis dismissed the two complaints filed by the three Delon children against Rollin due to insufficiently characterized offenses, and Rollin's complaint was dismissed for the same reasons. |
Family civil dispute |
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On 4 January 2024, Alain Delon filed a complaint against his son Anthony following an interview granted by the latter to Paris Match magazine. Anthony Delon discussed his father's fragile health and accused his half-sister Anouchka of manipulating their father regarding the inheritance. In this interview, the eldest revealed that his father was "weakened" and that he "can't bear to see himself like this, diminished". Subsequently, Anthony Delon filed a police report against Anouchka, accusing her of not informing the family about the negative results of five cognitive tests conducted by their father between 2019 and 2022, after he suffered a severe stroke in 2019. Anouchka Delon, on the other hand, accused her brothers of endangering their father's life and claimed to have wanted to take their father to Switzerland so he could continue to be treated there. She then announced plans to sue for defamation, false accusations, threats, and harassment against Anthony Delon. Furthermore, Alain Delon's lawyer asserted that his client "cannot bear the aggressiveness of his son Anthony, who keeps telling him that he is senile". On 29 March 2024, Anouchka Delon sued her brothers for invasion of privacy after the broadcast of a recording in January 2024 on Instagram of a conversation between her and her father. Anthony and Alain-Fabien will thus be judged for "use, retention, or disclosure of a document or recording obtained by an invasion of another's privacy". The trial date is set for April 2025. Physically weakened by cancer, Delon was placed under reinforced guardianship by judicial decision in April 2024, following a hearing at the Montargis court, in the presence of the actor's three children. This measure follows a period during which Delon had already been placed under guardianship since 25 January, and notably granted the curator appointed by the judge the power to manage his expenses. |
Other legal trouble |
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