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Gérard Depardieu believes the Pentagon created the Aids epidemic, and loves Putin

Gerard Depardieu attends the Venice International Film Festival earlier this month - ANSA
Gerard Depardieu attends the Venice International Film Festival earlier this month - ANSA

At 68, Gérard Depardieu is one of the most prolific film actors in cinematic history. He's appeared in nearly 200 films, which, considering he underwent quintuple bypass surgery 17 years ago and used to consume 14 bottles of red wine a day, is impressive. 

The French actor has given an illuminating interview to US website The Daily Beast, which outlines the breadth of his eccentric beliefs on a range of geopolitical issues, many of which are published in his memoir, Innocent.

Notably, Depardieu shared his understanding that the Aids epidemic, which is believed to have originated in primates in West-central Africa before being transferred to humans in the early 20th century, was in fact created by the Pentagon, the headquarters of the US Department of Defense. As recounted in the The Daily Beast:

“So AIDS was developed by the Pentagon?” I asked.

“They say so many things. We know nothing,” he answered with charming insouciance. “Maybe we will know with your president, because he speaks a lot.”

With Catherine Deneuve in Cannes 
With Catherine Deneuve in Cannes

Other findings from the interview include:

  • Depardieu describes Vladimir Putin as “an old rogue”, whom he considers a good friend and “sees regularly”. He has even “visited several of Putin’s jails, even the jail where [Soviet dissident] Andrei Sakharov was. And you know what? They say this is the best jail, where you eat a wonderful meal.” The actor is a Russian citizen, thanks to Putin, which helped him avoid former French President François Hollande's  policy of taxing wealthy citizens at 75 percent – although Depardieu insists he continues to pay his taxes in France. 

  • Depardieu believes there is some benefits from international conflict: “We’ve never had peace for one single day in the world, but maybe that’s better because there are too many people on Earth. The population is too high.”

  • He is, however, anti-Donald Trump: “[He] is like Kim Jong-un Two. They are like two cartoons. Dangerous cartoons. But we start with the cartoon we don’t believe—like Hitler. He started like that and after the fear, even the very smart people do nothing.”

Depardieu has residential status in Dubai, but also carries Belgian and Algerian passports. He changed his residence to Belgium in 2012. His most recent film was Bonne Pomme (Good Potato), in which he appeared with Catherine Deneuve.

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