Newsroom
Brigitte Bardot, one of the most recognisable figures in the history of French cinema, has died at the age of 91, according to an announcement by the Brigitte Bardot Foundation. Celebrated worldwide for her beauty and screen presence in the post-war era, Bardot later withdrew entirely from filmmaking, reinventing herself as a prominent animal rights activist while also becoming a controversial public figure because of her far-right views and repeated convictions for hate speech.
Rising to fame in the 1950s, Bardot embodied a new and provocative image of femininity that clashed with the conservative norms of the time. Her physical appearance, carefree attitude and unapologetic sensuality made her an international symbol of sexual liberation, often compared to Hollywood stars such as Marilyn Monroe. Posters bearing her image spread across France and beyond, transforming her into a cultural phenomenon known simply as “BB.”
Despite appearing in more than 50 films, Bardot’s career was marked more by popular appeal than by critical praise. Her breakthrough came in 1956 with And God Created Woman, directed by Roger Vadim, then her husband. The film, and particularly a now-famous dance scene, shocked audiences and censors alike while cementing her reputation as a daring new star. Another enduring performance followed in Jean-Luc Godard’s Contempt (1963), which played with audience expectations and became one of the most discussed works of her career.
Behind the glamorous image, Bardot struggled deeply with the constant objectification that accompanied her fame. She openly acknowledged that her success rested largely on her looks, a reality she found suffocating. After a suicide attempt in 1960 and years of growing disillusionment, she made the abrupt decision to leave cinema in 1973, before the age of 40. She later said she chose to abandon the film industry on her own terms, before it could discard her.
Born in Paris in 1934 and raised in a strict Catholic household, Bardot was married four times and had one son. After stepping away from public life, she settled in Saint-Tropez and devoted herself almost entirely to animal welfare. A trip to Canada in the 1980s, where she witnessed the seal hunt, proved pivotal. In 1986 she established the Brigitte Bardot Foundation, which went on to campaign internationally against practices such as seal culling, ritual animal sacrifice and horse slaughterhouses.
While her activism earned admiration from supporters of animal rights, Bardot’s later political positions sparked widespread condemnation. From the 1990s onward, she increasingly aligned herself with the far right, publishing books and making public statements critical of immigration, Islam and LGBTQ+ communities. These remarks led to five convictions in France for inciting racial hatred. She also publicly backed Marine Le Pen in multiple presidential elections, with the far-right leader once describing Bardot as a modern-day “Joan of Arc”.
Bardot remained outspoken into old age, distancing herself from both the film industry and contemporary feminist movements. During the rise of the #MeToo campaign, she criticised actresses who spoke out about sexual abuse, arguing that flirtation and provocation were often part of the profession. Her comments once again placed her at odds with prevailing public opinion.
In death, Brigitte Bardot leaves behind a legacy that is both influential and deeply divisive: a woman who transformed cinema’s portrayal of female desire, fiercely defended animal rights, and repeatedly courted controversy through her political views and uncompromising public statements.
