Michel Piccoli
Biography
Michel Jacques Daniel Piccoli was the son of Henri Piccoli, violinist and Marcelle Expert-Bezançon (1892-1990), pianist and daughter of the French industrialist and politician Charles Expert-Bezançon. In 1954, Michel Piccoli married actress Éléonore Hirt with whom he had a daughter, Anne-Cordélia Piccoli. In 1966, he married the singer Juliette Gréco, then in 1978 the screenwriter Ludivine Clerc, with whom he adopted two children of Polish origin, Inord and Missia. Placed in an establishment for problem children, the commitments of the young Piccoli, are made in opposition to his maternal grandfather, senator of the Third Republic, financier of the Radical Party, and important industrial painter, accused by the trade union left and by Georges Clemenceau, of having intoxicated his workmen through lead white which causes lead poisoning. Michel Piccoli then trained as an actor first with Andrée Bauer-Théraud and then during Simon. After an appearance as an extra in "Sortilèges" by Christian-Jaque in 1945, Michel Piccoli made his film debut in "Le Point Du Jour" by Louis Daquin. In the theater he distinguished himself with the Renaud-Barrault and Grenier-Hussot companies as well as at the Théâtre de Babylone. Noticed in the film "French Cancan" in 1954, he continued on stage and worked with directors Jacques Audiberti, Jean Vilar, Jean-Marie Serreau, Peter Brook, Luc Bondy, Patrice Chéreau and André Engel, and became also know in popular TV movies. Having become an atheist after a family bereavement, he met Luis Buñuel in 1956, and ironically took on the role of a priest in "La Mort En Ce Jardin". In 1959, he shot "Le Rendez-Vous De Noël", a short film by André Michel based on the short story by Malek Ouary "Le Noël Du Petit Cireur", in Algiers. The 1960s sounded his consecration, noticed in "Le Doulos" by Jean-Pierre Melville, he was revealed internationally with "Le Mépris" by Jean-Luc Godard alongside Brigitte Bardot. From then on, he toured with the greatest French and international filmmakers such as Alfred Hitchcock, Luis Buñuel, Youssef Chahine, Manoel de Oliveira... He began the 1980s with the interpretation prize at the Cannes festival in 1980, with "Le Saut Dans Le Vide" by Marco Bellocchio, and that of the Berlin festival in 1982, with "Une Étrange Affaire" by Pierre Granier-Deferre. . He worked with Jacques Doillon, Leos Carax, before trying his hand at directing. In 2001 he received the IX Europe Prize for Theatre. He was part of the jury of the 60th Cannes Film Festival in 2007, chaired by Stephen Frears. In 2011, he played in "Habemus Papam" by Nanni Moretti. The last film in which Michel Piccoli appears is the film "Le Goût Des Myrtilles", by Thomas de Thiers in 2013. Politically committed to the left, member of the Peace Movement (communist), Michel Piccoli distinguished himself by his positions against the National Front, and mobilized for Amnesty International. Michel Piccoli died on May 12, 2020 following a stroke in his mansion in Saint-Philbert-sur-Risle in Eure. His funeral takes place in Évreux on May 19, 2020, where he is cremated, his ashes are scattered within the family property.
Known For
Champs-Elysées
1982
Vivement dimanche
1998
Midi Première
1975
Apostrophes
1975
Wetten, dass..?
1981
Spécial cinéma
1974
Les Rendez-vous du dimanche
1975
Midi trente
1972
German Film Award
1951
Samedi soir
1971
Nulle part ailleurs
1987
Ciné regards
1978
Filmography
Champs-Elysées
as Self · 1982
Vivement dimanche
as Self · 1998
Midi Première
as Self · 1975
Apostrophes
as Self · 1975
Wetten, dass..?
as Self · 1981
Spécial cinéma
as Self · 1974
Les Rendez-vous du dimanche
as Self · 1975
Midi trente
as Self · 1972
German Film Award
as Self · 1951
Samedi soir
as Self · 1971
Nulle part ailleurs
as Self · 1987
Ciné regards
as Self · 1978
V.I.P. Schaukel
as Self · 1971
Belle de Jour
as Henri Husson · 1967
That Obscure Object of Desire
as Mathieu Faber (voice) (uncredited) · 1977
Il était une fois Champs-Élysées
as Self (archive footage) · 2022
Is Paris Burning?
as Edgar Pisani · 1966
Holy Motors
as Man with the Wine Stain · 2012
La Grande Bouffe
as Michel · 1973
The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie
as Interior Minister · 1972
La Belle Noiseuse
as Edouard Frenhofer · 1991
Contempt
as Paul Javal · 1963
The Things of Life
as Pierre Bérard · 1970
The Phantom of Liberty
as Police Prefect #2 · 1974
The Young Girls of Rochefort
as Simon Dame · 1967
Topaz
as Jacques Granville · 1969
Atlantic City
as Joseph · 1980
Treffpunkte
as Self · 1970
Cesar and Rosalie
as Narrator (voice) · 1972
The Beaches of Agnès
as Self (archive footage) · 2008
Adieu Philippine
as Izquierdo dans l'émission de télévision 'Montserrat' (uncredited) · 1962
The Witches of Salem
as James Putnam · 1957
Raining Cats and Frogs
as Ferdinand (voice) · 2003
Mauvais Sang
as Marc · 1986
Henry James Stories
as Captain Roger · 1976
To Each His Own Cinema
as Nikita Kruschev (segment "Rencontre unique") · 2007
The Passerby
as Max Baumstein · 1982
It's Not Me
as (archive footage) · 2024
Diary of a Chambermaid
as Monsieur Monteil · 1964
Max and the Junkmen
as Max, inspector · 1971
The Last Woman
as Michel · 1976
Chili Impressions
as Self - Le lecteur des écrits d'A. Pinochet (voice) · 1978
One Hundred and One Nights
as Simon Cinéma · 1995
That Night of Varennes
as King Louis XVI (uncredited) · 1982
Danger: Diabolik
as Inspector Ginko · 1968
Actors
as Michel Piccoli · 2000
We Have a Pope
as Melville · 2011
The War Is Over
as Inspector #1 · 1966
Agnès Varda: From Here to There
as Self · 2011
The Assassination
as Colonel Kassar · 1972
A Room in Town
as Edmond Leroyer · 1982
Ousmane Sow
as Narrateur · 1996
The Milky Way
as Marquis de Sade · 1969
Nathalie
as Franck Marchal · 1957
Everything's Connected
as Narrator · 2005
I’m Going Home
as Gilbert Valence · 2001
Le Doulos
as Nuttheccio · 1962
The Prize of Peril
as Frédéric Mallaire · 1983
Loving in the Rain
as Mr. Dellerue (voice) · 1974
Vincent, Francois, Paul and the Others
as François, médecin · 1974
The World of Jacques Demy
as Self · 1995
Death in a French Garden
as Graham Tombsthay · 1985
Themroc
as Themroc · 1973
Les Grandes Familles
as Noël Schoudler · 1989
2 x 50 Years of French Cinema
as Self · 2008
Party
as Michel · 1996
How Good the Whites Are
as Père Jean-Marie · 1988
Death in the Garden
as Father Lizzardi · 1956
May Fools
as Milou · 1990
Docteur Teyran
as Jean Teyran · 1980
Little Girl in Blue Velvet
as Conrad Brukner · 1978
Shock Troops
as L'homme de trop · 1967
The Taste of Blueberries
as Michel · 2014
Sunday Buddies
as Le directeur de l'aéro-club · 1957
Spy, Stand Up
as Jean-Paul Chance · 1982
Genealogies of a Crime
as Georges Didier · 1997
Lines of Wellington
as Leópold Scheitzer · 2012
Le Bal des casse-pieds
as Désiré, l'homosexuel · 1992
Going and Coming Back
as Simon Lerner · 1985
Coming Apart
as (archive footage) · 2017
The Day and the Hour
as Antoine · 1963
The Diary of an Innocent Boy
as Count Philippe · 1968
Amazons of Rome
as Console Publicola · 1961
Dillinger Is Dead
as Glauco · 1969
Seven Deaths by Prescription
as Dr Losseray · 1975
Don't Touch the White Woman!
as Buffalo Bill · 1974
La Chevelure
as L'homme · 1961
French Cancan
as Le Capitaine Valorgueil · 1955
Woman in Chains
as L'invité pressé au vernissage (uncredited) · 1968
Dom Juan
as Dom Juan · 1965
The Grand Manoeuvre
as Officer (uncredited) · 1955
Belle Toujours
as Henri Husson · 2006
The Dust of Time
as Spyros · 2008
The Children Thief
as Mr. Armand · 1991
You Ain't Seen Nothin' Yet
as Le père · 2012
The Black Angel
as Georges Feuvrier · 1994
Tödliches Geld
as Paul Belmont · 1995
The Creatures
as Edgar Piccoli · 1966
Hauteclaire
as Serlon de Savigny · 1961
The Infernal Trio
as Georges Sarret · 1974
The Prodigal Daughter
as Le père · 1981
Little Lili
as acteur qui joue Simon · 2003
Le Coup de grâce
as Capri / Bruno · 1966
Without Leaving an Address
as Un journaliste aux archives (uncredited) · 1951
Without Leaving an Address
as Un journaliste aux archives · 1951
The Sleeping Car Murders
as René Cabourg, l'employé besogneux (Victime #2) · 1965
One Way or Another
as Him · 1976
Wedding in Blood
as Pierre Maury · 1973
Chance at Love
as Philippe Decharme (segment "Lucky la chance") · 1964
Lady L
as Lecoeur · 1965
Un divertissement et Michel Piccoli
as Self · 2004
The Incredible Mr. Piccoli
as Self - Actor (archive footage) · 2017
A Leap in the Dark
as Mauro Ponticelli · 1980
Paparazzi
as Texte dit par (voice) · 1964
París-Tombuctú
as Michel des Assantes · 1999
Brigitte Bardot: The Icon of France
· 2009
Will the High Salaried Workers Raise Their Hands!
as José Viss · 1982
Liza
as Giorgio's friend · 1972
Speaking of Buñuel
as Self · 2000
La Voleuse
as Werner Kreuz · 1966
Success Is the Best Revenge
as French Official · 1984
Beyond the Door
as Mr. Mutti · 1982
Touch and Go
as Valentin · 1971
The Woman in Blue
as Pierre · 1973
Rupture(s)
as Paul · 1993
The Perfume of the Lady in Black
as Lebel · 1949
The Young Girls Turn 25
as Self (archive footage) · 1993
La TV des 70's : Quand Giscard était président
as Self (archive footage) · 2022
Masquerade
as Georges Sarrassin · 1965
Danger in the Middle East
as Brian Cannon · 1960
Hello Cubans
as Narrator (voice) · 1963
The Eyes, the Mouth
as Tío Agostino · 1982
Godard's Passion
as Michel Boulard · 1982
Long Live Life
as Michel Perrin · 1984
Ten Days' Wonder
as Paul Regis · 1971
Passion in the Desert
as Jean-Michel Venture de Paradis · 1997
Loonies at Large
as Henri Toussaint · 1993
The Game Is Over
as Alexandre Saccard · 1966
Malady of Love
as Raoul Bergeron · 1987
La Nuit de Tom Brown
as Tom Brown, jeune · 1959
Agnès Varda: From Here to There
as Self · 2011
A Man, a Real One
as Michel Piccoli · 2003
The Duchess of Langeais
as Vidame de Pamiers · 2007
Spoiled Children
as Bernard Rougerie · 1977
Bardot et Godard
as Self · 1964
My Brother-in-law Killed My Sister
as Étienne Sembadel · 1986
The Bit Between the Teeth
as Pierre Chazerand · 1979
Il était une fois... Vincent, François, Paul et les autres
as Self · 2011
Heartbeat
as Charles · 1968
The Happiest Place on Earth
as Récitant (voice) · 1999
The Life of Mirrors
· 2025
Godard by Godard
as Self (archive footage) · 2023
Boxes
as Daddy · 2007
Dangerous Moves
as Akiva Liebskind · 1984
Fire's Share
as Robert Hansen · 1978
Saint-Tropez, devoirs de vacances
as Gérard · 1954
Beast at Bay
as Commissioner Jacques Guimard · 1959
Tout chante autour de moi
as Reverdier · 1954
Weak Spot
as L'enquêteur · 1975
From Time to Time
as Jules Verne · 1992
Romy Schneider, étrange étrangère
as Self · 2002
Nothing About Robert
as Lord Ariel Chatwick-West · 1999
Ernst Thälmann – Leader of the Working Class
as Maurice Rouger · 1955
Le Plus Heureux des trois
as Pianist · 1957
Le Quadrille des diamants
as Richard Burke · 1957
Rene the Cane
as Ispettore Marchand · 1977
The Bardot mystery
· 2012
The Fate of Baron Leisenbohg
as Le baron de Leisenbohg · 1991
Claude Chabrol, the Maverick
as Self - Actor (archive footage) · 2019
Life Size
as Michel · 1974
Mado
as Simon Léotard · 1976
The Price of Survival
as René Winterhalter · 1980
Climates of Love
as François · 1962
Scénario du film Passion
as Self · 1982
The Savage State
as Orlaville · 1978
All About Loving
as Raoul · 1964
Confused Feelings
as Professor · 1981
Romy, A Free Woman
as archive footage · 2022
The Voyage Into the Whirlpool Has Begun
· 1974
L'Été en hiver
as Jean, the Reporter · 1964
Marx Can Wait
as Agostino (archive footage) (uncredited) · 2021
Parisienne... Parisiennes
as Récitant (voice) · 1962
Atrocious Tales of Love and Death
as Victor Navarro · 1979
Archipel
as Leonard Wilde · 1993
Portrait Of My Father
as Self · 2010
Sinners of Paris
as L'inspecteur Vardier, de la P.J. · 1958
Bad Liaisons
as un inspecteur · 1955
Tykho Moon
as Mac Bee / frère Mac Bee · 1996
Our Lady of Hormones
as Narrator · 2015
Strange Affair
as Bertrand Malair · 1981
Les paradoxes de Buñuel
as Self · 1998
François Mitterrand & Anne Pingeot: Pieces of a Love Story
as Self (archive footage) · 2021
Beaumarchais the Scoundrel
as Prince de Conti · 1996
La Belle Noiseuse: Divertimento
as Edouard Frenhofer · 1992
Rendezvous
as Paul · 1961
Chicago Digest
as Slim Spring · 1951
My Love, My Love
as Marrades · 1967
The Mark of the Day
as Georges Gohelle · 1949
Walking a Tightrope
as Marcel Spadice · 1991
The Devil's Tricks
as L'antiquaire · 1966
Magic Mirror
as Prof. Heschel · 2006
The Veiled Man
as Kassar · 1987
Bête de scène
· 1994
Claude Sautet, Romy, Yves, Michel et les autres
as Self (archive footage) · 2017
Marco Ferreri: Dangerous But Necessary
as Self (archive footage) · 2017
Quarante fontaines
as Récitant (voice) · 1961
Fumée, histoire et fantaisie
· 1961
That Day
as Harald · 2003
Le Bel Âge
as Maurice Reverdy · 2009
Tabarin
as Jacques Forestier · 1958
La Ruelle au clair de lune
as Pierre Willer · 1988
The Dinosaur and the Baby
as Paul Javal (archive footage) · 1967
F as in Fairbanks
as Etienne · 1976
Le Chalet sous la neige
as Robert · 1959
La Rumba
as Damien Malleville · 1987
Everything's Fine, We're Leaving
as Louis · 2000
Libero Burro
as Zio Tony · 1999
Horizons...
as un ouvrier · 1953
Far West
as Indian chief · 1973
Leonor
as Richard · 1975
Gardens in Autumn
as Marie, la mère de Vincent · 2006
The Emigrant
as Adam - Ram's father · 1994
Once Upon a Time… Contempt
as Self · 2009
Adieu Bonaparte
as Caffarelli - كافاريللي · 1985
Beneath the Rooftops of Paris
as Marcel · 2007
Lest We Forget
as Self (segment "Pour Nasrin Rasooli, Iran") · 1991
Café tabac
as Récitant (voice) · 1964
Le Roi Lear
as Le roi Lear · 2007
Rencontre Unique
as Nikita Khrouchtchev · 2007
Elsa the Rose
as Narrator (voice) · 1966
Brook by Brook
as Self · 2002
The Uninvited
as François Desailly · 1969
La dragée haute
as Hugo Barsac · 1960
The Nonentity
as der Tölpel · 1986
Invasion
as Marcello · 1970
The Accuser
as Saint-Ramé · 1977
The General of the Dead Army
as Benetandi · 1983
Sugar
as Grezillo · 1978
Le Rendez-vous de Noël
· 1960
Daughters of Destiny
as Pasquerel (segment "Jeanne") · 1954
Le Matelot 512
as Narrator (voice) · 1984
Romy: Anatomy of a Face
as Self · 1967
Luis Buñuel : Un cinéaste de notre temps
as Narrator (voice) · 1964
The Audience
as Padre Amerin · 1972
Berau, sur les traces de Joseph Conrad
as Presenter · 1994
Price of Love
as Georges · 1955
Train de nuit
· 1994
On War
as Le grand Hou · 2008
Blanc de Chine
as Batz · 1988
Dios de monoambiente
as Self (archive footage) · 2018
Croissance de Paris
as Récitant (voice) · 1955
La Cerisaie
as Léonid · 1982
Il bambino di Betlemme
· 2002
Otar Iosseliani, le merle siffleur
as Self · 2006
The Prude
as Pierre · 1986
La Leçon d'humour dans un parc
· 1951
Délire à deux
as Him · 1968
Kiarostami in Close up
as as Self · 2000
Les Joueurs
as Chvokhniev · 1960
Marie Soleil
as Kafka · 1964
Martha and I
as Ernst · 1990
The Distant Land
as Friedrich Hofreiter · 1987
The Supper
as Chateaubriand (voice) · 1992
Le Divorcement
as Philippe · 1979
Du crime considéré comme un des beaux-arts.
as Morrand · 1981
Le Temps des assassins
as Récitant (voice) · 1962
Un coupable
as L'avocat · 1988
Torticola versus Frankensberg
as Torticola · 1952
The Monkey Folk
· 1989
Terreur en Oklahoma
as Tommy Goudchote · 1951
Traveling Companion
as Cosimo · 1996
The Bellman
as Un villageois · 1945
Strauberg ist da
as Strauberg · 1978
La France romane
as Récitant (voice) · 1956
La Lune
· 1985