Rome, Jan 19 (EFE). French actor Gérard Depardieu and Italian photographer Rino Barillari met in Rome on Monday and reached an agreement to drop the complaint that accused the actor of assaulting the 'paparazzi' when he attempted to photograph him with his partner, Magda Varvusova, in the Italian capital in 2024. Both media personalities met at the iconic Harry’s Bar on Via Veneto, the scene of the events that took place in May 2024, where, at the end of the meeting, the photographer gave the actor a kiss on the cheek as a sign of reconciliation. Depardieu did not make any statements, but assured at the end that the meeting had gone «very well», and his lawyer, Fabrizio Siggio, confirmed to EFE that «the complaint was withdrawn and, therefore, the process will be closed with the agreement of the parties» as officially scheduled for the next judicial hearing. – Italian photographer Rino Barillari (R) gestures during his meeting with French actor Gerard Depardieu (L) at Harry’s Bar on Via Veneto, in Rome, Italy, January 19, 2026. (Italy, Rome) EFE/EPA/MASSIMO PERCOSSI In previous hearings, the French actor did not appear at the Rome Court, whose last hearing was based on Barillari's testimony, who accused the actor of hitting him while shouting «Italians, bastards». In his statement, he claimed that he stepped between the woman and the actor, at which point the actor gave him «two or three punches». (Italy, Rome) EFE/EPA/MASSIMO PERCOSSI The photographer, for his part, asserted that one must «always forgive». «The most beautiful thing is that we are friends again as before, because his success and the photos I took of him are worth more and more», he stressed, in statements to local media. «Today I withdrew the complaint because someone apologized — not only to me, but to all Italians — and showed more respect for a person whom I have loved and will always love as a great actor», he added. The pact between the parties, which involves the 90-year-old known as the «king of the 'paparazzi'», his partner Magda Vavrusova, and Gérard Depardieu, was finalized just a week before the judicial hearing scheduled for January 27. The events occurred in May 2024 when, according to the complainant, the actor hit him several times and threw him to the ground while trying to photograph him while he was in the company of his wife and two other people on a terrace on Via Veneto. Italian photographer Rino Barillari (R) and French actor Gerard Depardieu (C) interact during their meeting at Harry’s Bar on Via Veneto, in Rome, Italy, January 19, 2026. As a result, he fell to the ground and had to be attended to by an ambulance due to blows to the face. At that time, Depardieu's lawyer, Fabrizio Siggio, told EFE that the photographer's testimony contained contradictions and was therefore not entirely reliable. Nevertheless, this Monday an agreement was reached, which ended the judicial process after the withdrawal of the complaint, which will be made on January 27 during the hearing. It is not the first time that the photographer who captured the 'Dolce Vita' period in the 50s and 60s ends up in the hospital, with a tally, in over six decades of career, according to him, of 200 visits to the emergency room, 11 broken ribs, 1 stab wound, and 76 smashed cameras. Gérard Depardieu adds to his list of «run-ins», which he also had with Frank Sinatra, Mickey Rourke, Bruce Willis, Marlon Brando, or Charles Aznavour, almost always in the restaurants and hotels of Via Veneto. Photo EFE
