Marion Cotillard facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Marion Cotillard
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Cotillard in 2019
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| Born | 30 September 1975 |
| Other names | Simone |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1982–present |
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Works
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Full list |
| Partner(s) | Guillaume Canet (2007–2025) |
| Children | 2 |
| Awards | Full list |
Marion Cotillard (born September 30, 1975) is a famous French actress. She has starred in many movies, both in France and in Hollywood. She has won several big awards, including an Academy Award (also known as an Oscar), a British Academy Film Award (BAFTA), and two César Awards (French film awards). In France, she was honored with the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres in 2010 and the Legion of Honour in 2016, which are very important awards for her contributions to culture.
Cotillard started acting when she was very young. Her first English-speaking role was in the TV series Highlander in 1993. She made her first movie appearance in The Story of a Boy Who Wanted to Be Kissed in 1994. She became well-known in France after starring in the action film Taxi (1998). She won her first César Award for her role in A Very Long Engagement (2004).
Her biggest role in an English-language film was in A Good Year (2006). She then won an Academy Award for playing the French singer Édith Piaf in the movie La Vie en Rose (2007). This made her the only actor to win an Oscar for a performance in French. She has also appeared in many other popular English-language films like Public Enemies (2009), Inception (2010), and The Dark Knight Rises (2012). She also continued to star in French films such as Rust and Bone (2012) and Two Days, One Night (2014).
Beyond films, Cotillard has performed on stage as Joan of Arc. She has also been a spokesperson for Greenpeace since 2001, supporting environmental causes. She was also the face of the Lady Dior handbag and Chanel No. 5 perfume for several years.
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Early Life and Acting Start
Marion Cotillard was born in Paris, France, on September 30, 1975. She grew up in a family of artists. Her mother, Niseema Theillaud, is an actress and drama teacher. Her father, Jean-Claude Cotillard, is an actor, teacher, and theater director. She has two younger twin brothers, Quentin and Guillaume.
Marion started acting when she was a child, even appearing in her father's plays. She was on stage for the first time at age 3 with her mother. When she was 15, she went to a drama school in Orléans and graduated in 1994. After that, she moved to Paris to become a professional actress.
Marion speaks French and English very well. She learned English when she was 11 years old.
Film Career Highlights
Early Roles and First Successes (1982–1999)
Marion Cotillard first appeared on screen in a short film in 1982 when she was just 6 years old. She had small roles in TV shows and films in the early 1990s. Her first English-speaking role was in the TV series Highlander in 1993.
In 1994, she made her first feature film appearance in The Story of a Boy Who Wanted to Be Kissed. In 1996, she had her first main role in the TV film Chloé.
Her big breakthrough came in 1998 with the action comedy Taxi. She played Lilly Bertineau, the girlfriend of the main character. The film was very popular in France, and Marion was nominated for a César Award for Most Promising Actress. She continued her role in Taxi 2 (2000) and Taxi 3 (2003). In 1999, she won the Best Actress Award at the Autrans Mountain Film Festival for her role in War in the Highlands.
Becoming a Hollywood Star (2000–2009)
Marion Cotillard began working in Hollywood with a supporting role in Tim Burton's 2003 fantasy film Big Fish. This was her first English-language movie, and it allowed her to work with famous actors. The film was a success and helped her career.
She also starred in the French romantic comedy Love Me If You Dare (2003), which was very popular in France. In 2004, she won a César Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role in A Very Long Engagement.
In 2006, Marion had a major English-language role in Ridley Scott's film A Good Year, playing a French café owner.
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In 2007, Marion Cotillard starred as the famous French singer Édith Piaf in the movie La Vie en Rose. Her performance was highly praised. At the film's premiere, she received a 15-minute standing ovation. La Vie en Rose was a big success worldwide.
For her role as Édith Piaf, Marion won many major awards:
- A Golden Globe Award
- A BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role
- An Academy Award for Best Actress (Oscar)
She was the first French actress to win an Oscar for a French-language performance. This was a huge achievement!
After her Oscar win, Marion continued her Hollywood career. She starred with Johnny Depp in Public Enemies (2009). Later that year, she appeared in the musical film Nine, where she also sang. Her performance in Nine was highly praised, and she was nominated for another Golden Globe Award.
An Established Actress (2010–2019)
In 2010, Marion Cotillard played Mal Cobb in Christopher Nolan's hit film Inception, alongside Leonardo DiCaprio. The film was a huge success, earning over $825 million worldwide. That same year, she also starred in the French drama Little White Lies.
In 2011, she appeared in Woody Allen's Midnight in Paris and Steven Soderbergh's thriller Contagion. She was also named the highest-paid French actress in 2010.
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In 2012, Marion played Talia al Ghul in Christopher Nolan's Batman film The Dark Knight Rises. She also starred in the romantic drama Rust and Bone, playing an orca trainer who loses her legs. Her performance received excellent reviews and many award nominations.
In 2013, Marion was named Woman of the Year by Harvard University's Hasty Pudding Theatricals. She had her first main role in an American movie in The Immigrant, playing a Polish immigrant in 1920s New York. Her acting in this film was widely praised, earning her several critics' awards. She also had a small role in the comedy film Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues.
In 2014, she starred in the drama Two Days, One Night, playing a factory worker trying to save her job. Her performance was called "a career-high" and earned her another Academy Award nomination.
In 2015, Marion played Lady Macbeth in a film version of William Shakespeare's play Macbeth. Her performance, especially her famous sleepwalking scene, received high praise. That same year, she voiced characters in animated films like The Little Prince and Minions (French version).
In 2016, Marion starred in the romantic drama From the Land of the Moon and the Canadian-French film It's Only the End of the World. She also appeared with Brad Pitt in the World War II spy film Allied and reunited with her Macbeth co-star Michael Fassbender in Assassin's Creed.
In 2017, she received a special award for her career at the Lumière Awards in France. She also starred in the comedy Rock'n Roll and the drama Ismael's Ghosts.
In 2018, she played Marlene in the drama Angel Face. In 2019, she appeared in Little White Lies 2, a sequel to her 2010 film.
Recent Work (2020–Present)
In 2020, Marion Cotillard voiced a character in the comedy film Dolittle. In 2021, she starred as an opera singer in the musical film Annette, which earned her another Golden Globe nomination. She also produced the documentary Bigger Than Us, which is about young people working for change.
She voiced German artist Charlotte Salomon in the French version of the animated film Charlotte. In 2022, she starred in Brother and Sister, her third film with director Arnaud Desplechin. She also launched a new production company called Newtopia, which aims to create content about environmentalism and social issues.
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In 2023, she appeared in the Apple TV+ series Extrapolations and played Cleopatra in the adventure comedy film Asterix & Obelix: The Middle Kingdom. She also voiced a character in the animated film The Inventor and played a fashion editor in the drama Lee. Marion also starred in the docudrama Little Girl Blue, where her performance was highly praised. She received her eighth César Award nomination for this role, making her the first actress to be nominated for a documentary film.
In May 2024, Marion narrated the documentary Olympics! The French Games. In June 2024, she performed as Joan of Arc in an oratorio in Berlin and Paris.
Looking ahead, Marion Cotillard is set to star in the fantasy-drama The Ice Tower in 2025 and will join the Apple TV+ series The Morning Show. In 2026, she will star in Roma elastica and the psychological thriller Karma. It was also announced that she will receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2026.
Awards and Achievements
Marion Cotillard's films have earned over $3.7 billion worldwide. She has won many important awards, including:
- An Academy Award for Best Actress
- A Golden Globe Award
- A BAFTA Award
- Two César Awards
- A Lumière Award
- A European Film Award
She is one of only a few French actresses to win the New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actress. She is also one of only seven actors to receive multiple Academy Award nominations for performances not in English.
In March 2010, the French government made her a Knight of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres for her contributions to French culture. She was promoted to Officer in 2016. On July 14, 2016, she received France's highest honor, being named a Knight of the Legion of Honour.
Other Activities
Music
Marion Cotillard is also talented in music. She sings and plays guitar, bass guitar, keyboard, and tambourine. She has co-written and performed songs for her films, like "La Fille De Joie" for Pretty Things.
She has worked with musicians like Canadian singer Hawksley Workman and the French rock band Yodelice. She even toured with Yodelice under the name "Simone." She also recorded a song called "The Eyes of Mars" with the band Franz Ferdinand for a Dior campaign.
In 2012, she wrote and performed "Lily's Body" for a Lady Dior web series. In 2014, she wrote and performed "Snapshot in LA" and co-directed its music video for a Dior advertising campaign. In February 2024, she performed at a benefit concert in Paris to honor actress Jane Birkin.
Helping Others
Marion Cotillard is very active in helping the environment and social causes. She has been a spokesperson for Greenpeace since 2001. She is also an Ocean Ambassador for Greenpeace and supports the Maud Fontenoy Foundation, which teaches children about protecting oceans. She also supports Wayanga, an association that helps indigenous people and protects the Amazon Forest.
In 2005, she contributed to a book of drawings to raise money for Greenpeace. In 2010, she traveled to the Democratic Republic of the Congo with Greenpeace to see rainforests threatened by logging. In 2009, she recorded a song to support climate justice. She also designed a doll for UNICEF France to help vaccinate children.
In 2013, she protested in Paris to demand the release of Greenpeace activists jailed in Russia. In 2014, she signed The Tiger Manifesto to stop forest destruction. She also narrated an animated video for Greenpeace about illegal logging in the Brazilian Amazon.
In 2015, she visited the Philippines with France's President to encourage action on climate change. She also supported the "1 Heart 1 Tree" project, which uses light installations to encourage environmental action.
She supports the French gender equality group Collectif 50/50. In May 2018, she joined 82 women in a protest at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival to highlight gender inequality in the film industry.
In March 2020, Marion participated in a public service announcement to educate people about COVID-19. In October 2022, she and other French actresses cut locks of their hair in a video to support Iranian protesters. In December 2022, she signed a letter asking for the release of Iranian actress Taraneh Alidoosti.
Brand Partnerships
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In 2008, Marion Cotillard became the face of French fashion house Dior's "Lady Dior" handbag. She starred in a series of short films set in different cities to promote the handbags. She also designed her own handbag for Dior in 2012. Her contract with Dior ended in 2017.
In 2013, she became the first actress to wear jewelry from the Chopard Green Carpet Collection at the Cannes Film Festival. In 2015, she designed a bracelet for Chopard made of ethical gold. In 2020, she designed her own sustainable jewelry collection for Chopard called "Ice Cube Capsule."
From 2020 to 2024, Marion Cotillard was the face of the Chanel No. 5 fragrance. Her first commercial for Chanel No. 5, released in October 2020, showed her dancing on the moon.
Personal Life
Marion Cotillard was a vegetarian for twelve years when she was younger. She lives in Paris with her two children, a son named Marcel (born in 2011) and a daughter named Louise (born in 2017).
From October 2007 to 2025, Marion was in a relationship with French actor and director Guillaume Canet. They had been friends since 1997 and worked together on several films, including Love Me If You Dare (2003) and Little White Lies (2010). In June 2025, they announced their separation by mutual agreement.
Marion has shared that she has slowed down her filming schedule to protect her children. She explained that her intense roles sometimes made it hard to fully live her own life, and as a mother, she wanted to set boundaries.
See also
In Spanish: Marion Cotillard para niños
- List of actors with two or more Academy Award nominations in acting categories
- List of actors nominated for Academy Awards for non-English performances
- List of Academy Award winners and nominees for Best Foreign Language Film
- List of French Academy Award winners and nominees
