French women’s groups have called for a boycott of the César awards, the country’s equivalent of the Oscars, after Roman Polanski was asked to preside over this year’s ceremony.
It won best foreign film at the Golden Globes this month and best actress for its star, Isabelle Huppert.
“Artist, film-maker, producer, screenwriter, actor, director – there are many words to define Roman Polanski,” the Académie said.
The veteran film director, who has won four best director Césars for movies including Tess, The Pianist and The Ghost Writer, is wanted in the US on charges of raping a 13-year-old girl in Los Angeles in 1977.