Alain Delon: French film actor who starred in ‘Purple Noon’ and ‘The Leopard’ dies at the age of 88 | Ents & Arts News
French actor Alain Delon has died at the age of 88 from the effects of a serious illness, his family announced.
The star was known for his roles in films such as “Purple Sullivan” (1960), “The Leopard” (1963) and “The Cold Samurai” (1967).
A family statement said: “It is with deep sadness that Alain Fabien, Anouchka, Anthony and (his dog) Loubo announce the death of their father.
“He died peacefully in his home in Douchy, surrounded by his three children and his family.”
Delon in Rome 1969. Photo: AP
The actor had been in poor health since suffering a stroke in 2019 and rarely left his estate in Douchy in France’s Val de Loire region.
Delon’s last major public appearance was the awarding of the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival in May 2019.
The actor, with his striking blue eyes, was sometimes called the “French Frank Sinatra” because of his attractive looks – a comparison that Delon did not like.
Directors from Martin Scorsese and Quentin Tarantino to Hong Kong’s John Woo have acknowledged the importance of Delon’s portrayal of the silent assassin in Jean-Pierre Melville’s Stone Cold Hero, which served as the template for one of Hollywood’s most beloved stereotypes: the mysterious, intellectual assassin.
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Delon with Romy Schneider in The Swimming Pool in 1968. Photo: AP
Delon was a big star in France and Japan, but he never made it to the top in Hollywood, despite acting alongside American film greats, including Burt Lancaster, when the Frenchman played the assassin’s apprentice Scorpio in the 1973 film of the same name.
Off screen, he has courted controversy with his outspoken views, including expressing regret over the abolition of the death penalty and making disparaging comments about gay marriage, which was legalized in France in 2013.
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Delon publicly defended the far-right Front National, calling his old friend and founder Jean-Marie Le Pen to congratulate her when the party performed well in the 2014 local elections.
Towards the end of his life, Delon was at the centre of a family dispute over his care that made headlines in the French media, and in April 2024 a judge ordered a “reinforced guardianship”, meaning he no longer had full freedom to dispose of his assets.
French President Emmanuel Macron reacted to the news of his death with a post on X: “Whether Mr Klein or Rocco, the Leopard or the Samurai, Alain Delon played legendary roles and made the world dream. He lent us his unforgettable face to shake up our lives. Melancholic, popular, mysterious, he was more than a star: a French monument.”
