---
name: "Charlotte Gainsbourg"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/charlotte-gainsbourg"
fi1m_id: "charlotte-gainsbourg"
imdb_id: "nm0001250"
tmdb_id: 4273
wikidata_id: "Q276005"
roles: ["Actor"]
born: "21 July 1971"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 6
average_fi1m_score: 70
average_as: "actor"
average_over: 5
updated: "2026-10-01T19:40:12.438879+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Charlotte Gainsbourg

## Identity

Charlotte Gainsbourg

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/person/charlotte-gainsbourg
- **Type:** Person
- **Fi1m ID:** charlotte-gainsbourg
- **IMDb ID:** nm0001250
- **TMDB ID:** 4273
- **Wikidata ID:** Q276005
- **Same entity:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlotte_Gainsbourg, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q276005, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001250/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/4273

Actor. Born 21 July 1971 in London, England, UK.

## Details

- **Work:** Actor
- **Born:** 21 July 1971, London, England, UK
- **Active:** 2003–present
- **Also known as:** Charlotte Lucy Gainsbourg, 샤를로트 갱스부르, 샤를로뜨 갱스부르, شارلوت گنزبور, 夏綠蒂甘絲柏格
- **Titles on Fi1m:** 6: 5 acting, 1 other
- **Frequently works with:** [Lars von Trier](https://film.one/person/lars-von-trier.md), [Meta Louise Foldager](https://film.one/person/meta-louise-foldager-srensen.md)
- **Cannes Film Festival:** 1 Cannes prize (1 won)
- **Average Fi1m score:** 70, as actor, over 5 titles
- **Fi1m score by decade:** 2000s 67 (3), 2010s 81 (2), 2020s 70 (1)
- **Fi1m against the critics:** 70 to 63 across 5 titles
- **Score spread:** 1 at 80+, 3 at 60–79, 1 under 60
- **Lead roles:** 2 of 4 acting credits billed first or second
- **Genres:** Drama 4, Crime 2, Thriller 2, Adventure 1, Comedy 1, Horror 1
- **Screen time:** 10 hours of reviewed films
- **Box office:** $128m across 5 films with figures
- **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlotte_Gainsbourg, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q276005, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001250/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/4273

## Coming up

- *Women on Trial* (2026-11-04), as Gisèle Halimi
- *L’Homme qui s’envola* (2026-12-30), as Sarah Chardonnet

## Streaming the US now

- **Amazon Prime Video:** [*Melancholia*](https://film.one/film/melancholia.md) (80), [*I'm Not There*](https://film.one/film/im-not-there.md) (74)
- **Apple TV:** [*Antichrist*](https://film.one/film/antichrist.md) (55)

For United States; add `?region=XX` for another country.

## Fi1m on Charlotte Gainsbourg

> Charlotte Gainsbourg's soft voice and awkward physical presence can make distress painfully convincing. We value the human detail she brings to difficult material, though her work with Lars von Trier also shows how badly the writing can let her down.

In *Antichrist* (2009), Charlotte Gainsbourg's grief is physically awkward, and the attempts to discuss it sound inadequate beside her. Credited simply as She, she gives the character a mixture of pain and sexual need that resists a tidy explanation. We were moved by the early scenes because she makes enduring that pain look exhausting. She gives us a reason to care about this woman before the film begins treating her distress as an opportunity to frighten us.

The career is broader than the association with suffering suggests. *L'Effrontée* (1985) was the early breakthrough; steady work in French cinema followed, before *21 Grams* (2003) brought wider international recognition. Michel Gondry's fantasy *The Science of Sleep* (2006) offered a lighter setting for an actor whose soft voice and minimal expression need not belong only to people in distress. It is worth remembering that film when the von Trier collaborations threaten to become the whole account of her work.

Von Trier gets something forceful from her in *Antichrist*, but he also asks her to compensate for writing that treats female sexuality too bluntly as something frightening. Opposite Willem Dafoe's He, her performance makes the therapy scenes compelling: Dafoe takes the exchanges seriously, while Gainsbourg makes the inadequacy of his explanations difficult to ignore. These scenes hold our attention because both actors take the couple's difficulties seriously. Her performance cannot make the writing any more thoughtful. We cannot recommend it beyond those already drawn to confrontational horror.

*Melancholia* (2011) and *Nymphomaniac* (2013) extended the von Trier collaboration, and help explain why grief, sexuality and psychological extremity loom so large in her reputation. The danger is that these demanding parts become the only work people expect of her. Her quiet delivery and economy of expression leave plenty of room for less punishing material. We would welcome more directors taking an interest in that possibility; putting Gainsbourg through an ordeal is no guarantee of giving her a good part.

## Biography

Charlotte Gainsbourg is a British-French actress and singer. Born on 21 July 1971 in London, she is the daughter of actress and singer Jane Birkin and singer and actor Serge Gainsbourg, and was raised in Paris.

She made her film debut in 1984 and has appeared in numerous films, including collaborations with Lars von Trier. She played the role of She in *Antichrist* (2009), for which she received the Best Actress award at the Cannes Film Festival. Other notable credits include *Melancholia* (2011), *Nymphomaniac: Vol. I* (2013) and *Nymphomaniac: Vol. II* (2013), and *21 Grams* (2003). She has also won two César Awards.

*Sources: imdb.com, festival-cannes.com, en.wikipedia.org.*

## On Fi1m (6)

### Performed in (5) — the average rests on these

- *The Phoenician Scheme* (2025), Fi1m 70, as 1st Wife — [page](https://film.one/film/the-phoenician-scheme.md)
- *Melancholia* (2011), Fi1m 80, as Claire — [page](https://film.one/film/melancholia.md)
- *Antichrist* (2009), Fi1m 55, as She — [page](https://film.one/film/antichrist.md)
- *I'm Not There* (2007), Fi1m 74, as Claire — [page](https://film.one/film/im-not-there.md)
- *21 Grams* (2003), Fi1m 72, as Mary Rivers — [page](https://film.one/film/21-grams.md)

### Also credited (1) — thanks, archive footage, uncredited

- *Call My Agent!* (2015), Fi1m 82, as Self — [page](https://film.one/tv/call-my-agent.md)

## Complete filmography (90)

Every credit, newest first. Titles without a page can be requested for review on the HTML page.

- *L’Homme qui s’envola* (2026), as Sarah Chardonnet
- *Women on Trial* (2026), as Gisèle Halimi
- *Only What We Carry* (2026), as Josephine Chabrol
- *The Phoenician Scheme* (2025), as 1st Wife — Fi1m 70, [page](https://film.one/film/the-phoenician-scheme.md)
- *Étoile* (2025), series, as Geneviève Lavigne
- *Belle* (2025), as Cléa
- *As Time Goes By* (2024), Actor
- *Meet the Leroys* (2024), as Sandrine Leroy
- *Alphonse* (2023), series, as Margot
- *Life for Real* (2023), as Roxane
- *The Pale Blue Eye* (2022), as Patsy
- *The Almond and the Seahorse* (2022), as Toni
- *The Passengers of the Night* (2022), as Elisabeth
- *Sundown* (2022), as Alice Bennett
- *Jane by Charlotte* (2022), Director, Producer, Screenplay
- *The Accusation* (2021), as Claire Farel
- *Suzanna Andler* (2021), as Suzanna
- *Gainsbourg, toute une vie* (2021), Actor
- *In Treatment* (2021), series, as Claire
- *April 2020 Paris* (2020), as Frances
- *Lux Æterna* (2020), as Charlotte
- *My Dog Stupid* (2019), as Cécile Mohen
- *Basique, le concert : Charlotte Gainsbourg* (2018), Actor
- *The House That Jack Built* (2018), Thanks
- *I Think We're Alone Now* (2018), as Violet
- *Promise at Dawn* (2017), as Nina Kacew
- *The Snowman* (2017), as Rakel
- *Ismael's Ghosts* (2017), as Sylvia
- *Dark Crimes* (2016), as Kasia
- *Independence Day: Resurgence* (2016), as Dr. Catherine Marceaux
- *The Jews* (2016), as Mathilde
- *Norman: The Moderate Rise and Tragic Fall of a New York Fixer* (2016), as Alex Green
- *Every Thing Will Be Fine* (2015), as Kate
- *Les Enfoirés - Les Enfoirés en chœur de 1985 à aujourd'hui* (2014), Actor
- *Samba* (2014), as Alice
- *3 Hearts* (2014), as Sylvie Berger
- *Misunderstood* (2014), as Madre
- *His Wife* (2014), as Catherine de Rosa
- *Jacky in the Kingdom of Women* (2014), as La colonelle Bubunne XVII
- *Nymphomaniac: Vol. I* (2013), as Joe
- *Nymphomaniac: Vol. II* (2013), as Joe
- *Do Not Disturb* (2012), as Lilly
- *Confession of a Child of the Century* (2012), as Brigitte
- *Melancholia* (2011), as Claire — Fi1m 80, [page](https://film.one/film/melancholia.md)
- *Public Speaking* (2011), Thanks
- *The Tree* (2010), as Dawn O'Neil
- *Persecution* (2009), as Sonia
- *Antichrist* (2009), as She — Fi1m 55, [page](https://film.one/film/antichrist.md)
- *The City of Your Final Destination* (2009), as Arden Langdon
- *My Heart Laid Bare* (2008), as Woman · Writer
- *I'm Not There* (2007), as Claire — Fi1m 74, [page](https://film.one/film/im-not-there.md)
- *I Do* (2006), as Emma
- *Golden Door* (2006), as Lucy Reed
- *The Science of Sleep* (2006), as Stéphanie
- *Lemming* (2005), as Bénédicte Getty
- *One Stays, the Other Leaves* (2005), as Judith
- *Happily Ever After* (2004), as Gabrielle
- *21 Grams* (2003), as Mary Rivers — Fi1m 72, [page](https://film.one/film/21-grams.md)
- *Jane Birkin... Mother of All Babes* (2003), Thanks
- *La merveilleuse odyssée de l'idiot Toboggan* (2002), as (voice)
- *My Wife Is an Actress* (2001), as Charlotte
- *Les Enfoirés 2001 - L'odyssée des Enfoirés* (2001), Actor
- *Felix and Lola* (2001), as Lola
- *Les Misérables* (2000), series, as Fantine
- *Nuremberg* (2000), series, as Marie-Claude Vaillant-Couturier
- *Passionnément* (2000), as Alice Almeida
- *Season's Beatings* (1999), as Milla Robin
- *The Intruder* (1999), as Catherine Girard
- *360° Reportage* (1999), series, as Narrator
- *Love, etc.* (1996), as Marie
- *Anna Oz* (1996), as Anna Oz
- *Jane Eyre* (1996), as Jane Eyre
- *Dead Tired* (1994), as Charlotte Gainsbourg
- *Les Enfoirés 1994 - Les Enfoirés au Grand Rex* (1994), Actor
- *Eurotrash* (1993), series, Actor
- *The Cement Garden* (1993), as Julie
- *Lover* (1992), as Marie
- *In the Eyes of the World* (1991), as Juliette Mangin
- *Thank You, Life* (1991), as Camille Pelleveau
- *Night Sun* (1990), as Matilda
- *The Little Thief* (1988), as Janine Castang
- *Kung-Fu Master!* (1988), as Lucy
- *Charlotte for Ever* (1986), as Charlotte
- *An Impudent Girl* (1985), as Charlotte Castang
- *The Temptation of Isabelle* (1985), as The child
- *Screen Two* (1985), series, as Julie
- *Paroles et musique* (1984), as Charlotte Marker
- *An Ocean Apart*, as Simone de Beauvoir
- *Riverrun*, as Lucy
- *Oh, How Fun!*, Actor

## Gallery

- ![Charlotte Gainsbourg](https://film.one/media/person/100585/gallery-91e0800733f3.jpg) Charlotte Gainsbourg — Harald Krichel, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4e/Charlotte_Gainsbourg-5201.jpg/1280px-Charlotte_Gainsbourg-5201.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Inauguration of Jardin Serge-Gainsbourg, Paris, 8 July 2010.](https://film.one/media/person/100585/gallery-7ac932149835.jpg) Inauguration of Jardin Serge-Gainsbourg, Paris, 8 July 2010. — Olivier Pacteau from Paris, France, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/18/Bertrand_Delano%C3%AB%2C_Jane_Birkin%2C_Charlotte_Gainsbourg_1.jpg/1280px-Bertrand_Delano%C3%AB%2C_Jane_Birkin%2C_Charlotte_Gainsbourg_1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Inauguration of Jardin Serge-Gainsbourg, Paris, 8 July 2010.](https://film.one/media/person/100585/gallery-0f3023ec3b6e.jpg) Inauguration of Jardin Serge-Gainsbourg, Paris, 8 July 2010. — Olivier Pacteau from Paris, France, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/11/Bertrand_Delano%C3%AB%2C_Jane_Birkin%2C_Charlotte_Gainsbourg_2.jpg/1280px-Bertrand_Delano%C3%AB%2C_Jane_Birkin%2C_Charlotte_Gainsbourg_2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![CharGainsVilUnd290318-10 (2018)](https://film.one/media/person/100585/gallery-db61be5a6c4a.jpg) CharGainsVilUnd290318-10 (2018) — Raph_PH, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0f/CharGainsVilUnd290318-10_%2826266997807%29.jpg/1280px-CharGainsVilUnd290318-10_%2826266997807%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Charlotte Gainsbourg](https://film.one/media/person/100585/gallery-4d32790f2745.jpg) Charlotte Gainsbourg — Image via TMDB
- ![Charlotte Gainsbourg](https://film.one/media/person/100585/gallery-872114f67b65.jpg) Charlotte Gainsbourg — Image via TMDB
- ![Charlotte Gainsbourg](https://film.one/media/person/100585/gallery-7ab835d79183.jpg) Charlotte Gainsbourg — Image via TMDB
- ![CharGainsVilUnd290318-11 (2018)](https://film.one/media/person/100585/gallery-1e4914613324.jpg) CharGainsVilUnd290318-11 (2018) — Raph_PH, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6d/CharGainsVilUnd290318-11_%2840243471945%29.jpg/1280px-CharGainsVilUnd290318-11_%2840243471945%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![CharGainsVilUnd290318-12 (2018)](https://film.one/media/person/100585/gallery-3f92010f077b.jpg) CharGainsVilUnd290318-12 (2018) — Raph_PH, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5f/CharGainsVilUnd290318-12_%2839329674770%29.jpg/1280px-CharGainsVilUnd290318-12_%2839329674770%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Charlotte Gainsbourg](https://film.one/media/person/100585/gallery-7b15576de18c.jpg) Charlotte Gainsbourg — Image via TMDB
- ![Charlotte Gainsbourg](https://film.one/media/person/100585/gallery-c7848033a4ff.jpg) Charlotte Gainsbourg — Image via TMDB
- ![Charlotte Gainsbourg](https://film.one/media/person/100585/gallery-21b569c9e480.jpg) Charlotte Gainsbourg — Image via TMDB

## Awards

### Cannes Film Festival — 1 won

- 2009: Best Actress (won), for *Antichrist*

### Other awards — 8 won, 10 nominated

- Commandeur des Arts et des Lettres 2023: Commandeur des Arts et des Lettres (won)
- César Award for Best Actress 2018: César Award for Best Actress (nominated), for *Promise at Dawn*
- Victoires de la Musique – Female artist of the year 2018: Victoires de la Musique – Female artist of the year (won)
- Officer of Arts and Letters 2016: Officer of Arts and Letters (won)
- European Film Award – People's Choice Award for Best European Film 2015: European Film Award – People's Choice Award for Best European Film (nominated), for *Samba*
- Bodil Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role 2014: Bodil Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role (won), for *Nymphomaniac*
- European Film Award for Best Actress 2014: European Film Award for Best Actress (nominated), for *Nymphomaniac Director's Cut*
- European Film Award – People's Choice Award for Best European Film 2014: European Film Award – People's Choice Award for Best European Film (nominated), for *Nymphomaniac Director's Cut*
- Robert Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role 2012: Robert Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role (won), for *Melancholia*
- César Award for Best Actress 2011: César Award for Best Actress (nominated), for *The Tree*
- European Film Award for Best Actress 2011: European Film Award for Best Actress (nominated), for *Melancholia*
- Bodil Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role 2010: Bodil Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role (won), for *Antichrist*
- European Film Award for Best Actress 2009: European Film Award for Best Actress (nominated), for *Antichrist*
- César Award for Best Actress 2007: César Award for Best Actress (nominated), for *I Do*
- César Award for Best Supporting Actress 2000: César Award for Best Supporting Actress (won), for *Season's Beatings*
- César Award for Best Actress 1997: César Award for Best Actress (nominated), for *Love, etc.*
- César Award for Best Actress 1989: César Award for Best Actress (nominated), for *The Little Thief*
- César Award for Best Female Revelation 1985: César Award for Best Female Revelation (won), for *An Impudent Girl*

*From Wikidata, which records wins more completely than nominations.*

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/charlotte-gainsbourg