Nathalie Baye
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Nathalie Marie Andrée Baye (July 6, 1948 – April 17, 2026) was a French film, television, and stage actress. She began her career in 1970 and has appeared in more than 80 films. A ten-time César Award nominee, her four wins were for Every Man for Himself (1980), Strange Affair (1981), La Balance (1982), and The Young Lieutenant (2005). Her other films include Day for Night (1973), Catch Me If You Can (2002), Tell No One (2006), and The Assistant (2015). In 2009, she was appointed a Chevalier of the Legion of Honour. Baye was born in Mainneville, Eure, Normandy to Claude Baye and Denise Coustet, two painters. At 14, she joined a school of dance in Monaco. Three years later she went to the United States. On returning to France, she continued with dance but also registered for the Simon Course and was admitted to the Conservatoire, from where she graduated in 1972 with a second prize in comedy, dramatic comedy, and foreign theatre. Her second cinema appearance was in Two People (1973), directed by Robert Wise. She became better known as the script girl in Day for Night (La Nuit américaine, 1973) by François Truffaut. Throughout the 1970s, she played the good girlfriend or nice provincial girl in film and television. She won her first César, as best supporting artist, for Every Man for Himself (Sauve qui peut (la vie), 1980) directed by Jean-Luc Godard. There then followed The Return of Martin Guerre (Le Retour de Martin Guerre, 1982) and La Balance (also 1982). Baye won two more César Awards, Best Supporting Actress, for Strange Affair (Une étrange affaire, 1981), and Best Actress for La Balance, 1982). Her four-year relationship with Johnny Hallyday made them a celebrity couple and their daughter is Laura Smet, now an actress. After changing her image by playing a streetwalker in La Balance, she widened her scope with more obscure characters in J'ai épousé une ombre (1983) and En toute innocence (1988). In 1986, she returned to the theatre with an interpretation of Adriana Monti. In 1999, she was voted Best Supporting Actress at Venice Film Festival for Une liaison pornographique and starred in Vénus Beauté (Institut) (2000) by Tonie Marshall which won multiple César Awards including Best Film. She has worked with Claude Chabrol and Steven Spielberg. Source: Article "Nathalie Baye" from Wikipedia in English, licensed under CC-BY-SA.
Known for
Credits
Catch Me If You Can (2002)
as Paula Abagnale
Beau Pere (1981)
as Charlotte
Downton Abbey: A New Era (2022)
as Mme de Montmirail
It's Only the End of the World (2016)
as Martine
La Californie (2006)
as Maguy
Tell No One (2006)
as Elysabeth Feldman
To Mathieu (2001)
as Claire
Haute Couture (2021)
as Esther
Our Story (1984)
as Donatienne Pouget / Marie-Thérèse Chatelard / Geneviève Avranche
Alibi.com (2017)
as Marlène Martin
Detective (1985)
as Françoise Chenal
Alibi.com 2 (2023)
as Mme Martin
Day for Night (1973)
as Joelle, the Script Girl
Moka (2016)
as Marlène
A French Gigolo (2008)
as Judith
Paparazzi (1998)
as Nicole, de l'agence Magma
Feelings (2003)
as Carole
Beautiful Lies (2010)
as Mady
Visage (2009)
as Nathalie
C'est La Vie (1990)
as Lena
SK1 (2015)
as Frédérique Pons
The Man Who Loved Women (1977)
as Martine Desdoits
Fill 'er Up with Super (1976)
as Charlotte
And the Band Played On (1993)
as Dr. Françoise Barre
Michou d'Auber (2007)
as Gisèle
The Last Woman (1976)
as la fille aux cerises
The Assistant (2015)
as Marie-France
Every Man for Himself (1980)
as Denise Rimbaud
François Truffaut: Stolen Portraits (1993)
as Self
François Truffaut, une autobiographie (2004)
as Self
Queens of the Ring (2013)
as Colette
Lou! (2014)
as Jeanne (La grand-mère)
Laurence Anyways (2012)
as Julienne Alia
Marie-Octobre (2008)
as Marie-Hélène Dumoulin / Marie-Octobre
The Young Lieutenant (2005)
as Commandant Vaudieu
L'Inconnu (1973)
Actor
Le soir où j'ai reçu le César 2022 (2022)
as Self
An Affair of Love (1999)
as Her
Hitler in Hollywood (2011)
as Nathalie Baye
Nicole Garcia, actrice-cinéaste (2023)
as Self
The Mouth Agape (1974)
as Nathalie
The Flower of Evil (2003)
as Anne Charpin-Vasseur
Enfants de salaud (1996)
as Sophie
Barnie's Minor Annoyances (2001)
as Lucie
Strange Affair (1981)
as Nina Coline
Sous le soleil de Pialat (2021)
as Self
Engagements of the Heart (1987)
as Alice
The Return of Martin Guerre (1982)
as Bertrande de Rols
My Son (2006)
as Mother / La mère
Rive droite, rive gauche (1984)
as Sacha Vernakis
Beethoven's Nephew (1985)
as Leonore
Mensonge (1993)
as Emma
Honeymoon (1985)
as Cécile Carline
The Voice (1992)
as Lorraine
The Guardians (2017)
as Hortense Sandrail
Rat Race (1980)
as Brigitte Ozendron
The Green Room (1978)
as Cecilia Mandel
Conversation avec Nathalie Baye (2021)
as Self
A Week's Vacation (1980)
as Laurence Cuers
Faustine and the Beautiful Summer (1972)
as Giselle
Mother Valley (2023)
as Hélène
The Man Inside (1990)
as Christine
Small World (2010)
as Elisabeth Senn
Every Other Weekend (1990)
as Camille Valmont
Bon vent Claude Goretta (2011)
as Self
Venus Beauty Institute (1999)
as Angèle Piana
Food of Love (1997)
as Michele
The Slap (1974)
as Christine Abeillé
Madame Sourdis (1979)
as Adèle Sourdis
Jacques Villeret, drôlement tragique (2025)
as Self
La Balance (1982)
as Nicole Danet
The Price to Pay (2007)
as Odile Ménard
Sauve la vie (qui peut) (1981)
as Self (archive footage)
Godard Cinema (2023)
as Self
Les Enfoirés - Les Enfoirés en chœur de 1985 à aujourd'hui (2014)
Actor
Godard by Godard (2023)
as Self (archive footage)
A Day in the Life of French Cinema (2002)
as Self
Xavier Dolan: Bound to Impossible (2016)
as Self
Absolutely Fabulous (2001)
as Patricia 'Patsy' Laroche
The Red Shade (1981)
as Anna
Esquisse d'une jeune femme sens dessus dessous (1975)
as Fabienne Veyrier, the young woman
Bye Bye (2011)
as Cécile
Together Is Too Much (2010)
as Marie-France
The Machine (1994)
as Marie Lacroix
Bacri, comme un air de famille (2022)
as Self
Him (2021)
as Mother
Médée (2017)
as The mother
Mado (1976)
as Catherine
Tomorrow's Another Day (2000)
as Sophie
From Time to Time (1992)
as Madame de Pompadour
One Stays, the Other Leaves (2005)
as Fanny
The Honeymoon Trip (1976)
as Sophie
Préjudice (2015)
as Mother
Jean-Pierre Léaud: The Child of Cinema (2024)
as Self - Actress
Monsieur Papa (1977)
as Janine
I Married a Shadow (1983)
as Hélène
I've Been Waiting So Long (2004)
as Jeanne
Short Memory (1982)
as Judith Mesnil
Beware of My Love (1998)
as Muriel
My Best Part (2020)
as Bernadette Meyer
Scénario de 'Sauve qui peut la vie' (1979)
as Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
Solemn Communion (1977)
as Jeanne Vanderberghe
Massacre Play (1989)
as Bella
God's Offices (2008)
as Anne
Les Enfoirés 1996 - La Soirée des Enfoirés (1996)
Actor
Voyage à travers un film (Sauve qui peut (la vie)) (1981)
as Self
No Harm Intended (1988)
as Catherine Duchêne
The Great Restaurant (2010)
as Une cliente du restaurant
François Truffaut: The Man Who Loved Cinema - Love & Death (1996)
as Self
Sheila, toutes ces vies-là (2022)
as Self (archive footage)
Off and Running (2008)
as Irène Montier-Duval
La provinciale (1981)
as Christine Delumet
France Boutique (2003)
as Sofia
Les contes sauvages (1993)
as Narrator (voice)
Un jour, la fête (1975)
as Julie
François Truffaut: The Man Who Loved Cinema - The Wild Child (1996)
as Self
Soirée Pyjama (2019)
as Self - Guest
Thomas (2018)
as Anne Lancrey
Acteur (2007)
as Camille
Mon Premier Amour (1978)
as Fabienne