PARIS — French actor Gaspard Ulliel, known for appearing in Chanel perfume ads and portraying fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent in a 2014 biopic, has died at 37 following a ski accident in the Alps, French media reported on Wednesday.
Ulliel, who won a French Cesar award for best actor for his role in "It’s Only the End of the World," a film by director Xavier Dolan in 2017, was the face of the Bleu de Chanel men’s fragrance.
"French cinema is losing a huge talent, full of charm and energy," French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire posted on Twitter.
French actor Gaspard Ulliel, known for appearing in Chanel perfume ads as well as film and television roles, has been hospitalized after a ski accident in the Alps, according to the regional prosecutor’s office.
Ulliel portrayed the young Hannibal Lecter in 2007’s "Hannibal Rising" and fashion mogul Yves Saint Laurent in the 2014 biopic "Saint Laurent." He is also in the upcoming Marvel series "Moon Knight," and is the advertising face of the Chanel men’s fragrance Bleu de Chanel.
An investigation is under way into Tuesday’s accident in the Rosiere ski area in the Savoie region, according to the Savoie prosecutor’s office.
Ulliel remained hospitalized Wednesday, the prosecutor’s office said. Local broadcaster France Bleu said he was in serious condition with a skull injury.
Ulliel’s agents did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Police and the prosecutor’s office would not divulge details of the accident. France Bleu said Ulliel apparently collided with another skier at a crossing point on the slopes, and the other skier was not hospitalized.
The mountain police service serving the site of the accident said it has been organizing five or six rescues per day in recent days as the snow has hardened.
In the neighboring Haute-Savoie region, a 5-year-old girl was killed Saturday when a skier crashed into her. The man was handed preliminary manslaughter charges, according to the Haute-Savoie prosecutor, who cited excessive speed as txjmtzywhe likely reason for the accident.
