Sometimes it all boils down to the hair. In Justine Triet’s Anatomy of a Fall, Swann Arlaud plays Vincent Renzi—a committed lawyer charmed by his client, Sandra (Sandra Hüller), a writer suspected of killing her husband—and the role has propelled him to a whole new level of fame, helped along by a “fancam” on X set to the song “Comme des Garçons” by Rina Sawayama. Now that Arlaud has been named best supporting actor at the 2024 César Awards—France’s equivalent to the Oscars—Vogue takes a look back at his impeccable career… and what it is, exactly, about Arlaud’s latest performance that’s caused such a sensation.
Swann Arlaud, un enfant du cinéma
Yes, Swann Arlaud comes from a family steeped in the world of cinema, but that didn’t make him a natural actor—at least, that’s what he says. His grandfathers, Rodolphe-Maurice Arlaud and Max Vialle, were a screenwriter and an actor, respectively. His parents, Yan Arlaud and Tatiana Vialle, are a cinematographer and a casting director. (Vialle is also a stage director, and has made two short films.) Yet Arlaud didn’t initially consider acting as a career; it was mainly the desire to earn some pocket money that first led him to audition for television roles.
Despite his love for graffiti and a degree from the Decorative Arts of Strasbourg, Arlaud found himself naturally drawn towards cinema, regardless of his initial intentions. His mother kickstarted his acting career by casting him in her play A Woman in Berlin, alongside Isabelle Carré. Soon after, he transitioned to film and quickly established himself with bold, politically charged roles. Whether playing an anarchist, an exfiltrated individual, or a Maoist philosophy professor, Arlaud has embodied characters in search of meaning. That quest has shaped a compelling filmography, culminating in his appearance at the César Awards for his role in Hubert Charuel’s Bloody Milk (Petit Paysan). In the film he played Pierre Chavanges, a farmer managing a herd of dairy cows on his family farm. The part earned him the César for best actor in 2018, a milestone that propelled Arlaud’s career forward.
After Bloody Milk
Speaking to Le Monde last year, Swann Arlaud said that he had “long since dispelled the illusion that cinema could change the world. Petit Paysan depicted the situation of farmers at a time when we’re seeing a lot of suicides. Milk prices that must align with Europe. So, people working at a loss. The Ministry of Agriculture saw the film, they thought it was great. But there aren’t fewer farmers committing suicide.” Nevertheless, his cinematic choices, after receiving his first César, continued to carry the same values. For instance, two years later he appeared in François Ozon’s By the Grace of God as Emmanuel Thomassin, a survivor of sexual assault who endeavors to bring his abuser—a still-practicing Catholic priest—to justice. It was a role that earned him a second César, this time for best supporting actor.
After that, he portrayed Yann Andréa, Marguerite Duras’s final lover, in Claire Simon’s I Want to Talk About Duras; and in Philippe Petit’s Beating Sun (Tant que le soleil frappe) (2022), he played Max, a determined yet beleaguered landscaper fighting to establish a wild, fence-free garden in the heart of a bustling metropolis—a green oasis accessible to all. In Mathias Gokalp’s The Assembly Line (2023), he took on the role of Robert Linhart, one of the pioneers of the Maoist movement in France. Yet it’s in Justine Triet’s Anatomy of a Fall (2023) that he’s found his biggest audience yet.
*Anatomy of a Fall—*and internet thirst
Invited to speak on France Culture, a public radio program, last August, Arlaud discussed his preparation for his role in Anatomy of a Fall: “I attended a trial at the Assize Court to prepare for the film. Lawyers are actors, just like we actors are lawyers, because we’re supposed to defend our character.” But Vincent Renzi, the lawyer he plays in the film, is much more than that. While the precise contours of their relationship are suggested more than explicitly explained, it’s easy to understand that he’s a little in love with his impassive client, Sandra, woman who refuses to conform to patriarchal norms.
Appearing opposite the formidable Sandra Hüller, Arlaud portrays a character who is not meek, exactly, but certainly gentle. Add to that impeccable hair and a slight, shy smile, and it was enough to turn Arlaud into a major internet crush—something that Justine Triet joked about at the Golden Globes, where she called Arlaud the “sexiest lawyer of the French Alps.”
Furthermore, Arlaud is one of the (very) few actors to have publicly spoken out in support of actresses amidst the resurgence of sexist and sexual violence in French cinema. “It’s terrible that actors don’t speak up and support us,” Anna Mouglalis recently told the online newspaper Médiapart. “When they step onto a set, they’re not asked to perform sexual favors for the director!” Her stance echoes Arlaud’s own position, expressed in 2020 after Adèle Haenel’s public protest at the César Awards, where Roman Polanski was being honored. As Arlaud put it on the red carpet: “The voices are being heard, but the fight is far from over.”