The world of international cinema and the heart of French culture have lost one of their most enduring icons. Brigitte Bardot, the blonde ingenue who redefined the silver screen in the 1950s, has passed away at the age of 91. The legendary actress died at her famous residence, La Madrague, in Saint-Tropez—the very town she helped transform into a global destination for the elite. The news was confirmed with “immense sadness” by the Brigitte Bardot Foundation in a statement released to AFP on Sunday, December 28. The foundation, which served as the cornerstone of her life for the past four decades, noted that its founder and president had long ago chosen to “give up her prestigious career to dedicate her life and energy to animal welfare.” While the world remembers her as the provocative star of …And God Created Woman, Bardot leaves behind a personal legacy that was often as complex and storied as her films. She is survived by her husband, Bernard d’Ormale, and her only child, Nicolas-Jacques Charrier, born from her second marriage to actor Jacques Charrier.
A Family Legacy Across Borders
The relationship between the icon and her son was famously unconventional, marked by years of distance and varying degrees of reconciliation. Nicolas Charrier eventually built a private life far from the flashbulbs of Paris, settling in Norway. It was there that he raised Bardot’s granddaughters, Anna and Théa, whom he shares with his wife, former model Anne Line Bjerkan.
Though the granddaughters remained largely out of the public eye, Bardot occasionally offered rare glimpses into their lives during interviews. Speaking with Gala.fr in June 2020, the actress reflected on the geographical and linguistic barriers that defined her role as a matriarch.
“My granddaughters are 30 years old. They have two children, aged 7 and 3,” she shared at the time. “I am the great-grandmother of descendants who have Norwegian nationality and don’t speak French. Contact is difficult, but delightful.”
The “Three Little Norwegians”
In her later years, Bardot appeared to settle into the reality of being a distant figurehead for a burgeoning family tree in Scandinavia. In a candid interview with Laurent Delahousse, she admitted that she had never met her grandchildren in person, citing the language barrier as a significant hurdle, though she praised them as being “intelligent and mature.”
The “great-grandmother” title seemed to be a source of both bewilderment and quiet pride for the star. In a special edition of Paris Match, her longtime friend, director Christian Brincourt, pointed out that one of her granddaughters reportedly bore a striking resemblance to a young Brigitte.
“Yes,” Bardot replied, “I’m the great-grandmother of three little Norwegian children who don’t speak French and whom I rarely see.”
Brigitte Bardot’s passing marks the end of an era for the “Seventh Art.” Her journey from the ultimate sex symbol of the 20th century to a fierce, uncompromising advocate for the voiceless leaves a void in the cultural landscape of France that may never be filled. As the flag at the Brigitte Bardot Foundation flies at half-mast, the world says adieu to a woman who lived her life entirely on her own terms.
