Angélique from the cult movie is 84: how famous actress Michelle Mercier has changed. Photo then and now

The iconic series of costume historical films about Angelica brought worldwide fame to French actress Michelle Mercier. On January 1, 2023, she turned 84 years old. The star was never able to get rid of the stereotype imposed on her by her cinematic alter ego, so for all the fans she has remained Angélique, despite her other equally successful roles.

Now Michelle Mercier is not acting in movies and very rarely appears in public. One of the reasons is cancer, which was diagnosed in the actress in 2016. OBOZREVATEL decided to remember the path of the "Marquise of Angels" to fame and show how she looks now.

She was born Jocelyn (the actress' real name) in 1939 in Nice. Parents hoped that their daughter in the future will be in the family business - they owned a pharmaceutical company. However, from childhood, the little beauty knew that she wanted to tie her life with the stage. Jocelyn studied dance and soon became a ballet soloist at the opera house in Nice.

At the age of 17, the dancer went to conquer Paris. There she met Charlie Chaplin, who advised the girl to learn English and try her hand at the movies. When the ballet did not work, Mercier also decided to heed the advice of the cult actor and went to London to study acting.

Mercier gradually became one of the leading actresses of French cinema, but then in her life came the role of the magnificent Angélique.

The main role in the costume historical film based on the popular novel by Anne and Serge Golon "Angélique" actress offered by the director Bernard Borderi in 1963, after she rejected such legends as Brigitte Bardot, Catherine Deneuve and Jane Fonda. Michelle successfully passed the audition and got the role of a pseudo-historical beauty of the brutal seventeenth century, by all available means fighting for her feminine happiness.

And on the one hand, this character has made the actress a legend, but on the other - he and ruined her career, locked forever within the same image.

After "Angélique" Mercier was more and more difficult to find new roles, as directors and audiences have seen it only one "Marquise of AngelsЭ.

In spite of this, Mercier has remained one of the most respected figures in the history of French cinema. She is still invited to the Cannes Film Festival as a guest of honor.

However, now, as we have already noticed, the 84-year-old star is appearing less and less frequently in public. In 2016, she was diagnosed with skin cancer. Mercier reacted to the disease quite calmly. She started treatment with a positive attitude, which inspired many people with similar diagnoses.

"It always seems unthinkable, until it happens to you. There are those who cry when they find out, but I hold firm," the actress commented.

Earlier OBOZREVATEL wrote how the actors of the iconic series "Game of Thrones" have changed. The project, the first episode of which was released in 2011 and the last one in 2019, starred young stars who have grown and changed a lot during the filming. Many of them are already hard to recognize.

Only verified information in our Telegram-channel Obozrevatel and in Viber. Do not be fooled by fakes!