Samuel Benchetrit (born 26 June 1973) is a French writer, actor, screenwriter, and director.
Contents
Biography
Benchetrit was born to a family of Romani, Sephardic and Ashkenazi Jewish ancestry.
At age fifteen, he left school to focus on photography.
Born in Champigny-sur-Marne, Benchetrit was married to French actress Marie Trintignant from 1998 until her murder by her lover Bertrand Cantat in 2003. On 17 April 1998 the couple had a child, Jules Benchetrit.
From 2005 to 2012 Benchetrit was in a relationship with French actress Anna Mouglalis; they have a daughter, Saül, born on 7 March 2007.
In 2016, while shooting his fifth film, Dog, Benchetrit fell in love with Vanessa Paradis, whom he directed. They married in June 2018.
In 2021, the comedy film Cette musique ne joue pour personne (English title: Love Songs for Tough Guys) was selected for the 2021 Cannes Film Festival.
Personal life
From 1998 to 2003, Samuel Benchetrit was married to Marie Trintignant, whom he met in 1993; in the year of their marriage, they had a son, the future actor Jules Benchetrit, who appeared in Benchetrit's film Chez Gino and played one of the leading roles in Macadam Stories (Asphalte).
With Anna Mouglalis, he has a daughter who became an actress, named Saül, born on 7 March 2007. Both appear on the poster for his film I Always Wanted to Be a Gangster (J'ai toujours rêvé d'être un gangster).
Since November 2016, he has been in a relationship with French actress and singer Vanessa Paradis, whom he married on 30 June 2018 in Saint-Siméon. In August 2026 the couple released a joint statement announcing they had separated after 8 years of marriage.
Works
Books
2000 : Récit d'un branleur (Tale of a Wanker)
2005 : Les Chroniques de l'Asphalte (Asphalt Chronicles) (tome I)
2007 : Les Chroniques de l'Asphalte (Asphalt Chronicles) (tome II)
2009 : Le Cœur en dehors
2010 : Les Chroniques de l'Asphalte, (Asphalt Chronicles) (tome III)
2015 : Chien Edition Grasset
Theatre
2001 : Comédie sur un quai de gare (Comedy on a Railway Platform)
2005 : Moins deux (This title is a rich pun, translating as: "ASAP", "Two Down", "Two Below", and "Minus Two")
Films
As director
2000 : Nouvelle de la tour L (short film) ("Story of Tower L")
2003 : Janis et John (Janis And John)
2007 : J'ai toujours rêvé d'être un gangster (I Always Wanted to Be a Gangster)
2008 : YSL film
2015 : Asphalte
2017 : Dog
2021 : Cette musique ne joue pour personne
As actor
2005 : Backstage (Director : Emmanuelle Bercot)
2012 : Un enfant de toi (Director : Jacques Doillon)
2014 : Les Gazelles (Director : Mona Achache)
2017 : Chacun sa vie et son intime conviction (Director : Claude Lelouch)
