Anna Mouglalis (Greek: Άννα Μουγλάλη; born 26 April 1978) is a French actress and model. She is known for being a house ambassador for Chanel since 2002,[1][2] and for portraying the fashion designer Coco Chanel in the 2009 film Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky, and actress Paula Maxa in the 2018 film The Most Assassinated Woman in the World.

Anna Mouglalis
Mouglalis in 2012
Born (1978-04-26) 26 April 1978 (age 45)
Fréjus, Var, France
Occupations
  • Actress
  • model
Years active1997–present
Spouse
Vincent Raes
(m. 2013; div. 2014)
Partner(s)Samuel Benchetrit
(2005–2012)
Children1

Life and career edit

Mouglalis was born in Fréjus,[3] Var, to a French mother and a Greek father. She spent her youth in the Var département, before moving back to Nantes with her family. Her father is a doctor and her mother is a physical therapist.

Until 2001 Mouglalis studied at the Conservatoire National Supérieur d'Art Dramatique de Paris (CNSAD)[4] under the direction of Daniel Mesguich. In addition to her native French, she speaks fluent English, Italian, and Spanish, and understands Greek to a limited extent.

In 1997, she had begun an acting career in La Nuit du Titanic, played in Paris. In the same year she was chosen by Francis Girod for the film Terminal. In 2000 she co-starred with Isabelle Huppert in Claude Chabrol's Merci pour le chocolat. After appearing in Novo (2002) by Jean Pierre Limosin, she was cast by Roberto Andò for the thriller Sotto falso nome. In 2003, she played in La Maladie de la mort, a film in black and white by first-time director Asa Mader, which previewed at the Venice Film Festival. In this same year, she co-starred in a Greek film, called Real Life (Alithini Zoi), directed by Panos Koutras. In 2005 she took part in two Italian movies: Romanzo criminale, directed by Michele Placido, and Mare buio, where she was featured alongside Luigi Lo Cascio.

In a TV movie called Les Amants du Flore and directed by Ilan Duran Cohen, Mouglalis played Simone de Beauvoir,[4] with Jean-Paul Sartre played by co-star Lorànt Deutsch. Together they had a great public and critical triumph. Critics praised their portrayals of these literary figures, showing their romance and the birth of their careers.

Along with her career as an actress, Mouglalis began a successful modelling career. In 2002 she was chosen by Karl Lagerfeld for the ad campaign for the Amateur Allure de Chanel perfume. He used her as one of his "muses,"[4] promoting Chanel bags, fine jewelry, and watches.[2]

Mouglalis was cast as Coco Chanel in the 2009 film Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky, directed by Jan Kounen.[5] The film was chosen to close the 2009 Cannes Film Festival.[6]

In 2018, she portrayed French actress Paula Maxa in the Netflix film The Most Assassinated Woman in the World.

Personal life edit

On 7 March 2007, she gave birth to her first child, a daughter named Saul, whom she had with French director Samuel Benchetrit.[4]

In February 2024, she joined actresses Judith Godrèche and Isild Le Besco in accusing Jacques Doillon of sexual misconduct.[7]

Filmography edit

Actress edit

Year Title Role Director Notes
1998 Terminale Claire Francis Girod
2000 Merci pour le chocolat Jeanne Pollet Claude Chabrol
La Captive Isabelle Chantal Akerman
De l'histoire ancienne The nurse Orso Miret
2002 Novo Irène Jean-Pierre Limosin
La Vie nouvelle Melania Philippe Grandrieux
The Wolf of the West Coast Mai Hugo Santiago
2003 Playing 'In the Company of Men' Ophélie Arnaud Desplechin
The Malady of Death The woman Asa Mader Short
2004 Strange Crime Milla Roberto Andò
Real Life Joy Martinokosta Panos H. Koutras
En attendant le déluge Milena Damien Odoul
2005 Romanzo Criminale Patrizia Michele Placido Cabourg Film Festival - Best New Actress
Nominated - Italian Online Movie Award for Best Cast
To oneiro tou Ikarou Priest's Wife Costa Natsis
2006 Mare nero Veronica Roberta Torre
Les Amants du Flore Simone de Beauvoir Ilan Duran Cohen TV movie
2007 J'ai toujours rêvé d'être un gangster Suzy Samuel Benchetrit
2009 Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky Coco Chanel Jan Kounen
2010 Gainsbourg: A Heroic Life Juliette Gréco Joann Sfar
Mammuth The disabled Benoît Delépine & Gustave de Kervern
2011 Chez Gino Simone Roma Samuel Benchetrit (2)
L'angle mort Pierra Florence Benoist Short
2012 Kiss of the Damned Xenia Xan Cassavetes
Photo Elisa Carlos Saboga
2013 Jealousy Claudia Philippe Garrel
Reason Clement Belrose Bruno Ilogti Short
2014 Leopardi Fanny Targioni-Tozzetti Mario Martone
Un voyage Mona Samuel Benchetrit (3)
2015 Anna Anna Charles-Olivier Michaud
Pluie d'été Agathe Cyril de Gasperis Short
L'homme de l'île Sandwich Lio's mother Levon Minasian Short
2016 Split Anja Deborah Kampmeier
Republican Gangsters (Baron Noir) Amélie Dorendeu Ziad Doueiri TV series (8 episodes)
Nominated - ACS Award for Best Actress (2016)
Nominated - ACS Award for Best Actress (2018)
2018 The Most Assassinated Woman in the World Paula Maxa Franck Ribiére
2019 My Little One Jade Frédéric Choffat and Julie Gilbert
2021 The Salamander Aude Alex Carvalho
Happening Mme Rivière Audrey Diwan
2022 En même temps Madame Béquet Benoît Delépine &
Gustave Kervern

Director / Writer edit

Year Title Notes
2009 X Femmes TV series (1 episode)[4]

Theater edit

Year Title Author Director Notes
1997 La Nuit du Titanic Michel Pascal Michel Pascal Théâtre Rive-Gauche
1999 Spring Awakening Frank Wedekind Michel Pascal (2) Tour
2003 The Country Martin Crimp Louis-Do de Lencquesaing Théâtre de l'Œuvre
2004 HEROINE Asa Mader Asa Mader Castello Maniace

References edit

  1. ^ "Anna Mouglalis on Passion". Crash Magazine. Retrieved 14 February 2022.
  2. ^ a b "The Other Anna". WWD. 7 March 2003.
  3. ^ France Inter: Anna Mouglalis (Archiv)Short biography on the occasion of her participation in the radio programme Nonabstant 23 /11/ 2009.
  4. ^ a b c d e "Anna Mouglalis stars as Coco Chanel". The Telegraph. 15 July 2010.
  5. ^ Rees, Jasper (March 29, 2009). "The Sunday Times: Audrey Tautou and Anna Mouglalis star as Coco Chanel". The Sunday Times. London. Retrieved April 25, 2010.
  6. ^ "Festival de Cannes: Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky". festival-cannes.com. Retrieved 2009-05-15.
  7. ^ Forgar, Ségolène (9 February 2024). ""Il m'a embrassée de force" : Anna Mouglalis et Isild le Besco, les autres accusatrices de Jacques Doillon". Madame Figaro (in French). Retrieved 18 February 2024.

External links edit