Photo: Harald Krichel / CC BY-SA 3.0 (source: Wikimedia Commons)
My Take
Charlotte Gainsbourg fascinates me because she turned an impossible inheritance into raw material. Being the daughter of Serge Gainsbourg and Jane Birkin could have flattened her into a footnote; instead she ran toward the most exposed work available, from Lars von Trier's brutal films to whisper-close albums, and made vulnerability her signature. What I admire most is her refusal to perform confidence: on screen and on record she sounds unguarded, almost provisional, and that fragility reads as honesty rather than weakness. Her Cannes Best Actress win was deserved, but her real achievement is quieter — she made the Gainsbourg name mean her.
Overview
Charlotte Lucy Gainsbourg (French: [ʃaʁlɔt ɡɛ̃zbuʁ] ; born 21 July 1971) is a French and British actress and singer. She is the daughter of English actress and singer Jane Birkin and French singer Serge Gainsbourg. After making her musical debut with her father on the song "Lemon Incest" at the age of 12, she released an album with her father at the age of 15.
Summary adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- Charlotte Gainsbourg
- Name (Japanese)
- シャルロット・ゲンズブール
- Reading
- しゃるろっと・げんずぶーる
- Born
- July 21, 1971 (age 54)
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Cancer / Boar
- Origin
- Marylebone, United Kingdom
- Blood type
- Private
- Height
- Private
- Agency
- Private
- Occupation
- actor / singer / film screenwriter / erotic photography model / film director
2. Background
- Elementary school
- Private
- Junior high
- Private
- High school
- Private
- University
- Private
Awards & achievements
- 2010 Bodil Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role
- 2014 Bodil Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role
- 2018 Victoires de la Musique – Female artist of the year
- 1985 César Award for Best Female Revelation
- 2000 César Award for Best Supporting Actress
- 2009 Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actress
- 2016 Officer of Arts and Letters
- César Award
3. Relationships
- Spouse
- Private
- Children
- Private
- Parents
- Private
- Siblings
- Private
4. Personality
Motto
Private
5. Works & records
| Category | Title | Role | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Notable work | Nymphomaniac | — |
6. Links
Actor — see all → · Singer — see all → · More people from United Kingdom →
7. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
- 2026-06-11
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public items are marked "Private / Unknown". English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.