Nathalie Baye
Known for
An award-winning French actress and one of the most respected performers of her generation, who died in 2026. A three-time César winner across a long and distinguished career, she reached international audiences as Frank Abagnale's mother in Steven Spielberg's 'Catch Me If You Can' (2002). At home she worked with directors such as François Truffaut and Xavier Dolan, moving fluidly between comedy and searching drama. Elegant and emotionally precise, she was a pillar of French cinema whose craft deepened over decades.
Nathalie Baye
89 Movies
6 Series
An award-winning French actress and one of the most respected performers of her generation, who died in 2026. A three-time César winner across a long and distinguished career, she reached international audiences as Frank Abagnale's mother in Steven Spielberg's 'Catch Me If You Can' (2002). At home she worked with directors such as François Truffaut and Xavier Dolan, moving fluidly between comedy and searching drama. Elegant and emotionally precise, she was a pillar of French cinema whose craft deepened over decades.
Movies
Plays Paula Abagnale
Catch Me If You Can
2002
Plays Charlotte
Beau Pere
1981
Plays Mme de Montmirail
Downton Abbey: A New Era
2022
Plays The mother
Médée
2017
Plays Martine
It's Only the End of the World
2016
Plays Elysabeth Feldman
Tell No One
2006
Plays Julienne Alia
Laurence Anyways
2012
Plays Mme Martin
Alibi.com 2
2023
Plays Carole
Feelings
2003
Plays Esther
Haute Couture
2021
Plays Françoise Chenal
Detective
1985
Plays Joelle, the Script Girl
Day for Night
1973
Plays Marlène Martin
Alibi.com
2017
Plays Her
An Affair of Love
1999
Plays Claire
To Mathieu
2001
Plays la fille aux cerises
The Last Woman
1976
Plays Nathalie Baye
Hitler in Hollywood
2011
Plays Cécile
Bye Bye
2011
Plays Mady
Beautiful Lies
2010
Plays Donatienne Pouget / Marie-Thérèse Chatelard / Geneviève Avranche
Our Story
1984
Plays Frédérique Pons
SK1
2015
Plays Marlène
Moka
2016
Plays Marie-France
The Assistant
2015
Plays Judith
A French Gigolo
2008
Plays Christine Abeillé
The Slap
1974
Plays Anne Charpin-Vasseur
The Flower of Evil
2003
Plays Angèle Piana
Venus Beauty Institute
1999
Plays Hortense Sandrail
The Guardians
2017
Plays Lena
C'est La Vie
1990
Plays Mother / La mère
My Son
2006
Plays Martine Desdoits
The Man Who Loved Women
1977
Plays Colette
Queens of the Ring
2013
Plays Cecilia Mandel
The Green Room
1978
Plays Patricia 'Patsy' Laroche
Absolutely Fabulous
2001
Plays Hélène
Mother Valley
2023
Plays Jeanne (La grand-mère)
Lou!
2014
Plays Bertrande de Rols
The Return of Martin Guerre
1982
Plays Charlotte
Fill 'er Up with Super
1976
Plays Denise Rimbaud
Every Man for Himself
1980
Plays Nicole, de l'agence Magma
Paparazzi
1998
Plays Bernadette Meyer
My Best Part
2020
Plays Maguy
La Californie
2006
Plays Nathalie
The Mouth Agape
1974
Plays Mother
Him
2021
Plays Catherine
Mado
1976
Plays Brigitte Ozendron
Rat Race
1980
Plays Nathalie
Visage
2009
Plays Lucie
Barnie's Minor Annoyances
2001
Plays Sacha Vernakis
Rive droite, rive gauche
1984
Plays Sophie
Enfants de salaud
1996
Latest Trailers
Watch Trailer
Godard Cinema
Full Filmography
Mother Valley
Hélène
2023
Film
Alibi.com 2
Mme Martin
2023
Film
Downton Abbey: A New Era
Mme de Montmirail
2022
Film
Haute Couture
Esther
2021
Film
Him
Mother
2021
Film
My Best Part
Bernadette Meyer
2020
Film
Criminal: France
Caroline Solal · 1 episode
2019
TV
Nox
Catherine Susini · 6 episodes
2018
TV
Thomas
Anne Lancrey
2018
Film
Photos
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Nathalie Baye still alive?
Nathalie Baye passed away on April 17, 2026 at age 77.
What are the most famous roles of Nathalie Baye?
Nathalie Baye is best known for roles in Catch Me If You Can, Alibi.com, It's Only the End of the World.
How many movies has Nathalie Baye been in?
Over a 54-year career (since 1972), Nathalie Baye has appeared in 89 movies and 6 TV shows.
What was Nathalie Baye's first movie?
The career of Nathalie Baye began with Faustine and the Beautiful Summer (1972).
What is Nathalie Baye's most recent movie or series?
Nathalie Baye's most recent release is Jacques Villeret, drôlement tragique, which premiered on January 28, 2025.
What TV shows has Nathalie Baye appeared in?
On television, Nathalie Baye has appeared in Call My Agent!, Criminal: France, Spin, Nox.
Nathalie Baye
1948-07-06 · Mainneville, Eure, France
Nathalie Marie Andrée Baye (July 6, 1948 – April 17, 2026) was a French film, television, and stage actress. She began her career in 1970 and has appeared in more than 80 films. A ten-time César Award nominee, her four wins were for Every Man for Himself (1980), Strange Affair (1981), La Balance (1982), and The Young Lieutenant (2005). Her other films include Day for Night (1973), Catch Me If You Can (2002), Tell No One (2006), and The Assistant (2015). In 2009, she was appointed a Chevalier of the Legion of Honour.
Baye was born in Mainneville, Eure, Normandy to Claude Baye and Denise Coustet, two painters. At 14, she joined a school of dance in Monaco. Three years later she went to the United States. On returning to France, she continued with dance but also registered for the Simon Course and was admitted to the Conservatoire, from where she graduated in 1972 with a second prize in comedy, dramatic comedy, and foreign theatre.
Her second cinema appearance was in Two People (1973), directed by Robert Wise. She became better known as the script girl in Day for Night (La Nuit américaine, 1973) by François Truffaut. Throughout the 1970s, she played the good girlfriend or nice provincial girl in film and television.
She won her first César, as best supporting artist, for Every Man for Himself (Sauve qui peut (la vie), 1980) directed by Jean-Luc Godard. There then followed The Return of Martin Guerre (Le Retour de Martin Guerre, 1982) and La Balance (also 1982).
Baye won two more César Awards, Best Supporting Actress, for Strange Affair (Une étrange affaire, 1981), and Best Actress for La Balance, 1982). Her four-year relationship with Johnny Hallyday made them a celebrity couple and their daughter is Laura Smet, now an actress.
After changing her image by playing a streetwalker in La Balance, she widened her scope with more obscure characters in J'ai épousé une ombre (1983) and En toute innocence (1988). In 1986, she returned to the theatre with an interpretation of Adriana Monti.
In 1999, she was voted Best Supporting Actress at Venice Film Festival for Une liaison pornographique and starred in Vénus Beauté (Institut) (2000) by Tonie Marshall which won multiple César Awards including Best Film.
She has worked with Claude Chabrol and Steven Spielberg.
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