Jean-Paul Belmondo

Born 9 April 1933, Belmondo broke through with Breathless in 1960, a film that modernized cinema and locked him into the New Wave. He followed with Le Doulos, That Man from Rio — where he started doing his own stunts — and a string of roles that made him France's most magnetic leading man. By 1971 he'd shifted into producing and distributing, then pivoted toward commercial blockbusters in 1975. Over fifty years he pulled nearly 160 million admissions, landing four films atop the year's French box office, second only to Louis de Funès. He played priests and tough guys, turned down English-langu…