Why Juliette Binoche always says non

Juliette Binoche has turned down scores of famous men, said Michael Williams in the London Daily Mail. Over the years, the alluring actress known to the French simply as “La Binoche” has attracted a string of high-profile boyfriends. But when it comes to committing to one man, she has always balked. “I need relationships,” she says, “but sometimes when I am in one I feel claustrophobic. It is about feeling that I still have my freedom. I like to keep moving.”

She’s ignored four marriage proposals, she says, because the timing was wrong. “It always came up when the relationship was already ending. That is never a good time to make things permanent.” She also famously turned down a dinner invitation from former French President François Mitterrand because he suggested she become his mistress, and also gave a firm “non merci” to Bill Clinton, whom she suspected of having ulterior motives when he invited her to the White House.

Binoche doesn’t regret spurning her many suitors. “Sometimes to take things further is to invite disappointment,” Binoche says. “Imagination and anticipation can be the greatest aphrodisiacs.”

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up