Maiwenn, director of Johnny Depp's Jeanne du Barry, sued for allegedly assaulting journalist

Johnny Depp’s new film, Jeanne du Barry, continues to be a lightning rod for controversy, with Variety reporting today that the film’s star and director—the mononomial actor and filmmaker Maiwenn—has now been sued for allegedly assaulting a journalist in France. A police report about the incident was filed back in early March, but leaked today, just days after the Cannes film festival announced that it’d be opening this year with the premiere of the film.

The complaint against Maiwenn was lodged by Edwy Plenel, editor-in-chief of Mediapart magazine, who says that Maiwenn assaulted him at a restaurant in late February of this year. According to Plenel, Maiwenn saw him at the restaurant and, without saying a word, “came to his table and grabbed him by the hair before spitting in his face.” (No motive has been given for the alleged attack, although Variety notes that Mediapart has done some in-depth reporting on allegations of sexual misconduct against Maiwenn’s ex-husband, Luc Besson.) No word yet on what steps are being taken to pursue the complaint.

Meanwhile: Jeanne du Barry rolls along; the film is based on the life of the historical figure of the same name, the mistress of King Louis XV of France. (He’s the one in between The Really Famous One, Louix XIV, and The One Who Got His Head Chopped Off, Louis XVI, FYI.) Depp plays the aging king, while Maiwenn plays Jeanne, a working-class woman who achieves considerable status by catching the eye of the monarch. The film is Depp’s first major acting role in several years; Maiwenn cast him while he was still in the midst of losing a defamation trial against his ex-wife, Amber Heard, in the U.K., and winning a subsequent one in the United States.