Talking About Sex and Drugs Is Safer

Yesterday, I was telling you all about how yet another mock-scandal hit this year's list of Oscar winners, this time involving French actress Marion Cotillard. It all started a few days ago, when a French magazine published a one year old interview in which Cotillard was allegedly implying that the 9/11 terrorist attacks were not carried by terrorists, but staged by the American government itself. And while such an idea may seem twisted and completely strange to many of you, it's actually not such a novelty - there are thousands of conspiracy theories going round on the Internet, this one included. However, Marion doesn't seem like the conspiracy buff type, and it was pretty obvious her statements must have been taken out of context.

Apparently, this is true. The actress' comments were reportedly made during a TV show appearance and she was actually talking about how documentaries feed people's paranoia. She was not criticizing the United States in any way, nor was she questioning the thousands of lives lost during the 9/11 tragedy. It was pretty much obvious that the republished quotes were in fact twisted around to make Marion sound like a crazy anti-American, which admittedly would have made a hot piece of news, provided it was true, of course.

"This reportage has been taken out of context and one can only condemn such practices", said Cotillard's lawyer. "Marion deplores that. She is currently filming in Chicago and has a lot of work. She is in an ocean of happiness and voila, this row blows up. It's rather strange. It's an old report, not at all current. Why bring it out now ? I talked three times to Marion overnight. This is worrying her. She is still in shock and does not really know how to react. She doesn't have to apologize for a badly presented and badly interpreted reportage. She hopes that the Americans will have enough distance to understand, but her career is not just American. She can make films everywhere", the statement reads. And while I think this "scandal" has been cleared, I also believe it's a valuable lesson for the French Oscar winner: when you're under such close scrutiny, stick to talking about sex, beauty and clothes. It's safer.