Brigitte Bardot Undergoes Surgery After Being Rushed to Hospital with Mystery Illness
Iconic French actress and animal rights activist Brigitte Bardot has reportedly undergone surgery after being hospitalized with an undisclosed illness.
According to French media reports cited by the Daily Mail, the 91-year-old star was at her home in Saint-Tropez when she fell ill approximately three weeks ago. She was taken to a hospital in Toulon, where she underwent an unspecified operation and is currently recovering under medical supervision.
Bardot’s representatives have not yet commented on her condition.
This is not the first time the screen legend has faced health issues in recent years. In July 2023, she was rushed to the hospital after experiencing difficulty breathing. Her husband, Bernard d’Ormale, told local media at the time, “It was around 9 a.m. when Brigitte had trouble breathing. [Her breathing] was stronger than usual, but she did not lose consciousness. Let’s call it a moment of respiratory distraction.”
First responders administered oxygen and remained by her side to monitor her condition. D’Ormale, 84, noted that the extreme summer heat had also affected her health.
Bardot rose to international fame in the 1950s and 1960s as one of the most sought-after actresses of her generation. She famously retired from acting in 1973, shortly before her 40th birthday, citing the overwhelming pressure of fame.
“Being Bardot,” author James Clarke previously explained, “There was some exhaustion there, not just from the pace of work, but just [being] the endless subject of a camera lens, whether it’s a still camera lens or a movie lens.”
In 1987, Bardot auctioned off a fifth of her personal belongings, including jewelry, art, and clothing, raising $500,000 to support causes she cared about. “I gave my beauty and my youth to men,” she said at the time. “And now I am giving my wisdom and experience, the best of me, to animals.”
Since stepping away from Hollywood, Bardot has devoted her life to animal rights activism. However, her outspoken views have also made her a controversial figure.
In 2019, she was fined for inciting racial hatred after describing residents of Réunion Island as “degenerate savages” in an open letter, accusing them of mistreating animals. It was her sixth conviction related to similar inflammatory statements, including Islamophobic remarks directed at the island’s Tamil Hindu population and a 2006 letter criticizing the Muslim festival Aid el-Kebir.
Bardot remains a polarizing but iconic figure in French culture — a woman who captivated the world on screen and later dedicated her life to a cause she fiercely believes in.
