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Brigitte Bardot, the French movie icon and sex symbol and animal rights activist, has died. She was 91.

The news was announced on the website of her Brigitte Bardot Foundation for the protection of animals, with a banner reading, “Thank you Brigitte. A lifetime and a foundation dedicated to serving animals.”

“The Brigitte Bardot Foundation announces with immense sadness the death of its Founder and President, Mrs. Brigitte Bardot, a world-renowned actress and singer, who chose to give up her prestigious career to dedicate her life and energy to animal welfare and her Foundation,” read a statement.

A spokesperson for the Foundation told the Associated Press that Bardot died Sunday at her home in France. No cause of death was announced.  

Emmanuel Macron, the president of France, wrote on X, “Her films, her voice, her dazzling glory, her initials, her sorrows, her generous passion for animals … Brigitte Bardot embodied a life of freedom. French existence, universal brilliance. She touched us. We mourn a legend of the century.”

Bardot initially studied ballet, but then became a model, which led to her being cast in a number of films. Her breakthrough was 1956’s And God Created Woman, written and directed by her then-husband, Roger Vadim. Her portrayal of a hedonistic young woman made her a worldwide star, sex symbol and style icon, while the film was credited with paving the way for French filmmakers and movies to find a global audience.

Bardot became so revered in France that from 1969 to 1972, she became the model for “Marianne,” the female figure who has personified the country since the French Revolution.

Bardot went on to work with directors like Jean-Luc Godard and Louis Malle, earning acclaim and the French Legion of Honor. She retired from acting in 1973 and devoted her life to protecting animals, establishing her Foundation in 1986. 

Later in life, Bardot became controversial for her right-wing politics and was convicted and fined multiple times by French courts for “inciting racial hatred.” 

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The Golden Globes has revealed its lineup of presenters ahead of Sunday’s 83rd annual awards ceremony.

Presenters include George Clooney, Ayo Edebiri, Charli XCX, Jason Bateman, Jennifer Garner, Joe Keery, Julia Roberts, Macaulay Culkin, Melissa McCarthy, Miley Cyrus, Pamela Anderson, Queen Latifah and Snoop Dogg.

Also on the list to present are Amanda Seyfried, Ana de Armas, Chris Pine, Colman Domingo, Dakota Fanning, Dave Franco, Diane Lane, Hailee Steinfeld, Judd Apatow, Justin Hartley, Kathryn Hahn, Keegan-Michael Key, Kevin Bacon, Kevin Hart, Kyra Sedgwick, Lalisa Manobal, Luke Grimes, Marlon Wayans, Mila Kunis, Minnie Driver, Orlando Bloom, Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Regina Hall, Sean Hayes, Wanda Sykes, Will Arnett and Zoë Kravitz.

Additionally, Heated Rivalry stars Connor Storrie and Hudson Williams are set to present together.

The 2026 Golden Globes will take place Sunday, Jan. 11, at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT, airing live on CBS and streaming live on Paramount+. Comedian Nikki Glaser is set to host.

One Battle After Another has the most nominations on the film side, with nine nods, while The White Lotus is the top nominee on the TV side, with six.

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A federal judge in New York has formally ended Justin Baldoni‘s $400 million counterclaim against his It Ends With Us co-star Blake Lively.

Judge Lewis Liman entered a final judgment on Oct. 31, after dismissing the suit in June.

Baldoni is able to appeal the judge’s ruling.

Baldoni and Lively have been locked in a bitter legal dispute since December 2024, when Lively filed a complaint against Baldoni with the California Civil Rights Department, accusing him of sexual harassment on the set of the film, which he also directed.

Lively filed a lawsuit against Baldoni on Dec. 31, 2024, reiterating the claims made in her earlier complaint and alleging Baldoni and his production company Wayfarer Studios had waged a retaliatory smear campaign against her. That same day, Baldoni filed a lawsuit against The New York Times, which had published a report outlining the claims detailed in Lively’s earlier complaint, alleging libel and false light invasion of privacy.

Baldoni and Wayfarer Studios filed a countersuit against Lively, her husband, Ryan Reynolds, and their publicist, Leslie Sloane, weeks later, alleging civil extortion, defamation and invasion of privacy.

In June of this year, Liman granted Lively’s motion to dismiss Baldoni and Wayfarer Studios’ countersuit against her. The judge also dismissed Baldoni’s defamation suit against the Times.

At the time, Liman wrote in his opinion that Baldoni’s lawsuit hinged on claims that Lively “stole the film from Baldoni and Wayfarer, threatening to refuse to promote the film and attack Baldoni and Wayfarer in the press if the Wayfarer Parties did not agree to grant her, rather than Wayfarer, control over and credit for the film” and that “Lively, Sloane, Reynolds, and the Times spread a false narrative that Baldoni committed sexual misconduct towards Lively and the Wayfarer Parties then engaged in a smear campaign to ruin her reputation.”

“Regardless of the propriety of these actions, they do not constitute civil extortion under California law,” Liman wrote, adding that “the Wayfarer Parties have not adequately alleged that Lively’s threats were wrongful extortion rather than legally permissible hard bargaining or renegotiation of working conditions” and had “not shown that some of Lively’s allegedly extortionate acts damaged them.”

Two weeks later, on June 24, Baldoni decided not to amend his claims against Lively, Reynolds, Sloane and the Times.

In a statement at the time, Baldoni’s lawyer, Bryan Freedman, said, “Instead of revising the existing claims, our clients will be pursuing additional legal options that are available to us.”

“The Court’s decision on the motion to dismiss has no effect whatsoever on the truth that there was no harassment nor any smear campaign, and it does not in any way affect our vigorous defense against Ms. Lively’s claims,” Freedman continued, calling Lively’s allegations “baseless.”

Lively’s spokesperson responded to Baldoni’s decision at the time, saying in a statement, “The Court dismissed the frivolous $400 million Baldoni-Wayfarer lawsuit in its entirety.”

They added, “In the days that followed, Baldoni’s lawyer said the judge’s decision to dismiss their case was not a big deal as they promised to amend and refile it. As per usual, that was not true. The Court’s dismissal of Baldoni’s sham lawsuit was a total victory after all.”

Reached for comment on Monday, a Times spokesperson directed ABC News to its earlier statement in June, following Liman’s dismissal of Baldoni’s defamation case against the outlet. “We are grateful to the court for seeing the lawsuit for what it was: a meritless attempt to stifle honest reporting,” the spokesperson said.

“Our journalists went out and covered carefully and fairly a story of public importance, and the court recognized that the law is designed to protect just that sort of journalism,” they continued. “We will continue to stand up in court for our journalism and for our journalists when their work comes under attack.”

Lively’s case against Baldoni and Wayfarer Studios is still expected to go to trial in March next year.

ABC News reached out to Baldoni’s team, who did not issue any further comment.

ABC News has also reached out to Lively’s team for comment.

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