Claude Laydu

Claude Laydu (; 10 March 1927 – 29 July 2011) was a Belgian-born Swiss actor on stage and in films. He was renowned for his performance in his film debut in the role of the young priest in Robert Bresson's Diary of a Country Priest, which has been described as one of the greatest in the history of film.

Biography Laydu was born and grew up in Brussels. He moved to Paris to study at the National Academy of Dramatic Arts. He became a member of Madeleine Renaud and Jean-Louis Barrault's company at the Théâtre Marigny, when he was selected by director Robert Bresson for his first role in a film, as the titular young priest in Diary of a Country Priest, based on the 1936 novel of the same name by Georges Bernanos. They met to discuss the role, and Laydu prepared by spending time in a monastery and losing weight.

While Bresson sometimes suggested acting got in the way of his moviemaking, Laydu, a practicing Catholic, "brought his own spirituality, instinctive presence and intense ascetic looks to the role."

Laydu's next film, Le Voyage en Amérique (Trip to America, 1951), was a light comedy, but he was seen to have an austere style. His next film was Au Coeur de la Casbah (Heart of the Casbah, 1952), where he struggled in an affair; he played a lawyer of a man condemned to death in Nous Sommes Tous des Assassins (We Are All Murderers), the director André Cayatte's protest against the death penalty; and in Le Chemin de Damas (The Road to Damascus), Laydu played Saint Etienne (Saint Stephen).

Personal life He married Christine Balli; the couple had a son and a daughter.

Filmography Year Title Role Notes1951 Diary of a Country Priest Priest of Ambricourt 1951 The Voyage to America François Soalhat 1952 Heart of the Casbah Michel 1952 We Are All Murderers Philippe Arnaud 1952 The Road to Damascus Etienne 1953 Good Lord Without Confession Roland Dupont 1953 I Was a Parish Priest Padre Andrés Mendoza 1953 Napoleon Road Pierre Marchand 1954 Rasputin Héliodore 1954 Attila Valentiniano Caesar 1955 The Price of Love Pierre Ménard 1956 Altair Mario Rossi 1956 Symphony of Love Franz Schubert 1957 The Wheel Roland Pelletier 1960 Dialogue of the Carmelites Le Chevalier de la Force 1961 Italienisches Capriccio Carlo Goldoni 1963 Mafia alla sbarra