In 1378, one election led to two popes
To some, Alain Delon epitomized 20th-century allure, mastering the role of the impeccably dressed ice-cold killer in 1960s New Wave cinema. To others, his third-person self-references and admission to slapping a woman painted him as an egotistical chauvinist, sparking feminist outrage when Cannes honored him in 2019. Yet, millions of fans, from France to Japan, idolized him as a symbol of male beauty, flaws and all. Fellow icon Brigitte Bardot once described him as “an eagle with two heads... the best and the worst.”
The following gallery explores the latter, investigating the actor’s biggest scandal, and revises the facts of an unsolved murder that shook Europe. Click through to learn more.
Alain Delon’s beauty was undeniable: dark, intense, and irresistibly soulful yet commanding. He seemed destined for stardom, but those closest to him knew that his journey to fame had been anything but effortless. Behind the glamour lay a story of grit and determination.
Growing up in the affluent suburbs of Paris, Delon faced early upheaval when his parents divorced. He rebelled by leaving school and enlisting in the Navy, serving in the conflict against the Việt Minh in Indochina. However, his time in the military was marred by a lack of discipline, landing him repeatedly in military prison.
In 1956, a 21-year-old Delon faced a dishonorable discharge from the Navy. Back in Paris, he drifted through odd jobs, rubbing shoulders with crooks and street toughs. It was an unglamorous chapter in his life that would, surprisingly, pave the way for his rise to stardom.
Alain Delon’s charisma caught the eye of a Hollywood talent scout during a visit to Cannes, seemingly paving the way for an American film career. However, French director Yves Allégret encouraged him to hone his craft at home.
It proved to be sound advice—throughout the 1960s, Delon dazzled audiences in a variety of roles, from comedies and love stories to thrillers and dramas, cementing his status as a cinematic icon.
Delon’s personal life was as colorful as his on-screen roles. With multiple lovers, wives, and at least two children, his fiery temperament often made headlines. Known for striking overzealous photographers and bragging about his friendships with gangsters, Delon cultivated an aura of both charm and danger.
On October 1, 1968, a man’s body was discovered wrapped in a mattress cover at a rubbish tip near Paris. He had been brutally struck on the head and neck with a heavy object. When French police ran his fingerprints, they uncovered a lead that would spark one of the most intriguing unsolved cases in French history.
The deceased was Stevan Markovic, a 31-year-old Serb who had settled in France a decade prior. Back home, he was a minor underworld figure with a reputation as a streetfighter and alleged ties to covert operations for the state secret police. Despite his checkered past, he had secured political refugee status in France.
Markovic had served time in French prisons for violence and theft, with deportation frequently looming over him. Yet, thanks to well-placed allies, he remained in the country. The extent of his connections became startlingly clear when police discovered his last employer: none other than Alain Delon, France’s most iconic film star.
In the late 1960s, Delon hired Markovic as his bodyguard, reportedly after meeting him during a film shoot in Belgrade years earlier. Although their professional relationship had ended by the time Markovic’s body was discovered, the connection was enough for police to consider the actor a person of interest in the unfolding investigation.
While Delon was in Saint-Tropez filming 'The Swimming Pool' with Romy Schneider, his lawyers worked hard to shield him from investigators. However, police dug deeper and soon elevated him to prime suspect status.
The reason? Delon had recently dismissed Markovic from his employ, despite their friendship, after discovering that the Serb had an affair with his wife, actress Nathalie Barthélémy. It was a twist that added more fuel to the unfolding drama.
Like many stars of the era, Delon embraced the swinging sixties—a time of wild parties, breaking social norms, and free love. Whispers in Paris suggested that this free-spirited lifestyle extended to debauched bacchanalias, allegedly involving celebrity friends and even notable political figures.
In the freewheeling world of the sixties, where affairs were hardly unusual, dismissing an employee and ending a marriage over infidelity seemed curious. Nathalie and Alain were already separated and heading for divorce, adding even more drama to an already tumultuous narrative.
Police uncovered that the last sighting of Stevan Markovic was at 7:00 PM on September 22, when he was seen entering a taxi on Avenue de Messina. Already in the cab was a man estimated to be around 50 years old. It’s believed that Markovic met his tragic fate later that night.
Markovic’s brother, Alexander, approached French police with three letters written by Stevan. Written in Serbian, the letters were filled with rambling, cryptic language that defied clarity in any translation. Yet, one chilling sentence stood out, hinting at secrets yet to be uncovered.
“If I get killed, it’s 100% the fault of Alain Delon and his godfather, François Marcantoni,” Markovic allegedly wrote. Marcantoni, a former resistance fighter turned gangster, was a well-known figure in Paris, mingling with showbusiness elites. At 49 years old, he was also a close associate of Delon, adding another layer of intrigue to the case.
In the weeks following the murder, Delon, Marcantoni, and Barthélémy were interrogated, all adamantly denying any involvement. The case had already ignited a media frenzy, with sensational claims that Markovic was entangled with celebrities and politicians, hosting raucous parties at his Paris home and secretly photographing attendees for blackmail.
Despite a complete lack of evidence, public belief soon coalesced around the idea that Stevan Markovic had been murdered while attempting to blackmail influential figures. Investigators' silence on the matter only stoked these rumors, turning speculation into widespread assumption and further sensationalizing an already scandalous case.
As rumors swirled, journalists and politicians began to suggest a connection between the Markovic case and Georges Pompidou, the former French prime minister poised to succeed Charles De Gaulle as president. Pompidou and his wife Claude, a sophisticated art enthusiast in her fifties, were known for their fondness for mingling with celebrities.
Rumors swirled that Markovic possessed photographs of Madame Pompidou in compromising situations alongside other notable figures. The theory gained traction when a 25-year-old Yugoslav criminal, imprisoned in Paris for weapons offenses, claimed to a police officer that he had accompanied Markovic to one of these infamous parties, where Claude Pompidou was allegedly present.
As outrageous rumors about the connections between the political establishment, movie stars, and underground figures swirled through Paris, a fresh autopsy revealed a shocking detail: a 6.35mm bullet lodged in the back of Markovic’s head. This discovery transformed the case from a brutal murder to a calculated execution.
By early January 1969, the investigation reached a turning point. Confident they had sufficient evidence, police arrested François Marcantoni, charging him with the murder of Stevan Markovic. Meanwhile, Alain Delon endured an intense 35-hour interrogation but ultimately faced no charges, walking away from the legal spotlight, for the time being.
The most compelling evidence against Marcantoni was a specialized, high-end mattress he had purchased months before Markovic’s death. The brand matched the mattress cover in which the body had been found. To add to the damning evidence, the delivery man identified the holes in the cover as those he had made to access the mattress handles.
In 1969, Charles De Gaulle stepped down as president following the failure of a referendum, paving the way for Georges Pompidou to announce his candidacy for the role. Meanwhile, François Marcantoni spent the majority of the year in prison, awaiting trial for the murder of Stevan Markovic, a case that continued to cast a shadow over the political landscape.
The judge ruled that the mattress cover could have belonged to another buyer, and Markovic’s letters to his brother were dismissed as the ramblings of a disturbed mind. Marcantoni was granted bail, but the investigation dragged on for another five years before being dismissed due to insufficient evidence.
The Markovic affair sent shockwaves through France, dominating headlines for years. It left lasting stains on Georges Pompidou and his wife’s reputations, fractured Pompidou’s friendship with Charles De Gaulle, and dealt a severe blow to Alain Delon’s career.
Many speculated that the entire saga was a sordid feud between a French gangster and a Serbian enforcer, opportunistically exploited by political actors aiming to tarnish Pompidou’s image. Others believed it was a calculated act by celebrities and elites silencing a man who knew too much and attempted blackmail.
To this day, the truth behind the Markovic affair remains elusive. François Marcantoni, who passed away in 2010, added to the enigma with his cryptic remark: "There are only three people who know the truth—Delon, me, and God." With Marcantoni and Delon gone, the mystery remains sealed in silence.
Sources: (The New York Times) (Time Magazine) (The Express Tribune) (The Guardian)
See also: Celebrities affiliated with gangs
Alain Delon and the infamous Markovic affair
How the French cinema legend got involved in a murder mystery
LIFESTYLE Murder mystery
To some, Alain Delon epitomized 20th-century allure, mastering the role of the impeccably dressed ice-cold killer in 1960s New Wave cinema. To others, his third-person self-references and admission to slapping a woman painted him as an egotistical chauvinist, sparking feminist outrage when Cannes honored him in 2019. Yet, millions of fans, from France to Japan, idolized him as a symbol of male beauty, flaws and all. Fellow icon Brigitte Bardot once described him as “an eagle with two heads... the best and the worst.”
The following gallery explores the latter, investigating the actor’s biggest scandal, and revises the facts of an unsolved murder that shook Europe. Click through to learn more.