Belgian actor Matthias Schoenaerts has been sentenced to six months in prison following driving offenses, according to Belgian news agency Belga.
The Old Guard actor, who is set to star in DC Studios’ Supergirl film out next year, was sentenced in absentia after failing to appear in a Belgian court, Deadline confirmed.
Police stopped Schoenaerts, 47, twice in April 2024 while he was driving his motorcycle without a valid driving licence, Belga reported.
The actor – also known for his roles in The Drop (2014) and Rust and Bone (2012) – had his license revoked after allegedly driving under the influence in 2021.
Schoenaerts’s representatives did not immediately respond to The Independent’s request for comment.
Alongside the prison sentence and a fine of €4,000 (£3,500), the court imposed a new one-year driving ban.
The actor must pass theoretical and practical driving tests, as well as medical and psychological assessments, before being allowed to drive again.
However, court spokesperson Luc De Cleir told Belga the chances of Schoenaerts actually ending up in jail are almost nonexistent. He could also file an opposition and appeal the ruling.
Schoenaerts has reportedly been convicted of driving offences 11 times in the past. When previous measures fail, “a strict signal is necessary to protect society and prevent recidivism”, Mr De Cleir said.
Monday’s conviction might not be the actor’s last, as it emerged separately that he was stopped by police on 21 November, where he refused a breath test and behaved aggressively when his vehicle was towed.
Schoenaerts is among Belgium’s most internationally recognised actors. The son of Flemish actor Julien Schoenaerts, Matthias’s breakthrough role was the Oscar-nominated 2011 Flemish film Bullhead. He has gone on to star in major global productions alongside the likes of Kate Winslet, Charlize Theron and Tom Hardy.
Next year, he’s due to play the main villain, Krem of the Yellow Hills, in DC’s Supergirl with Milly Alcock starring as the title character.
The actor is also set to star in the French drama Changer l’eau des fleurs from Jean-Pierre Jeunet (Amélie), and will reunite with Terrence Malick for his Jesus epic The Way of the Wind, which began filming in 2019.
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