On the evening of Friday, April 17, Nathalie Baye passed away at the age of 77 after suffering from Lewy body disease. She leaves behind her daughter, Laura Smet.
“I don’t like to invade my daughter and her husband’s life. I find it unbearable when a mother is always present and interferes with everything. Once our child becomes an adult and has their own life, it should be respected,” Nathalie Baye said about her daughter, Laura Smet, in Madame Figaro in 2021. Despite not intruding on the life of the child she had in 1983 with Johnny Hallyday, she maintained a strong bond with her. This Friday evening, this relationship faced a new challenge. As announced by her family to AFP, Nathalie Baye passed away at the age of 77.
She was suffering from Lewy body disease, a neurodegenerative condition that can be mistaken for Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s. While Laura Smet witnessed her mother’s health deteriorate over the past few months, she surely cherishes wonderful memories with her. The two women were often seen together on red carpets or at various events. “We are very close. I have a warm and quite complicit relationship with her. However, I have never behaved like a mother-buddy,” explained the actress in Juste la fin du monde by Xavier Dolan in Télé 7 Jours in 2015.
Nathalie Baye took her role as a mother very seriously, considering it a unique opportunity. “Having a child is discovering a love that was previously unknown. There is something unique about it. And if we want to do things well, not everything is easy in education, but the difficulty is interesting,” said the actress of Vénus Beauté (Institut) in Madame Figaro in 2021. Laura Smet has always appreciated the attention her mother has shown her since she was young.
“She always laid out my clothes for school the next day. A sensible outfit, of course, Benetton style,” said the half-sister of David Hallyday in a Gala issue published last January. She has always admired her mother, considering her a courageous woman who could not be broken. “I remember seeing her cry for the first time when I was 10 years old. It shook me because I was convinced that nothing could touch her,” explained Laura Smet in Elle in 2018. “My mother never talked to me about her difficult times, her weaknesses. I see now that she never wanted to show me the difficulties of the profession.”
The late actress remained by her daughter’s side even during the most challenging times. Whether during adolescence when tensions could arise, or during the deep depression Laura Smet suffered in 2007. “There were trials, but Laura overcame them,” said Nathalie Baye in Journal du Dimanche in 2022, adding that “the exit from adolescence was difficult.” Indeed, after reaching adulthood, the half-sister of David Hallyday was drawn into the nightlife, staying out late and consuming illicit substances.
She gradually sank until being admitted to the Sainte-Anne hospital psychiatric ward at the age of 24. “If one does not want these moments, then one should not have children,” Nathalie Baye asserted. “Laura is happy and structured today. The bad memories of adolescence are forgotten. The best gift you can give to a child is trust: I never doubted her.” While the actress was there for her daughter during the worst moments, it is without a doubt that this support was mutual.
