French actress Nadia Farès, best known for her role in The Crimson Rivers and a decades-long career across French and international film, has died at the age of 57. She was found unconscious in a Paris swimming pool on April 11 and died days later on April 17 after suffering cardiac arrest following a coma.
“It is with immense sadness that we announce the death this Friday of Nadia Farès,” her daughters shared in a statement with Agence France-Presse. “France has lost a great artist, but for us, it is above all a mother that we have just lost.”
Learn more about her below.
She Was Born in Marrakesh & Raised in France
Farès was born in Marrakesh, Morocco, on December 20, 1968, and moved to France at a young age, where she was raised. She later relocated to Paris to pursue acting, launching her career in the early 1990s.
She Was a French Actress With a Global Career
Farès worked in film and television for more than three decades, beginning with her 1992 debut My Wife’s Girlfriends. She rose to fame with The Crimson Rivers and went on to appear in international projects like War alongside Jet Li and Jason Statham, as well as the horror film Storm Warning. She also starred in the Netflix series Marseille from 2016 to 2018.
She Married Producer Steve Chasman
Farès married American film producer Steve Chasman in 2002 and later moved to the United States during their marriage. The couple separated in 2022, after which she returned to live in France.
She Had Two Daughters, Cylia & Shana
Farès was the mother of two daughters, Cylia and Shana, who have paid tribute to her following her death.
Cylia shared a tribute to her mother on Instagram, writing, “This is a heartbreak I will never get over. Everyday I wake up and pray this is a nightmare and that you’re still with us. I know you fought your very hardest for your babies. Thank you. Thank you for fighting, thank you for giving me life, thank you for every memory, thank you for the laughs, for the cries.”
She Faced Serious Health Challenges Over the Years
Farès had been open about her health struggles, revealing she underwent brain surgery in 2007 for a serious aneurysm and later had three heart surgeries within four years. She died on April 17, 2026, after suffering cardiac arrest following a swimming pool incident in Paris that left her in a coma for several days.
