Word has come out that Marjane Satrapi has passed away at age 56. In a statement to Agence France-Presse, her family said she “died of sadness” after the death of her husband who passed away in April 2025. Satrapi gained fame for her graphic memoir Persepolis which began to be released in 2000 and directing the film adaptation of the graphic memoir with Vincent Parannaud which was released in 2007.

Satrapi was born in November 1969 in Rasht, Iran. Soon after her family moved to Tehran were she grew up and attended a French-language school. Her parents were politically active and supported causes against the monarchy of the last Shah.

Satrapi grew up under the Islamic fundamentalist rule that took over the Iranian Revolution that took place in 1979. Satrapi rebelled, defending her rights and skirting the installed laws such as the modesty codes and listening to music banned by the regime.

Due to concerns for her safety, Satrapi studied abroad moving to Vienna, Austria in 1983 at the age of 14 and she remained there through high school.

She eventually returned to Tehran and studied visual communication and received a master’s degree from Islamic Azad University.

Satrapi began to release Persepolis in 2000 in French and was released until 2003. An English translation was released in two parts in 2003 and 2004. The graphic novel depicts her youth in Iran and Europe. It won the Angoulême Coup de Coeur Award at the Angoulême International Comics Festival. While praised, the graphic memoir also saw controversy as well as it was removed from some schools due to its “graphic language and violence.”

Satrapi would go on to release Embroideries (Broderies) which was also nominated for the Angoulême Album of the Year award in 2003, an award her graphic novel Chicken with Plums (Poulet aux prunes) won.

Persepolis was adapted as an animated film and debuted at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival and shared a Special Jury Prize. It was also nominated for Best Animated Feature at the 80th Academy Award, making Satrapi the first woman to be nominated for the award. It would go on to win numerous awards and itself also see controversy as it was denounced by the Iranian government who worked to get it pulled from festivals. Satrapi would go on to act in and direct numerous more films.

Satrapi was a political activist, speaking out against the fundamentalist Iranian government and supported protests for freedom and rights against the regime in Iran.

Satrapi lived in Paris, France and met and Swedish actor and producer Mattias Ripa whom she married until his death in 2025. After his death, Satrapi set up the Mattias and Marjane Ripa-Satrapi Cinema Foundation as a way to provide support for foreign students who want to study filmmaking in Paris.

Satrapi died in Paris on June 4, 2026 at the age of 56.