As the daughter of a U.S. American dancer Caron received in childhood dance classes and graduated from 1944 to 1946 a dance studies at the Paris Conservatoire. Three years later she became a prima ballerina in the Ballets des Champs-Elysees. There she was discovered by Gene Kelly, which she gave a role in his next musical film An American in Paris. The film production has been honored with six Oscars, and Caron subsequently received further film offers.

In 1953 she received for her role in the film Dear Lili one BAFTA Award as best foreign actress and an Oscar nomination as best actress. This is repeated in 1962 with the melodrama The indiscreet room. In the 1960s, it has predominantly been on in Europe in various musicals and Broadway productions, they turned in their film roles, however, from musicals and appeared in comedies, adventure films and film dramas. It was 1979 seen for example in the sports drama Golden Girl alongside Susan Anton and Germans Curd Jürgens too.

In 1989 she was jury president of the Berlinale and the World Film Festival. It is the beginning of the 21st Century, the only actress from the ranks of the musical stars of the 50s, which is still active as an actress. So she was seeing 2000 in the global cinema success Chocolat as Madame Audel too. Their most recent screen appearance was in 2006 in the TV series Law & Order: SVU (Law & Order: Special Victims Unit): The role of a rape victim she received the 2007 first ever Emmy Award.