Charlot was born in Paris. His father, Henri, owned an import-export business and was a Russian-born émigré, albeit one who supported the Bolshevik cause. His mother Anna was herself an artist. His mother's family originated from Mexico City, his grandfather a French-Indian mestizo. His great grandfather had immigrated to Mexico in the 1820s shortly after the country's independence from Spain and married a woman who was half Aztec. This was likely the source of a myth which developed around Charlot casting him as a descendant of Aztec royalty.