1951-02-06 ( 74 years old ) in Tours, Indre-et-Loire, France
Jacques Villeret (6 February 1951 – 28 January 2005) was a French actor, best known internationally for his role as François Pignon in the comedy Le Dîner de Cons. During his career, he earned many awards including the prestigious medal and title of Chevalier de la Légion d'Honneur.
Villeret was born Jacky Boufroura in Loches, Indre-et-Loire, France, to an Algerian father and a French mother. He studied at the Conservatoire de Paris (CNSAD) in the same class as Louis Seigner, the grandfather of Emmanuelle Seigner and Mathilde Seigner. While he was most famous for his role as François Pignon in Le Dîner de Cons; both on the stage and in the film, his other celebrated roles included the extra terrestrial in La soupe aux choux, the autistic Mo in L'été en pente douce, and marshal Ludwig von Apfelstrudel in Papy fait de la résistance.
At the time of making the film Un aller simple directed by Laurent Heynemann – a film about integration and racism and the clash of generations – he said that watching the young actors in the film, Barbara Schulz and Lorant Deutsch, reminded him of the insouciance he had had as a young man with his friends at the Conservatoire.
When his career was at its height, with the success of Le Dîner de Cons, everything collapsed in a tragedy mirroring the plot of the film. Villeret separated from his wife and suffered an enormous financial downfall due to tax issues, plunging him into depression. Villeret turned to alcohol for comfort, and became an alcoholic. He isolated himself and hid away for long periods. He later said: Alcohol is a friend, but a friend who means you harm.
Villeret's love of his profession helped to bring his career back from the brink. In an interview in 2001 he spoke of his admiration for performers like Johnny Hallyday and Jacques Brel for their level of commitment, and quoted the author Louis-Ferdinand Céline: When I write, I put my balls on the table.
In 1979 Villeret married Irina Tarassov, an actress and writer. They separated in 1998. Tassarov wrote about their life together in her book Un jour, tout ira bien. (One day, everything will go well).
In 2002 Villeret met Seny, a Senegalese-French widow descended through her grandfather, Mor Diarra N'Dao, from a long line of Sérès nobles of the ancient Kingdom of Saloum, and they fell instantly and deeply in love. They were partners for three years, and she was about to move to Paris to be with him when he died in Évreux in January 2005 of a liver haemorrhage. Seny wrote a memoir of their life together, Jacques Villeret, mon bébé blanc, which was published in Paris by Le Cherche Midi in 2005.
Source: Article "Jacques Villeret" from Wikipedia in English, licensed under CC-BY-SA 3.0.
Movies
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L'Âge d'or de la pub
2023-06-02
The Do-Gooders
2005-10-19
Grey Souls
2005-09-28
The Antidote
2005-03-30
Iznogoud
2005-01-19
Viper in the Fist
2004-10-06
Malabar Princess
2004-03-03
Le Furet
2003-10-29
Strange Gardens
2003-03-26
One Way Ticket
2001-05-30
A Crime in Paradise
2001-02-28
Actors
2000-04-05
The Children of the Marshland
1999-03-03
Mookie
1998-12-09
The Dinner Game
1998-04-15
Le Dernier Été
1997-05-14
Georges Dandin de Molière
1997-02-07
Golden Boy
1996-02-21
Wacko
1994-06-08
The Drummer of Ravel's Boléro
1992-05-15
The Son of the Mekong
1992-04-08
Le bal des Casse-pieds
1992-02-12
588 rue Paradis
1992-01-14
The Favour, the Watch and the Very Big Fish
1991-05-01
The Professional Secrets of Dr. Apfelgluck
1991-04-24
Three Years
1990-08-29
Un fil à la patte
1989-10-02
La Petite Amie
1988-09-14
Nailcruncher
1988-06-06
Keep Your Right Up
1987-09-19
L'été en pente douce
1987-04-29
Last Summer in Tangiers
1987-04-22
C'est encore mieux l'après-midi
1987-02-06
The Joint Brothers
1986-10-15
Black Mic Mac
1986-04-23
Les Folles Années du Twist
1986-02-26
La Galette du roi
1986-01-29
Hold-up
1985-10-23
Drôle de samedi
1985-04-01
Dialogue de sourds
1985-01-01
The Vultures
1984-03-28
First Name: Carmen
1983-12-01
Waiter!
1983-11-09
Gramps Is in the Resistance
1983-10-26
Move Along, There Is Nothing to See!
1983-04-20
Effraction
1983-04-06
Danton
1983-01-12
Edith and Marcel
1983-01-01
The Big Brother
1982-09-08
The Cabbage Soup
1981-12-02
Bolero
1981-05-27
Malevil
1981-05-13
Out of Whack
1979-12-12
Dumb But Disciplined
1979-08-21
Us Two
1979-05-23
Heart to Heart
1979-01-03
Mountain Pass
1978-11-08
Mon premier amour
1978-08-30
Robert et Robert
1978-06-13
Un Balcon en forêt
1978-05-16
Le Rabat-joie
1978-01-01
Another Man, Another Chance
1977-09-28
Nono Nénesse
1976-12-31
The Castaways of Turtle Island
1976-10-06
A Second Chance
1976-09-30
The Good and the Bad
1976-01-19
The Common Man
1975-02-26
Serious as Pleasure
1975-01-15
The Mouth Agape
1974-05-08
Un amour de pluie
1974-01-10
Nothing to Report
1973-08-15
Detective Story
1972-10-30
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