Dany Boon
Dany Boon | |
|---|---|
 Boon in 2018 | |
| Born | Daniel Farid Hamidou 26 June 1966 Armentières, Hauts-de-France, France |
| Occupation(s) | Actor, film director, screenwriter, producer |
| Years active | 1992–present |
| Spouses | |
| Partner | Laurence Arné (2018–) |
| Children | 5 |
Dany Boon (pronounced [dani bun]; born Daniel Farid Hamidou on 26 June 1966) is a French actor, film director, screenwriter and producer.
Starting out as a comedian during the 1990s, he found success in 2008 as an actor and director in the film comedy Welcome to the Sticks. Since then he has been involved as screenwriter or director or both in the films Nothing to Declare (2011), Supercondriaque (2014), Raid dingue (2017), La Ch'tite famille (2018), Stuck Together (2021) and Life for Real (2023).
Early life
[edit]Boon was born Daniel Farid Hamidou in a middle-class family in northern France. His father was born in 1930 in Issers, Algeria, and was Muslim,[1] and died in Lille, France in 1992. He was a boxer and a chauffeur. Boon's mother, Danièle Ducatel,[2] is from northern France. A Catholic, she was a stay-at-home mother.
He converted to Judaism (his wife's faith) in 2002.[3]
He studied graphic arts at the Institut Saint-Luc in Belgium.
Career
[edit]Boon arrived in Paris in 1989, where he was a mime[4] in the streets for a living while appearing frequently on open mic nights at places like the Treviso theatre. He borrowed his stage name from a hero in the American television series Daniel Boone, which was about an American trapper.
He acted in several one-man shows.[5]
Boon is also a musician; he has done a version of "Piensa en mí"[6] ("Think of me"). He also writes his own songs, for example, "Le Blues du 'tiot poulet" ("The Chicken Blues").
After small roles in movies during the 1990s, he landed a role in the 1998 satire Bimboland, directed by Ariel Zeitoun. Boon is deeply attached to his native region, Nord-Pas-de-Calais. In 2003, he made a whole show in the local dialect of ch'ti, also known as Picard. Despite the use of dialectal language, 600,000 copies of the DVD (which included French subtitles) were sold. No previous DVD featuring a one-man show had sold as well in France.[citation needed] In 2004, he was part of the main cast in Pédale Dure,[7] directed by Gabriel Aghion, a critical and commercial flop. He was then offered several roles in movies, notably in the film Joyeux Noël (Merry Christmas), which was released internationally in 2005.
In February 2008, he acted and directed a movie titled Welcome to the Sticks (Bienvenue chez les Ch'tis), which was a success in France and in other countries.[8] This comedy based on prejudices held about the region, went on to break French box office records. Two weeks after its release, the film had already been seen by five million people. After its fourth week, the figure had risen to 15 million, and by 11 April, the film had surpassed the viewing audience of La Grande Vadrouille, having been watched by more than 17.4 million people. He was the highest-paid actor in European film history, netting 26 million Euro (c. 33 million dollars).[9] He was the president of the 40th César Awards ceremony in 2015.[10] Boon was on the council of directors of the Pathé production company and has produced several films as actor, co-producer, screenwriter or director.[11] Boon had several production companies, including 26 DB Productions, in Los Angeles, California. They produce and distribute films and TV content.[12]
Boon was also directed by French filmmakers such as Jean-Pierre Jeunet in the 2009 movie Micmacs;[13] Danièle Thompson in 2009 Change of Plans;[14] A Perfect Plan[15] 2012 film directed by Pascal Chaumeil, Julie Delpy's movie Lolo[16] (2015) and Yvan Attal in 2016 film The Jews.[17]
Raid Dingue[18] was a 2016 comedy that was a big success with the viewers but failed to convince film critics. He was both screenwriter and director on this movie, and also starred in it. For this film Boon received the first César du public in the history of French cinema: this new award is given to the French film with the biggest box office of the year. After Raid Dingue, Boon did his sixth movie, (La Ch’tite Famille) Family is Family. It came out in 2018, the 10 year anniversary of Bienvenue chez les Ch’tis.
In 2016 Boon starred in a film about anti-semitism in France, The Jews. In 2018, his Netflix show, Des-hauts-de-France[19] premiered on Netflix. Boon voices the character of Olaf in the French dubbings of the Disney movies Frozen, Frozen 2, Once Upon a Snowman, and Olaf Presents.[20]
Personal life
[edit]He has four sons and a daughter from three different unions. With his first wife, he had Mehdi, his eldest son, born in 1997. With his second wife, Judith Godrèche, he had Noé, born on 4 September 1999. With his third wife, Yaël Harris, for whom he converted to Judaism in 2002,[21] he had Eytan, born 23 June 2005; Elia, born 20 December 2006 and Sarah, born 1 March 2010.[22]
In July 2022 Boon stated that that he was defrauded of €6 million by Irishman Terry Birles and was taking court action.[23]
Filmography
[edit]One-man shows
[edit]- Je vais bien, tout va bien (1992)
- Chaud mais pas fatigué (Café de la Gare, 1993)
- Dany Boon Fou ? (Théâtre Tristan-Bernard, Paris, 1994)
- Dany Boon au Théâtre du Rond-Point (1995–96)
- Les Zacros de la télé (1996)
- Tout entier (1997)
- Nouveau spétak (1998).
- Au Bataclan (1998)
- A French Comedian Lost in L.A. (Melrose Theater, Los Angeles) (2000)
- En parfait état (2001)
- A s'baraque et en ch'ti (2003)
- Waïka (novembre 2006)
- Trop stylé (novembre 2009)
- Dany Boon: Des Hauts-De-France (2018)
Plays
[edit]- La Vie de chantier (2003)
- Le Dîner de Cons (2007, théâtre de la Porte Saint-Martin)
References
[edit]- ^ ""היום אני יהודי גאה"". 3 December 2018.
- ^ "Daniele Hamidou-Ducatel , mother of French comedian Dany Boon, and..." Getty Images. 10 January 2014. Retrieved 2021-04-08.
- ^ ""היום אני יהודי גאה"". 3 December 2018.
- ^ McGary, Sue (2020-03-15). "Dany Boon - Writer, director, actor, comedian | French Affair". Retrieved 2021-04-08.
- ^ "Dany Boon - Rotten Tomatoes". www.rottentomatoes.com. Retrieved 2021-04-08.
- ^ DANY BOON - Pensa me - Luz Casal (Piensa en mi), archived from the original on 2021-12-21, retrieved 2021-04-08
- ^ Aghion, Gabriel (2004-10-20), Pédale dure (Comedy), Gérard Darmon, Michèle Laroque, Dany Boon, Jacques Dutronc, Galfin, Aussie Films, Sans Contrefaçon Productions, retrieved 2021-04-08
- ^ "Welcome to the Sticks". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 2021-04-08.
- ^ French blockbuster star is Europe's best-paid actor, Thursday, February 26
- ^ "Dany Boon président des César : la Ch'ti revanche". Le Figaro. 26 September 2014. Retrieved 3 October 2014.
- ^ Tartaglione, Nancy (2010-09-14). "Dany Boon and Lisa Axuelos to join Pathe executive board". Screen. Retrieved 2021-04-15.
- ^ "Boon Dany". Cine Passion 34 (in French). 10 June 2003. Retrieved 2021-04-15.
- ^ Jeunet, Jean-Pierre (2009-10-28), Micmacs à tire-larigot (Action, Comedy, Crime), Dany Boon, André Dussollier, Nicolas Marié, Yolande Moreau, Epithète Films, Tapioca Films, Warner Bros., retrieved 2021-04-08
- ^ Thompson, Danièle (2009-02-18), Le code a changé (Comedy, Drama), Karin Viard, Dany Boon, Marina Foïs, Patrick Bruel, Thelma Films, Alter Films, StudioCanal, retrieved 2021-04-08
- ^ Chaumeil, Pascal (2012-10-31), Un plan parfait (Adventure, Comedy, Romance), Diane Kruger, Dany Boon, Alice Pol, Robert Plagnol, Quad Productions, TF1 Films Production, Scope Pictures, retrieved 2021-04-08
- ^ Delpy, Julie (2015-10-28), Lolo (Comedy), Julie Delpy, Dany Boon, Vincent Lacoste, Karin Viard, The Film, France 2 Cinéma, Mars Films, retrieved 2021-04-08
- ^ Attal, Yvan (2016-06-01), Ils sont partout (Comedy), Yvan Attal, François Bureloup, Tobie Nathan, Benoît Poelvoorde, La Petite Reine, Films Sous Influence, Entre Chien et Loup, retrieved 2021-04-08
- ^ Boon, Dany (2017-02-01), Raid dingue (Action, Comedy, Romance), Alice Pol, Dany Boon, Michel Blanc, Yvan Attal, Pathé, Les Productions du Ch'timi, TF1 Films Production, retrieved 2021-04-08
- ^ "Dany Boon: Des Hauts De France | Netflix Official Site". www.netflix.com. Retrieved 2021-04-15.
- ^ "Olaf". CHARGUIGOU. Retrieved 2024-07-22.
- ^ Le Figaro Magazine which states that "his conversion to Judaism in 2002 [has] paradoxically made him closer to his Pas-de-Calais roots"
- ^ MEHDI NOE EYTAN ET ELIA BOON - famille de stars et de sportifs Archived 2023-03-31 at the Wayback Machine. Jess1393.skyrock.com. Retrieved on 2017-01-09.
- ^ O'Loughlin, Ann (14 July 2022). "French actor claims he is victim of €6m fraud by 'Irish Lord from an ancient family'". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 27 July 2022.
- ^ "La Ch'tite Famille". Unifrance.org. Retrieved 16 July 2018.
- ^ Mintzer, Jordan (27 February 2018). "'La Ch'tite famille': Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 16 July 2018.
- ^ Wiseman, Andreas (October 22, 2020). "'Hitpig': Peter Dinklage, Lilly Singh, Rainn Wilson, RuPaul, Hannah Gadsby & Dany Boon To Voice Animated Movie". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved May 5, 2021.
External links
[edit]
- 1966 births
- Living people
- Berber Jews
- 21st-century converts to Judaism
- Jewish French comedians
- French male film actors
- French male stage actors
- Jewish French male actors
- French people of Kabyle descent
- Kabyle people
- French stand-up comedians
- People from Armentières
- French male television actors
- 20th-century French male actors
- 21st-century French male actors
- French male screenwriters
- French screenwriters
- French film directors
- Picard language
- French male comedians
- Male actors from Hauts-de-France
- Comedians from Hauts-de-France