Who was the father of Alexandre Dumas, the first black general of the French army, soon embodied by Théo Christine on the big screen?

One Dumas can hide another. After bringing up to date The three musketeers et The Comte de Monte-Cristotwo classic novels of the writer Alexandre Dumas, Pathé and producer Dimitri Rassam are preparing to bring his father’s life to the screen, Thomas Alexandre Davy of the Dumas Pailleterie. Directed by Ladj Ly, the director of Misérables, DUMAS – Black Devil will be interpreted by Théo Christine (photo), the young actor who embodied JoeyStarr in the film Supreme In 2021. Around him, Omar Sy, Vincent Cassel or François Civil. Filming planned in 2026 for a release in 2024.

This project which will be presented at the film market, during the 78ᵉ Cannes Film Festival, will be a free adaptation of the comic strip The first Dumaspublished in 2022 at Glénat. Its authors, Salva Rubio and Ruben del Rincón, highlight an unknown character in the history of France. Born March 25, 1762 in Santo Domingo, Thomas is the son of Alexandre Antoine Davy de la Pailleterie, a Norman nobleman who had four children with a black slave. Before returning to France in 1774, the latter will sell his four children as a slaves, before buying one of them and bringing her back to metropolitan France under the pseudonym of Thomas Retoré.

The genesis of “three musketeers”?

Placed in boarding, the teenager receives the education of a young nobleman, until the day he crosses the road to the knight of Saint-George. Métis like him, this fencing teacher will then become his mentor. After an argument with his father, Thomas joined the army by simply called Dumas. Thread by needle, he will revolve the ladder until becoming the first black general of the French army, thanks to his impressive physical skills and an innate gift for the strategy.

The nickname “black devil” would have been given to him by the Austrian army. In 1797, on the Klausen bridge in Tyrol, Thomas Dumas would have contained the opposing cavalry alone, wiping out and injuries, before the arrival of the French troops. It was during his years in the army that he met four young commoner non-commissioned officers, in love with revolutionary ideals, who will later inspire his son Alexandre the characters of his fireworm The three musketeers.

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During the Egyptian campaign at the turn of the 19th century, Thomas Dumas challenged Napoleon’s orders and decided to return to France. Along the way, he was taken prisoner and held two years by the government of Naples, allied with Austria. Released in 1801, he returned to France, very weakened. Bonaparte, who did not forgive him for her insubordination, retired him on September 13, 1802, during the consulate. He died four years later, in the most total destitution, fell into the forgotten of history.