The comedian, star of the hit trilogy Lost bulletis back this Friday on Netflix with A.K.A.an action thriller he had dreamed of shooting for twenty years.
Formerly known for his comedic roles in Kaamelott Or Hero Corp, Alban Lenoir has recently become, at the age of 40, the new darling of French action cinema. A childhood dream which he accessed thanks to Netflix, where he was a hit with the two parts of Lost bulletmuscular thrillers by Guillaume Pierret, acclaimed for the quality and inventiveness of their chases and fight scenes.
New face of an action cinema made in France reinvigorated thanks to streaming, Alban Lenoir even made his return at the beginning of the month in the top 10 of Netflix with The Interventiona film about the birth of the GIGN which had attracted only 63,581 spectators when it was released in cinemas in 2019. Building on this success, it does it again with A.K.A.which is released this Friday in 193 countries (and has been dubbed into 13 languages and subtitled in 35).
A.K.A. follows Adam Franco, undercover agent sent on the most difficult missions. As part of his new mission, he must join a mafia organization in France to thwart an imminent terrorist attack in the capital. Influenced by Korean thrillers and Jason Bournethis film co-written by Alban Lenoir and directed by Morgan S. Dalibert (the cinematographer of Lost bullet) was imagined in reality 20 years ago.
“He had come without knowing his text”
“The starting point is shooter by Antoine Fuqua, with Mark Wahlberg”, remembers Morgan S. Dalibert. “It’s not a great film, but when we saw it, we loved its crazy efficiency, with this background of political conspiracy. We wanted to make a film like that, with also a character like the hero of A Bittersweet Life [un polar coréen phare des années 2000, NDLR]a guy a little empty of everything.”
“A Bittersweet Life was our absolute reference with I Saw The Devil“, Acquires Alban Lenoir. “Without comparing A.K.A. to this type of film, we had in reference not their aesthetics, but this capacity which they have to transcend simple stories with films which mark you by their realism, their game, their direction. There was this desire to make more of an action thriller than a pure action film.”
Alban Lenoir and Morgan S. Dalibert met in 2004, during a test for an independent film, New world. “The only person who didn’t want me was him!”, remembers Alban Lenoir. “He also came without knowing his text, instead he gave us a sketch by Albert Dupontel and couldn’t speak a word of English when it was necessary for the role. Obviously, we took him. “, laughs the director.
From there was born “an unfailing and limitless friendship” between the two men, united for 19 years by this very personal project ofA.K.A.. Initially imagined as a series, of which they were able to carry out the pilot “in a completely independent way”, A.K.A. evolved into a feature film, until the day when Netflix validated the project after the success of Lost bullet.
“Little Old Body”
Alban Lenoir, who has been training in martial arts for years, and has been a stuntman for the cinema, performs his own stunts himself. He also practices a lot to look as impressive as possible on screen. “It hurts his little old body!”, mocks Morgan S. Dalibert. “But he’s a little crazy. He wants the scene to be perfect so much that he asks to redo the scene several times!”
“Having dreamed your life and living your dreams is more difficult than you think,” concedes Alban Lenoir. “It’s a hell of a discipline to have. There’s only one role that’s going to give me that motivation and that discipline.”
In order to clearly distinguish in the mind of the public his character asA.K.A. from that of Lost bullet, the actor gained 20 kilos of muscles. “We had to talk to Netflix about it, reassure them that Lino wouldn’t be on screen. We wanted to have a dangerous character.” The 20 kilos completely transformed him: “It had become a bull”, slips the scenario writer. “I didn’t even recognize him anymore.”
Not available for “Fast & Furious X”
Thanks to the success of Lost bullet, Hollywood begins to make eyes at him. Contacted to play in Fast & Furious X, Alban Lenoir was forced to decline the offer. “I was not available,” he laments. “I preferred to shoot A.K.A.which was our dream with Morgan!” But everything was done to find a solution and guarantee the presence of the actor on the American blockbuster, where he was to play the role of a “Frenchie”.
“Even if Fast & Furious X ended the day before the start of filmingA.K.A.it was too risky”, insists Alban Lenoir. “I had to do a lot of action [sur Fast] and there is this concern for injuries and in no way did I want to endanger this shoot that we had been waiting for 15 years.
Waiting for the shooting Lost ball 3currently in writing, Alban Lenoir has just finished filming a remake of wages of fear with Franck Gastambide, Ana Girardot and Fianso. The film is signed Julien Leclerc, creator of the series Robbers. “It should be very cool. The images are crazy,” warns Alban Lenoir. “There is now a demand and an expectation from the French public for these films.”
Disney+ took notice and enlisted him for Antigang: the next generation, following a thriller released in cinemas in 2015. “It’s going to be good, it’s coming out at the start of the school year,” enthuses Alban Lenoir. “We’re in something solar. It’s an action comedy. It’s meant to be funny and it is.” “We have to see him again in comedies!” Rejoices Morgan S. Dalibert. “A bit wacky comedy, a bit silly. It’s been too long.”
