His name is displayed in large letters on the cut stone pediment of the old Salt Grenier. Outside, the crowd waits. And there he finally pushes the door, a colossus with a devastating smile, a wink here, a wave there. The kid from Square Auguste-Renoir is back.
Propelled by his Oscar for “Intouchables” in 2012, who became an international star thanks to the series “Lupin”, Omar Sy was in Trappes (Yvelines) on Saturday afternoon, for the inauguration of the cinema which is now named after him , in the town of his childhood. A surprise cleverly hatched by the municipality. Living in Los Angeles (United States), the actor himself only learned the news last month.
He is in front of the microphone on the small podium set up in front of the cinema. There are overjoyed kids, his loved ones, his wife, old friends. And even Jamel Debbouze, the other child of the country. With him, Omar Sy used the stages of Déclic theater, the legendary improvisation troupe of “Papy”, who also hid in the crowd.
“I love what this city has given me”
Omar Sy looks up at the fronton. “Seeing my name up there is… it’s something,” he said, visibly moved. It was here that he set foot in the cinema for the first time, with school, at the time when the theater was called “Jean Renoir” or the “Grenier à sel” for short. His first session “alone with friends” was there too. For Moonwalker (1988), with Michael Jackson. “Afterwards, we bought fried merguez in the street, because kebabs were not yet fashionable,” he jokes.
This historic building dating from the 16th century is the oldest in the city. Everyone will call it “Omar Sy cinema” tomorrow. “If it can take the young people of Trappes further, higher…,” comments the actor. With every step I take, you are with me. I love what this city has given me. »
Cultural awakening… Ali Rabeh, the mayor (Génération. s) of Trappes, had just made it the heart of his speech, behind the inauguration ribbon. In this city “so unfairly caricatured and criticized”, he insists that “access to culture is not a privilege for well-born people”.
That the price of tickets (4.30 euros) “will not increase by a cent” in this municipal cinema “frequented by all the children of the town since kindergarten”. “We do everything to open as many windows as possible on the world,” he summarizes, “to contradict the statistics, the destinies determined from the cradle. »
“Omar Sy lived the same childhood as us”
The city invested 1.5 million euros in renovating the cinema, with the aim of making it this “state-of-the-art facility” while preserving its architectural quality. A “small miracle”, after a year and a half of work. Why an “Omar-Sy” cinema? “This immense artist, a child of Trappes who never forgot where he came from” represents for the mayor “a beautiful incarnation of the city, its most beautiful allegory”.
Hajjar, a 19-year-old student who wants to become a lawyer, attended the inauguration. In front of the cinema, she says that Omar Sy’s success “gives hope”. “It’s an encouragement,” she summarizes. Omar Sy lived the same childhood as us, he was targeted by the same clichés. We too must succeed, to continue this lineage. »
Doumia, 18, a high school student at Henri-Matisse, doesn’t want to “give up anything” either. “Omar Sy is a Source of pride for us,” she explains. Next door, Théo, 19, studying biology at Versailles, came to see “this icon of the city”. “The fact that the cinema bears his name is an honor for him, but for us too,” he emphasizes. At the end of the day, in the brand new room, the actor took part in a long selfie session with the public.
“There is a piece of my history in this cinema room. But what I find most touching is that it is a public building, insisted Omar Sy after the inauguration, during an exchange with the press. His strong links with Trappes? “There is something magical about this city,” he assures. When I see a Trappist anywhere in the world, I feel like I’m meeting a brother. It’s real, it’s not something that we force, that someone dictated to us. It’s like that. »
