In the press release provided by the M6 channel in August, it was only stipulated that the couple Louise and Jalil would also disappear from the series “Scénes de Ménage”, after that of Gilbert and Christine. Officially, M6 had mentioned a departure “by mutual agreement” with the actors Claudia Mongumu and Ryad Baxx and a precisely favorable situation, the television channel having “ decided to make editorial changes to Scènes de ménages by reducing the number of couples in the series “All without “anger” assured M6 to TV Mag, without however giving the actors a chance to speak.
In fact, an investigation by the investigative website Mediapart reveals a less shiny reality. According to the information on the website, the actors first learned overnight that they had to leave the series, while they expected to stay there for a decade – this is generally the length of time a couple spends in “Scènes de Ménage”. A producer from Kabo Family and the director of fiction for the M6 group, Quentin de Revel, allegedly explained to them during a meeting, the recordings of which were obtained by Mediapart, that the couple of the two actors “ does not tell something universal enough” and that viewers did not identify with them. Hence a drop in audiences.
Then, language elements were allegedly provided to the actors, under pressure from an ongoing investigation by Le Parisien. The actors were to say in a press release: “ We had a lot of fun (…) and are aware of how lucky we were to enter the lives and hearts of viewers, we can read. Today, however, we have decided to stop the series to work on other projects. What they didn’t want to do.
“None of us are white”
For actress Claudia Mongumu, this argument of universal representation hides a racist undertone. Not only are none of us white, but our backgrounds mean that we have to play scenes, at family gatherings for example, with several black and Arab actors. And that may be a lot for a network that thinks that not being white means not being universal.” she told Mediapart. Which is denied by M6 management. Nevertheless, the couple did not appear in most of the trailers and their excerpts were rarely broadcast on social networks, notes Claudia Mongumu. From there, “ How could the audience become attached to our characters? she asks, while her agency had already reported this difference in treatment to the channel.
In its defense, M6 announces the arrival of a “racialized” actor and recalls that the couple formed by Audrey Lamy and Loup-Denis Elion had lasted a long time in the series. Except that it was a mixed couple, notes Claudia Mongumu: “ With an exclusively racialized couple, the narrative is not at all the same.”
Following the Mediapart investigation, the television channel M6 expressed its “consternation” in a press release, regarding the ” “The implications are shameful and slanderous” detailed in the article. “ In 3 years of Scènes de Ménages, Claudia Mongumu and Ryad Baxx have played in nearly 1100 sequences of the series, which shows M6’s involvement in the visibility of this couple and the importance that was given to them. (…) The couple unfortunately did not have the expected success with viewers, we assume as broadcaster and producer our responsibility for the writing of the situations or the staging. (…) There was never any desire to ‘invisibilize’. (…) As mentioned when announcing their departure, M6 and Kabo wish to continue to offer projects to Claudia Mongumu and Ryad Baxx. Claudia Mongumu will notably have a role in the series Clean that we have just filmed. Ryad Baxx has a meeting with the channel scheduled for next week. To imply that M6 did not wish to support the couple played by Claudia Mongumu and Ryad Baxx for racial reasons is therefore completely false. (…)”,regulates the television channel.
For now, fans of the series have not yet seen any changes. The episodes having already been filmed, the couple of Louise and Jalil will be present until the start of the 2025 school year.
