End clap on one of the two film projects dedicated to Johnny Hallyday. Announced with great fanfare last year at the Cannes Film Festival, the biopic “Que je t'aime” by Jalil Lespert, with Matthias Schoenaerts in the title role, will ultimately not see the light of day. In any case, this is what Laura Smet assured in an interview with “Paris Match”. “There is only one left, Jalil Lespert's film will not be made” said the rocker's eldest daughter, putting an end to speculation.
“For me, what matters is that his memory is respected”
Initially, Jalil Lespert had planned to tell the story of the meeting between Johnny and Laeticia Hallyday in Miami in the 1990s, also addressing the couple's torments: anorexia, addiction to alcohol and cocaine, as well as their financial problems. But this project, which would have lifted the veil on the darkest facets of Taulier's life, will remain in the drawers.
This withdrawal leaves the way clear for the biopic carried by Cédric Jimenez, director of “Bac Nord” and “Novembre”. This second film, supervised by Laeticia Hallyday, should be released on December 8, 2027, on the occasion of the tenth anniversary of the death of Johnny Hallyday. Raphaël Quenard, spotted by the singer's widow in “Yannick” by Quentin Dupieux, will play the idol of young people. “I was amazed by his acting, his looks, his way of occupying space, of speaking, his spontaneity, his almost animal charisma… I said to myself that if an actor could play Johnny in the cinema, it would be was he“, explained Laeticia Hallyday in the columns of “Paris Match”. For her part, Laura Smet indicated having had contact with the film team. “We're going to see each other“, she clarified.
ALSO READ: “I was amazed by his performance”: Laeticia Hallyday chooses Raphaël Quenard to play Johnny in the cinema
Invited on the set of “C à vous” in mid-November, Hugo Sélignac, the film's producer, announced that the 33-year-old actor will perform the star's songs himself. “He's going to sing. I hope he will have the same demands as Tahar Rahim for Charles Aznavour, but he will sing” he explained, referring to the impressive performance of the actor who lends his features and voice to the famous singer in the biopic “Monsieur Aznavour”. In this film, a young Johnny Hallyday also plays a role. appearance, played by Victor Meutelet.
As for the moral rights to her father's work, Laura Smet confides: “It's such a mess that I wouldn't know how to answer this question. But the people who manage his work have the elegance to call me when they release something. Some even have to consult me to use some of his songs, what matters is that his work is in the most beautiful stuff possible and that his memory is respected.“
