From “Visitors” to “Santa Claus is trash”: here are 5 cult comedies with Christian Clavier

In his 50-year career, actor Christian Clavier has multiplied his box office successes by playing several iconic characters of French cinema. On the occasion of the release of the film Never without my therapist, in theaters on December 25, here are 5 of his most notable roles in comedies:

The Bronzed (1978)

It is this cult comedy by Patrice Leconte which revealed to the general public the Splendid troupe, this legendary collective of actors composed of Christian Clavier, Thierry Lhermitte, Josiane Balasko, Gérard Jugnot, Marie-Anne Chazel and the late Michel Blanc. The film relates the adventures of a group of French people on vacation in a Club Med in Ivory Coast. The Splendid troupe will launch a second film a year later, just as tasty, Tanned people go skiingfollowed by the disappointing The Bronzed 3, in 2006.

Santa Claus is trash (1982)

An essential classic of the holiday season, this comedy by Jean-Marie Poiré released in 1982 is an adaptation of the play of the same title that the Splendid troupe created on stage three years earlier. Christian Clavier plays Katia, a transvestite in the midst of depression who arrives in a call center for people in distress on Christmas Eve.

Visitors (1993)

It’s difficult to forget Jacquouille la Fripouille played by Christian Clavier in this comedy by Jean-Marie Poiré which enjoyed immense success in theaters in France but also in Quebec. Let’s recall the story: a knight from the Middle Ages (Jean Reno) and his servant Jacquouille (Christian Clavier) are magically projected to the 20th century where they meet their descendants. Remaining to this day one of the most popular French comedies in the history of French cinema, Visitors was the subject of two sequels, released in 1998 and 2016.

Asterix and Obelix: Mission Cleopatra (2002)

Christian Clavier has played the role of Asterix twice in the cinema but it is his performance in the delirious and irreverent comedy Cleopatra Mission by Alain Chabat that we remember above all. Energetic as can be, Clavier formed a solid duo with Gérard Depardieu in the costume of Obélix.

What have we done to the Good Lord? (2014)

In this comedy by Philippe de Chauveron, Christian Clavier slips into the skin of a Catholic and Gaullist bourgeois who will have to accept seeing his four daughters marry men of diverse origins and religions. A huge popular success, the film inspired two sequels, released in 2019 and 2021 respectively.