origins, career, companions… what you need to know about the actor

If some already knew him for his sketches with Olivier Baroux on the radio then on television and his numerous Jean-Michels, Kad Merad proved that he was not just a joker with his (second) role in “Les Choristes » (2004). Since then, he has had one success after another. It's impossible not to mention “Bienvenue chez les Ch'tis” (2008), by Dany Boon, and its 20 million entries, or the phenomenon series “Baron Noir” (2016-2020). Kad Merad easily goes from postal worker transferred to the other end of France to unscrupulous politician to lawyer in the middle of a crisis (“Finally”, by Claude Lelouch, released Wednesday November 13, 2024). “Do you see me as a superhero Bruce Willis? Or as a Brad Pitt heartthrob? “, he asked in an interview with “Paris Match” in 2008. “No, more seriously, I’m just very human. An Everyman who doesn't take himself seriously. And people like me because I have something that resembles them. » Portrait.

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What is Kad Merad's real name?

Kad Merad was born in 1964, in Sidi Bel Abbès, Algeria.of a father of Algerian origin, Mohamed Merad – who began to call himself Rémi upon his arrival in France -, and of a French mother, Jeannine Béguin. “We never really lived there, even though I was born there. My parents lived there for two years,” he explained in an interview with “So Film” in 2018. “Besides, my father always says that he is French while I say that he is Algerian, it’s war between us… […] He arrived in France through the French army. When there was the Algerian war, my father had in the meantime met my mother, who is from Berry and a hairdresser. So after the war, they wanted to come to Algeria to set up a hairdressing salon, but it was too early. For my mother, it was hell… I was born during those two years. » His parents returned to France, to Balbigny, in the Loire, before moving to Ris-Orangis, in Essonne, when Kad Merad was ten years old.

“Afterwards, we went back [en Algérie, ndlr] for the summer holidays: next to Tlemcen, in a village called Ouled Mimoun, or Lamoricière during the French presence. A small village where my grandparents had a farm, and where we spent three weeks every summer. […] My grandmother did not speak French. So, we communicated through looks, smiles, kisses…” said Kaddour Merad, real name. “I wanted to change my name when my first role was Ahled Ben Mabrouk in the series “Tribunal”: it didn't bother me to only do Arab roles because my name is Kaddour Merad, except that there weren't many North African roles at the time. Playing Mr. Everyman when your name is Mohamed didn't work. Tahar Rahim or Sami Bouajila, they managed to get away with it but they kept their name! Me, I freaked out, and I considered taking my mother's name, Béguin, and calling myself François Béguin. » It was when he started on the radio that he changed Kaddour for Kad.

What studies did Kad Merad do?

Kad Merad did not get his baccalaureate. He left high school in second year, after repeating a year, and enrolled in a BEP in commerce. After obtaining his diploma, he started going door to door to “sell an encyclopedia that cost 3,000 francs”. Then he worked at Club Méditerranée with the Gigolo Brothers group. Work for which he was discharged from military service. “For me, it was either that or a year of touring at Club Med with my orchestra, as a drummer,” he confided, still to “So Film”. And to explain how he had managed to be considered unfit for the army: “So there my friend, this is your best role: I passed for a sick person, for a madman, by remaining prostrate in the courtyard, without speaking to anyone, so that the guy would think that I wasn't suitable. That's how I was reformed P4, it's terrible huh? » At Club Med, he did his first scenes. “ It’s a wonderful school… fun […]. I was just a drummer but as I had this thing with the stage and at Club Med you have theaters with backstage, make-up, a stage manager… It's not trestles, really. »

How did Kad Merad meet Olivier Baroux?

Building on his experience on the stages of Club Med, Kad Merad tried his hand at theater upon his return. Then, in 1991, he landed on Oüi FM radio, at the same time as Olivier Baroux. The first covered the slot from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., after the second who hosted the morning show from 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. When they transmitted the antenna to each other, they couldn't help but joke and improvise. Result: the management of the station offered them the opportunity to host a show together, “Rock'n'Roll Circus”, from 1992. For six seasons, they did a series of sketches. And they were noticed by Jean-Luc Delarue. “I saw what you were doing. I'm looking for two comedians for a show, would you like to be one? », suggested the producer. Kad Merad and Olivier Baroux first played in “The Last 30 Minutes” on France 2, then from 1999 they hosted “La Grosse Emission” on Comédie. Enough to allow them to make themselves known. Two, but not a duo. “ We are two solos who found each other well “, they said in unison at “Paris Match” in 2023.

What films has Kad Merad starred in?

It was each on their own, without ever straying too far, that they continued: Kad Merad – who had already made a few appearances in the cinema – as an actor, Olivier Baroux as screenwriter and director. Enough to allow them to meet regularly on projects. “It’s not a need, it’s an obligation,” they assured, still on “Paris Match”. And Kad Merad confides: “Of all the people I have met, he is the person I most want to work with. »

In the cinema, Kad Merad first stood out in “Les choristes” (2004), by Christophe Barratier. After having distinguished himself in several comedies – “Iznogoud” (2005), “A ticket to space” (2006) – he proved that he was not just a comic actor with the film “I will Well, don’t worry” (2006), by Philippe Lioret. Film which allowed him to win the César for Best Supporting Actor. The proposals then multiplied. And the immense success of “Bienvenue chez les Ch'tis” (2008), by Dany Boon, ended up making him a leading actor.

« I didn't learn this profession by telling myself that I wanted to be a comedian, but an actor. HAS At school, I played Scapin, yes, but also Alceste or Pyrrhus. Then I started in comedy, with Olivier Baroux, and I became popular,” summarized Kad Merad in an interview with “Paris Match” in 2017. Since then, he has moved from comedy to drama, from cinema to TV, and it's always a success. However, he did not rest on his laurels. He managed to renew himself. “I think I was mostly lucky. Projects like “Baron Noir” [2016-2020] arrived at a time when I was perhaps starting to tire. When my agent told me that I was being offered the lead role in a political series on Canal+, I was as surprised as everyone else. I took tests. And, suddenly, like after my César, people became more respectful of my work. I'm not going to say that I don't enjoy it. Even if “Baron Noir” and “Bienvenue chez les Ch'tis” require the same desire and the same passion. »

Who is Kad Merad's first companion?

It was when he was starting out in the theater, in the early 1990s, that Kad Merad met Emmanuelle Cosso. “It was enough for me to see him during a rehearsal of “Ruy Blas” by Victor Hugo, he was playing the scene where Don César empties a bag of gold coins. And I broke down…” the writer confided to “Paris Match” in 2008. And the actor revealed: “I slipped a sweet word into his pocket: “I think of you like the blind in the day.” It's beautiful, isn't it? Well, I admit, I borrowed this verse from Victor Hugo. I stole Ruy Blas' declaration from the queen. The beautiful Emmanuelle, queen of hearts of Ruy Blas, that does it, right? » In any case, it worked. “ At the time, I was more of a fatalistic single person. The style of guy not to invest in a relationship. The woman of my life, for me, was a fantasy. I didn't imagine that love would fall on my face so early, so suddenly and so obviously. » Kad Merad and Emmanuelle Cosso spent 20 years together, between 1992 and 2012, and they had a son, Kalil, born in 2004which owes its first name to the Lebanese poet Khalil Gibran. “It was Emmanuelle who made me read it and we both, without knowing it, remembered the same passage: “You can strive to be like your children, but do not try to make them like you. YOU”. »

Does Kad Merad have children with Julia Vignali?

After his separation from Emmanuelle Cosso, Kad Merad met Julia Vignali – whom he had spotted in “Les Mères”, which she presented at the time. A meeting that could have taken place much earlier. “In 2000, I passed a casting call to become an announcer on the Comedy channel. It was the time when Kad and Olivier Baroux were officiating in “La Grosse Émission”. I was not accepted. Total failure,” she explained to “Télé 7 Jours” in 2019. And added: “Morality: when two people have to meet, they always end up getting there. » It was finally on the set of “C à vous” that they saw each other for the first time in real life. “ It was February 17, 2014. It's the first time I've done live television. I host “C à vous” because at the time Anne-Sophie Lapix was taking a vacation. I replaced it exceptionally. That day, my guests are Alice Paul, Dany Boon and Kad Merad,” said Julia Vignali on the set of “Vivement Dimanche”. And it was on this occasion that Kad Merad attempted a rapprochement: “I won’t say afterwards how it went,” he declared. Since then, they have formed a pretty blended familywith Kalil, Kad Merad's son, and Luigi, Julia Vignali's son, born from her previous relationship. They got married in 2022, in Saône-et-Loire.