Laurent de Funès was the guest of 8/9 for his show Two Funes. He mentions in particular the difficulty of having such a name as an actor, the gaze of the public and professionals, and his connection with his grandfather Louis de Funès.
Despite a striking physical resemblance, the journey into the profession has not always been easy for Laurent de Funès.
“This name can be scary, it’s too big. It does not scare the public, but some professionals. I made a film that was screened in Hollywood, an animated film where I was the only real character, people were dying of laughter in the theater because they didn’t know Funès“, he explains. But “when I sent application letters to have an agent, I gave my name and very quickly they hung up.“
I have my personality, I can play very differently.
Difficulties that he may have encountered even within his own family. “It’s a desire I’ve had since I was a child, and I was restrained from it“, confides Laurent de Funès. So much so that he ended up doing another job for 25 years as an advertiser, before returning to his first desire.
“I told myself that I wanted to do things differently, I wanted to be Laurent. And Laurent is of course a form of heritage, but also another energy. I can go much further in madness“, explains Laurent de Funès.
A madness that you will be able to discover on stage soon, notably at the Cabaret de l’Enclos in Verviers on November 24, at La Nef in Namur on the 27th, before other Belgian dates which should be added.
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