On December 31, Arnaud (Arnaud Ducret) learns from his banker that he has one last chance to save the Passo Club, the nightclub created by his parents and which he now runs: if he pulls off a huge New Year's Eve year, he will thus be able to perpetuate his club… This is the beginning of Panic at 31 (our opinion), sketch TV film imagined by the Arnaud Ducret / Tom Villa duo and broadcast from 9:10 p.m. this Monday, December 30, 2024 on TF1. A comedy in which Michèle Bernier, who will film the new season of The internand Isabelle Nanty, soon back with The Tuchesplay key roles. Télé-Loisirs met the actresses for a sincere interview, full of good humor and confidences…
Panic at 31 : “It amused me to play this couple with Lionnel Astier”Michèle Bernier explains why she agreed to play in the TV movie
Télé-Loisirs: How Arnaud Ducret and Tom Villa, who are at the origin of this project, presented you Panic at 31 ?
Michèle Bernier: Arnaud called me saying he would like me to join them. He was very warm and enthusiastic. It amused me to play this couple with Lionnel Astier. We had never worked together.
Isabelle Nanty : These are my favorites! I played four seasons of Munch with Tom, I love him! He is exquisite, kind, funny. Arnaud, I made both films The Teachers with him. He's one of the people I've laughed the most with in my life. And when it’s for a laugh with friends, I say yes!
At the end of Panic at 31, there is a blooper from the filming in which we see a lot of giggles. Are you prone to this uncontrollable reflex?
MB: Oh yes! But I'm pretty laughing anyway.
IN: Less now. I realized that it was wasting a lot of time, so I'm trying to be more focused. But the laughter is part of the jubilation of being together. It is also the celebration of vulnerability. It's not something we make.
The song Born to Be Alive, that we hear in fiction, is it part of your New Year's Eve playlist?
MB: It’s part of the playlist for so many events! [Elle rit.] She puts on the peach, everyone sings it. Meet Patrick Hernandez [le chanteur joue son propre rôle dans le téléfilm, ndlr] was wonderful!
IN: So, if I told you my December 31st…
Panic at 31 : “I fell asleep on a restaurant table around 11 p.m.…”Isabelle Nanty remembers her worst New Year's Eve!
Exactly, what does your New Year’s Eve party look like?
IN: This year, I'm not going to organize anything, I'll come back the same morning from abroad so I'll probably be tired. But anyway, I'm not very festive. I am allergic to alcohol, so there is a schedule beyond which I cannot go, since I am too out of step with the others. But sometimes I end the evening, empty the ashtrays, collect the bottles… I'm crazy about sorting! You can count on me to ensure that all trash cans are respected!
MB: It depends on the past year but, generally, it's an opportunity to be with friends. A lot of people don't like planned parties, but I like the idea of getting together and having fun.
This period is also the time to take stock of the past year or to hope for things for the next one?
MB: I'm not a balance sheet girl! The past year has been quite tumultuous around the world. I hope that whoever comes along will wipe some slates clean and move on to more pleasant things.
IN: The year 2025 promises to be so busy that I am now planning to do nothing in 2026. This will be my resolution. It is added to those that I have done every year for forty years and which I never maintain: lose weight, stop sugar, bread, butter, cheese and play sports.
Is it also a time when we think of those who are no longer here?
MB: I don't have to wait until the 31st to think about them. But yes, we especially miss these people in moments of joy.
IN: I don't just think about them at the end of the year. If I eat something like this, it makes me think of something. When I pass by a certain place, it makes me think of something. It's permanent.
Have you ever experienced a catastrophic 31?
MB: One December 31, I was playing at the theater and the person I was living with at the time had invited a bunch of people. When I came home, no one knew me and I didn't know anyone!
IN: A long time ago, I must have been in my twenties, I fell asleep on a restaurant table around 11 p.m. only to wake up at 5 a.m. The waiters were sweeping up, there was no one there!
