Christian Clavier

Christian Jean-Marie Clavier (; born 6 May 1952) is a French actor, screenwriter, film producer and director. A co-founder of Le Splendid in the 1970s, a Parisian café-théâtre company which soon garnered success, he became widely popular after starring in two hit comedy series: Patrice Leconte's Les Bronzés and Jean-Marie Poiré's Les Visiteurs.

Clavier later furthered his popularity by taking the role of Asterix in screen adaptations of the renowned comic books by Albert Uderzo and René Goscinny. In 2023, President Emmanuel Macron saluted Clavier's work, stating: "You have been all the faces of the families of France, the infatuated son-in-law, the bewildered uncle, the pretentious cousin, the jealous husband, the cantankerous father. We have grown and aged with you and our children will grow and age with you".

He is the brother of director Stéphane Clavier.

Life and career After his high class studies at the Neuilly Lycée Pasteur (he is often mistakenly claimed to have studied at Institut d'Études Politiques de Paris (Sciences Po), which he never attended. ) he started his actor career with the comedic theater troupe Splendid, which had hits with films like Les Bronzés font du ski and Le Père Noël est une ordure.

His most notable success without the Splendid group, and by far his biggest hit to date, was in the 1993 film les Visiteurs, where he played a character known as Jacquouille la Fripouille; the character's cry of "Okkkayyy!!" became a popular exclamation after the movie's success.

After les Visiteurs he was a star, participating in big-budget films like Astérix et Obélix contre César, Astérix & Obélix: Mission Cléopâtre, and the sequel and remake of Visiteurs. He also played several dramatic roles on television, including M. Thénardier in Les Misérables (2000 television version) and Napoléon in a biographical television film. In 2018, he returned to the character of Asterix, this time by providing the character's voice in the animated film Asterix: The Secret of the Magic Potion. Succeeding the character's original voice actor, Roger Carel, it was his first role in an animated movie.

Clavier has played in notable duos with: Jean Reno in les Visiteurs (the Visitors) and the US remake, Just Visiting, L'Opération Corned-Beef and L'Enquête Corse (The Corsican investigation). Gérard Depardieu in Astérix et Obélix (Asterix and Obelix) and Les anges gardiens.

He also runs a production company, Ouille Production.

He was made Chevalier (Knight) of the Ordre national du Mérite on 13 June 1998, He was made Chevalier (Knight) of the Légion d'honneur in 2008.

He is a friend of former French président Nicolas Sarkozy, and in 2012 emigrated to the United Kingdom. He denies this was as a result of Francois Hollande's punitive tax policy.

In April 2025, he told Brut that the use of AI in cinema continues the tradition of early visual effects pioneered by Georges Méliès, saying that "cinema was already magical when it began."

Filmography

Actor

Producer Les Visiteurs 2 : Les Couloirs du temps (1998) Les Visiteurs en Amérique (2001) Le Cœur sur la main (2001) Lovely Rita, sainte patronne des cas désespérés (2003)

Box-office Movies starring Christian Clavier with more than a million of admissions in France.

FilmsDirectorYearFrance (entries)1 Asterix & Obelix: Mission Cleopatra Alain Chabat 2002 2 Les Visiteurs Jean-Marie Poiré 1993 3 Serial (Bad) Weddings Philippe de Chauveron 2014 4 Les Bronzés 3: Amis pour la vie Patrice Leconte 2006 5 Asterix & Obelix Take On Caesar Claude Zidi 1999 6 The Visitors II: The Corridors of Time Jean-Marie Poiré (2) 1998 7 Les Anges gardiens Jean-Marie Poiré (3) 1995 8 Papy fait de la résistance Jean-Marie Poiré (4) 1983 9 Les profs Pierre-François Martin-Laval 2013 10 L'Enquête Corse Alain Berbérian 2004 11 Les Bronzés Patrice Leconte (2) 1978 12 La Vengeance d'une blonde Jeannot Szwarc 1994 13 Grosse fatigue Michel Blanc 1994 14 Le Père Noël est une ordure Jean-Marie Poiré (5) 1982 15 Les Bronzés font du ski Patrice Leconte (3) 1979 16 La Soif de l'or Gérard Oury 1993 17 L'opération Corned Beef Jean-Marie Poiré (6) 1991 18 Le prix à payer Alexandra Leclère 2007 19 Twist again à Moscou Jean-Marie Poiré (7) 1986 20 Just Visiting Jean-Marie Poiré (8) 2001 21 Let Joy Reign Supreme Bertrand Tavernier 1975 22 Je vais craquer!!! François Leterrier 1980 23 Do Not Disturb Patrice Leconte (4) 2014