French actor Michel Blanc, best known for his roles in Le Splendid's company comedies, including the 1978 cult classic Les Bronzés (French Fried Vacation) and its 1979 and 2006 sequels, died on October 4 at the age of 72 from a heart attack following anaphylactic shock, according to Agence France-Presse.
Michel Blanc, French actor and star of the hit film Les Bronzes, has died at age 72
A fixture in French cinema, his death was mourned by President Emmanuel Macron, who wrote on X: "He made us laugh and moved us to tears. A monument of French cinema, Michel Blanc is gone. Our thoughts are with his loved ones and his acting accomplices."
French Culture Minister Rachida Dati added in a statement: "This morning, his sadness is immense, as great as his talent. In front of the cameras of Bertrand Blier, Robert Altman or Pierre Schoeller, Michel Blanc astonished us with the variety of his acting, but also with his talents as a director with films such as "Marche à l'ombre" or "Grosse fatigue". Cinema, the world of culture and all French people will not forget him."
In addition to his memorable role as Jean-Claude Dusse in the satirical film Bronzés — which he co-wrote as part of the café-théâtre company he founded with his childhood friends Christian Clavier, Gérard Jugnot and Thierry Lhermitte (as well as Josiane Balasko and Marie-Anne Chazel) — he starred in L'Exercice de l'État (The Minister), the thriller drama for which he won a César Award for Best Supporting Actor, France's equivalent of an Oscar. In addition to his comedic roles, Blanc was known for his dramatic roles in 1989's Monsieur Hire and 2007's Les Témoins (The Witnesses), about a close-knit group of friends struck by the AIDS epidemic in 1980s Paris.
