Camping on TF1: Why Gérard Lanvin Stayed Upset with Franck Dubosc for 10 Years After the Film?

Broadcast tonight on TF1, Camping was a massive success in France, but it caused a 10-year rift between Franck Dubosc and Gérard Lanvin!

In 2006, Camping hit the French theaters, attracting 5.4 million viewers and quickly becoming a true phenomenon. Driven by Franck Dubosc's antics as Patrick Chirac, a colorful camper, the comedy spawned a cult trilogy directed by Fabien Onteniente.

Gérard Lanvin Upset

However, it has not escaped anyone that Gérard Lanvin never agreed to return to the franchise in the role of Michel Saint-Josse. Yet, his rivalry with Dubosc was what made the first installment so engaging, as the two characters were diametrically opposed.

Gérard Lanvin did not wish to hear about the sequels to Camping due to a falling out with the actor playing Patrick Chirac, as he mentioned to us in 2007: "I helped Franck Dubosc once, I won't do it a second time, especially with all the good things he said about us," the actor stated.

I helped Franck Dubosc once, I won't do it a second time, especially with all the good things he said about us.

"It's Franck Dubosc's film, Camping, right? Yet I felt like I had acted in it. I think a partner has the obligation to talk about the pleasure they had interacting with the person opposite. I don't have much to do next to someone who couldn't understand the imperative and essential presence of the other," reacted Lanvin, very bitter.

He notably laments that Franck Dubosc, in his eyes, took all the credit for the film, while he considers he played a crucial role in creating his character as well as in the evolution of the script, far exceeding what was originally planned, even though the comedy was inspired by a sketch by Franck Dubosc.

Pathé

Are We Not Expecting Gérard?

"Camping only works because I found the role. The initial subject was already chosen, but I was the one who came up with the idea of my character, I was the one who thought of his old car breaking down next to a campsite, and I was the one who came up with the idea of a character who observes the other in his madness," emphasized Gérard Lanvin.

"I don't see why I would return to a campsite after having played a man who hates camping. I would have to play a fool, but that wasn't my role; it's Franck Dubosc's role," he ironically concluded.

These professional tensions led to a deep rift between the two actors, who did not speak to each other for nearly 10 years. It wasn't until 2015 and the filming of Pension Complète, a remake of La Cuisine au Beurre (1963) directed by Florent Siri, that a reconciliation began to take shape.

Lanvin and Dubosc take on the roles once played by Bourvil and Fernandel and embody, not without irony, two characters once again in conflict. However, this reunion did not have the desired effect. The film was a commercial and artistic failure. In an interview for BFMTV in 2020, Gérard Lanvin did not mince his words.

"It was a business film. We got screwed. You have to accept it. We move on. You don't go from 6 million admissions of Camping to 200,000 admissions just like that. There has to be complete nullity surrounding the film." The atmosphere...

AlloCiné offers more than 40 articles daily covering cinema and series news, interviews, streaming recommendations, quirky anecdotes, and cinephile insights about your favorite films and series.