21 Years Ago: Dive Into the Behind-the-Scenes Magic of Cult Classic Kaamelott with Alexandre Astier!

In 2005, as Alexandre Astier was preparing for the second season of Kaamelott, a team from the M6 channel visited the series’ filming locations, with Astier himself providing a tour of the sets!

Astier walked through a stone castle, unveiling the backstage areas of several rooms well-known to fans of the show.

The Kaamelott Filming Studio

Among these was the room used for shooting the Round Table meetings, as well as the corridor where scenes involving nocturnal drumming at King Arthur’s door were filmed. These seemingly trivial “door scenes” led to the iconic phrase “On en a gros!”, which has become legendary.

In the interview, Astier also discussed the origins of Kaamelott, which started as a successful short film completed in 2002, followed by additional short episodes filmed in 2003 and presented to M6 as a replacement for Caméra Café, another short-format show from M6 that had just ended.

A ‘De Funès-esque’ Approach

In rare footage, Astier revealed his “recipe” for writing the character of the King of Kaamelott in his desperate quest for the Grail:

“Not only does Arthur resemble the modern-day Arthur, but he often mirrors many other characters I’ve written for theater or elsewhere, who are quick and impatient. These are quick characters often confronted by an environment that is less so than they are.”

“It’s a method, in all modesty, that is somewhat ‘De Funès-esque’… The way Arthur expresses himself and handles situations is as this quick and impatient Arthur, frustrated by everything around him that doesn’t work and is too slow.”

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