Didier Bourdon Reveals On-Set Struggles in Cult Comedy 30 Years Later!

In 1995, at the height of their fame, Les Inconnus created the comedy “The Three Brothers.” The movie was a phenomenal success, attracting 6.8 million viewers to theaters. Three decades later, Pascal Légitimus, Bernard Campan, and Didier Bourdon are still renowned for this iconic film.

In a recent interview with Ciné Télé Revue, published on July 24th (spotted by Télé Loisirs), Didier Bourdon opened up about the challenging shoot of “The Three Brothers.” It turns out, it wasn’t an easy experience for him!

At that time, Bourdon was dealing with cyclothymic disorder, a mood disturbance that is considered a milder, chronic form of bipolar disorder. Characterized by emotional highs and lows, even its moderate symptoms can disrupt daily life, relationships, work, or education.

A Challenging Shoot for Bourdon

Didier Bourdon struggled significantly with his condition during the filming of “The Three Brothers,” as he revealed to Ciné Télé Revue. “I was suffering even while shooting The Three Brothers. I would look at the footage in the evening and think to myself, ‘This is crap!'”, the 66-year-old actor remarked.

I would look at the footage in the evening and think to myself: This is crap!

“Then I’d listen to a bit of Sting, and think the same: ‘This is crap!’. That’s when I knew I wasn’t being objective, that it was my mood swinging,” he added. Fortunately, Didier Bourdon was reassured when the film was released, as it quickly became one of the biggest hits in French comedy with nearly 7 million tickets sold.

In 2014, Les Inconnus reunited for “The Three Brothers: The Return,” but the magic of the 90s had unfortunately faded. Bernard Campan acknowledged this last May, speaking on the podcast Coloscopie hosted by Laurent Baffie.

Bernard Campan’s Regrets

“Even though some people liked it, it’s okay to make mistakes. If Didier Bourdon were here, he’d say ‘No, no, we didn’t make a mistake, we made a great film, etc’. I think it’s fair to say we did the best we could and that we made a mistake. Or at least, in regards to the audience that was disappointed, we made a mistake,” lamented the actor.

Despite Bernard Campan’s reservations, the sequel still drew 2.2 million viewers 11 years ago, a respectable turnout indeed. Since then, fans have been waiting to see the comedic trio return to the big screen. They are expected to star together in a new comedy, written and directed by Riad Sattouf, though the project is not yet finalized.

A Comeback for Les Inconnus in Film?

Last June, Pascal Légitimus shared some updates about the project, currently titled “The Big Departure,” in an interview with Le Parisien. “The title might have changed. It’s not even in preparation; we haven’t signed our contracts yet. We are waiting for Riad Sattouf to finish writing. It was announced too soon,” he noted.

In an April 2024 interview with Clique, Bernard Campan explained that the film would be a “dystopia” set in France. “Climate change has occurred and it’s cold everywhere. Riad Sattouf has a very poetic, sharp, and humorous view of a future French society.”