Four years after comedians including Louis-Jose Haut and Martin Petit were accused of plagiarism, Gad Elmaleh will return to Quebec on Sunday. He will end the journey Besides, His sixth show, in front of the sold-out Bell Center for months. In an exclusive interview, the famous comedian said, “I’m so excited about it.” The Register.
God Elmale has not spoken to the Quebec public or local media since the controversy four years ago. However, this case of comic plagiarism brought to light by a YouTube channel called CoffeeComic has created quite a stir at home.
Since then, the comedian has admitted to the French media that he “loans” to his partners, including Martin Matt and Patrick Hart. “I wouldn’t do it again, but I don’t regret it because I never engaged in malicious activity,” he told the newspaper. Parisian In the fall of 2019.
God Elmale regrets staying quiet here during these controversial months, admitting that he “should have been in conversation” and “could have managed things with less pride, to be perfectly honest”. Register From Paris, in a virtual interview.
“One of my mistakes is that I should have had a conversation with the Quebecers sooner, shared my feelings sooner, expressed my version of the facts more politely,” notes the comedian, who is fond of Francophonie and the. America.
However, the 51-year-old comedian judges that the crisis in Quebec has taken on a “disproportionate scale.” Several comedians, including Mike Ward, attacked him particularly harshly.
“I found the attacks very outrageous,” he recalled. But above all, it is very violent. My family in Quebec called me to say: You must have done something very serious, it can’t be just that. […] To my surprise, it didn’t stop. It was repetitive and, after all, conversation was impossible.
Unleash your creativity
“What’s important now is what I got out of it,” says Kate Elmale today, who, four years later, can recognize that the crisis was good. “Those scenes gave me a lot,” he said.
It was only after the controversy that God Elmale gave birth to his sixth show. ByThe A one man show The “closest” of his career. He has also produced his second film in which he plays the title role. is titled stay a while The film, soon to be released in Quebec, chronicles his religious identity crisis. These “very personal” projects take him out of his “comfort zone”.
“Anyway, I wonder if this episode [d’accusations de plagiat] I wasn’t stifled in my creativity, and I wasn’t forced to do things in a singular way that couldn’t be compared to anyone else. What happens in the show, when I analyze every word, of which we can not imagine that what is happening in the show, it is borrowed. Unknowingly, it pushed me to redefine myself, to be unique, to be bold in my creativity. I will not go so far as to thank them [ceux qui l’ont dénoncé], but anyway, in the end, it was worth it! Analyzing with a smile.
Public at the meeting
Faced with a media storm that prompted him to abandon his career in Quebec, Gad Elmaleh, whose international career soon resumed its swing, responded that he was afraid of the public’s “dislike”.
But the Quebec public has spoken: With no promotion, tickets to the Bell Center sold out in droves. “When my producer told me we were sold out, that was the best response I could have asked for. I’m very grateful. […] I guess the audience will decide. In this moment of weakness, I had no response from the audience, I questioned, I only doubted. But today, the public’s enthusiasm is an affection.
“And the Bell Center is symbolic to me,” he adds. I saw stars there that I admired. I started my career on December 10, 1994 in front of 20 people at the Just for Laughs Museum Cabaret in Montreal. To come back after 27 years, Sold At the Bell Center, it’s a source of pride and great, great joy.
Laughter is the best
Not diminishing what he has done in the past, God Elmaleh is facing plagiarism charges for his show Sunday evening at the Bell Center. There was no way for him to avoid the matter.
“I’m going to be happy to talk about it, very happy and excited,” he insists, laughing. “I don’t do it much in shows anymore, but there, in Quebec, I’m going to have fun with it because it made such an impression and was so destabilizing. I put it on my I also do it for personal pleasure!
In addition to this controversial subject, Gad Elmaleh talks intimately about celebrity, his celibacy at 51, his American adventure and religion. At the end of his tour, he will return to the club comedy circuit for a new show. And, of course, he wants to continue to maintain this link with Quebecers that is so valuable to him.
“I can’t wait for Saturday to come and I want to sit down and talk to the public.”
Some thoughts
“I was very moved to find myself with the people of Quebec. »
“The Bell Center is an icon for me. I saw the stars I admired there. I started my career in Montreal on December 10, 1994 at the Cabaret du Musée Juste pour rire in front of 20 people. I’m back 27 years later. Sold At the Bell Center, it’s a source of pride and great, great joy. »
“It’s easy to talk about it in retrospect. I wanted this same peace four years ago. It took what I consider a disproportionate amount. »
“I can’t wait for Saturday to come and I want to sit down and talk to the public.”
“It’s a show that’s very close to me in the way I approach subjects. I put myself in the position of a bitch, a guy who’s struggling, who’s struggling. »
– God Elmaleh
God Elmaleh will perform at the Bell Center on Sunday.
