Nothing to declare: what big favor did Benoit Poelvoorde do to Dany Boon?

Released in cinemas in 2011,the comedy Nothing to reportdirected by Dany Boon, will be rebroadcast on Sunday May 22, 2022, from 9:05 p.m. on TF1. Worn by Dany Boon and Benoit Poelvoorde, this feature film takes place mainly on the Franco-Belgian border. It features the character of Ruben Vandevoorde, embodied on screen by Benoît Poelvoorde. Francophobic from father to son and an overzealous Belgian customs officer, he learned with despair of the signing of the Single Act in 1986. The free movement of goods and people across borders between European countries puts an end to fixed customs formalities, replaced by flying customs.

Seven years later, in 1993, the Maastricht Treaty leads to the closure of juxtaposed control offices. Ruben’s colleagues and their French counterparts learn of the imminent disappearance of their small fixed customs post located between the fictitious municipalities of Courquain in France and Koorkin in Belgium. Despite his Francophobia, Ruben Vandervoorde was forced to inaugurate the first joint Franco-Belgian mobile brigade. Its French partner will be Mathias Ducatel, performed by Dany Boonyet lifelong enemy, who surprises everyone by volunteering to become Vandevoorde’s teammate.

Nothing to declare: a tailor-made role for Benoit Poelvoorde

Dany Boon immediately thought of Benoît Poelvoorde to embody the character of Ruben Vandevoorde. “Benoît has such humanity that everything passes with him, whatever horrors may come out of his mouth. This is also the first time I’ve written for an actor. (…) It was therefore obvious in this role but despite everything, he still managed to surprise me! He showed me things I had never seen from him. In each scene, he gives everything, he is whole. There’s no half measures with him“, explained Dany Boon during the promotion of the film.

For the record, Benoît Poelvoorde has agreed to attend the screening of Nothing to report. This was a big favor from the Belgian actor for Dany Boon, since he doesn’t like seeing himself on screen. At the time, he hadn’t been going to see his films for 6 years. “Once I was in, I stayed, but I was experiencing a double anguish. The first: to see myself on screen again after so many years. The second, linked to the film itself. But Dany achieved what he wanted: this balance between humor and tenderness“, said Benoit Poelvoorde.

Loading-widget

Subscribe to the Telestar.fr Newsletter to receive the latest news for free