On the occasion of the Séries Mania festival, AlloCiné met Jérôme Bertin, the interpreter of Patrick Nebout, so that he could tell us more about what awaits his character at the end of the intrigue around Maxime and Cécilia.
After several weeks of investigation, the intrigue around Maxime and Cécilia is about to come to an end. The episode of Plus belle la vie, even plus belle this Thursday, March 21 ends with Luna (Anne Décis) in great danger. After shooting Maxime, Cécilia is indeed on the verge of attacking the fifty-year-old. But Patrick Nebout witnessed the scene from his window. Will he manage to save her in time?
On the occasion of the Séries Mania festival, AlloCiné met Jérôme Bertin, the interpreter of Patrick, to ask him a few questions about the outcome of this plot rich in twists and turns, but also about what awaits the character in the coming weeks.
AlloCiné: You have been playing the character of Patrick Nebout for a little over ten years now. What convinced you to reprise the role in the sequel to Plus belle la vie? What do you like so much about this character?
Jerome Bertin : I love Patrick Nebout because he is someone who dedicated his life to two things. The first is his family. We must not forget, but it comes from public assistance. He saw his mother get murdered, he was abandoned by his father and ultimately, his family is his absolute pillar. The second thing is that he serves people. He is an honest, honest police officer who really wants to stop the bad guys and protect the widow and the orphan.
Patrick has a central role in the investigation into Cécilia and Maxime. Was it fun to play out this scenario at Rear Window? Wasn’t it frustrating not to be in the heart of the action for once?
You put your finger on the right word: frustration. That was what was interesting to play. The whole plot, Patrick is frustrated at not being able to do his job the way he likes to do it. He witnesses a murder, he is absolutely convinced of it but he is the only one who believes it.
It reminded me of the plot on The Enchanter, where it was only Patrick who thought it was Nicolas the murderer. There, it’s the same thing. He’s the only one who believes what he saw, and little by little, he will succeed in convincing them. And all this in a frustration of not being able to act as he likes to do.
The intrigue around Maxime and Cécilia is about to end. Are we going to have any surprises in the outcome?
The first surprise in this plot is the fact that Luna so quickly falls in love again. I also loved the relationship between Blanche and Luna who are two friends facing a problem of trust. For his part, Patrick is a bit of a hero because he is the one who will save Luna.
It’s always nice to save a Mistralian who is very close to death. I also had a lot of fun filming this plot with Marie, who for the first time becomes my investigator. Where my character can’t investigate, I’ll ask my wife to do it while I put her in danger. It was a real pleasure to play this plot.
Now that the investigation surrounding Cécilia and Maxime is over, what awaits Patrick in the coming weeks?
Patrick will not have time to fully recover from his knee problem as he will already be involved in a new story. The Nebout and Boher families will be seriously tested. He’s still going to be very busy.
Since the launch of Plus belle la vie, encore plus belle, the Babeth/Patrick couple has been presented as a perfect couple. Will their relationship and the personal side of the character be more developed in the coming months?
I don’t know exactly what is in the authors’ minds. I really want to. Marie Réache and I miss family intrigues because it is one of the glues of the Nebout family.
It is also one of the cements of the relationship between the public and Plus belle la vie. We feel how fans of the series are attached to this couple, because it gives them an image of a united family that is capable of going through incredible ordeals.
It’s a blended family so it’s a very modern family. And then the Nebout family has a particularity: the older they get, the more crazy they are (laughter). I know it makes people feel good. It takes them back to things they can experience.
This is one of the functions of Plus belle la vie, even plus belle. It’s also about sometimes shedding light on what people experience, with the shift of fiction. It’s always a joy to do these family intrigues.
Boher and Patrick are now colleagues and roommates. How is this cohabitation going? Will there be tensions between them?
I hope there will be tensions (laughter). When Clémentine Planchon, the producer, told me that the Nebout and Boher families were going to be reunited in the same apartment, I jumped for joy.
Firstly because I am obviously very good friends with Stéphane Hénon. We never stopped seeing each other during the year the series was canceled. And what’s more, we love playing together.
That’s the pleasure when there are two actors who know each other very well. The authors can write everything, there are no issues and it will not affect the relationship between people. So the authors can have fun. And I would love for them to give us a lot of tension, crisis and conflict because that’s bound to give rise to scenes that people like.
Finally, do you have any projects you would like to tell us about?
For the moment, my project is More beautiful life, even more beautiful. I want to ensure that success continues for as long as possible. I am very happy in Plus belle la vie. That doesn’t mean I don’t want to do something else, but for now I’m happy where I am. My project is above all to support my daughter who is going to study cinema at the start of the school year.