From colorful nanny to trumpeter then high school student and distraught lover, Mona gives Tomorrow belongs to us a delicious comic touch. For Allociné, Catherine Benguigui confided in her character and what awaits her soon.
Allociné: It’s been over a year since you joined the cast of Tomorrow belongs to us in the role of Mona Caron. What did you like about this role?
Catherine Benguigui : That it is a mother because I had never really had this kind of role. His temperament too. He is someone very extrovert, energetic, independent. She is not going easy. And then there is especially the relationship with his son. She’s a bit of a Jewish mother and I really liked it.
Over the course of the episodes, Mona has become the real comedic asset of the series. Do you have carte blanche in the interpretation of your character?
Yes. In any case, I interpret what I am given. Apparently the authors are very inspired by me [rires]. Suddenly, it gives very funny things. This is what I was looking for. I’m more of a comedy actress with a lot of second degree and I’m delighted to be able to express that side of me in this character.
It is true that we no longer count the twisting lines of Mona. Do you ever participate in their writing or give suggestions to the writers?
Yes. Exactly, there was recently a line that I didn’t like for a scene where Mona asks Georges for Victor’s coordinates. It was written, “I do what I want with my ass “ that I replaced by “I do what I want with my bodysuit, I’m free “. I was surprised because people liked it a lot.
I also added “Mona Caron with a C like macaroons“. Mona is a character that inspires me a lot. So I have a lot of fun sometimes making changes but I don’t do it all the time. Besides, I’m reading the new scripts and that. is to die for. I can’t reveal anything but it’s super funny.
In the end, little is known about Mona’s life. Can we hope to learn more about his past and in particular his relationship with Georges’ father?
Currently not. Without saying too much, we are more on intrigues around the baccalaureate and high school. I think it will come later. If I’m still here, it will be a must because even I want to know who I slept with to give birth to this wonderful son [rires].
Mona fell in love with Victor (Farouk Bermouga) and will stop at nothing to conquer him. So far very enterprising, will she change her strategy to make him crack?
Yes, she will change her strategy but it won’t work [rires]. We suspect it. I’m not revealing anything by saying that. But when we say to ourselves that she is going to let go, she does not let go. She will then do the complete opposite of what she is doing and that’s very funny. Surprisingly, I had a lot of trouble playing this change.
Will she succeed in spite of everything?
No. He would have said yes by now. With the striptease and everything, I don’t see what more I can do. Apart from getting naked in her bed, I can’t do anything [rires].
After this disillusionment with Victor, can we expect to see Mona find love?
I would like to. I leave the door open for screenwriters. Maybe she’ll fall in love with George’s father or a new character again. She had tried with François Lehaut (Emmanuel Moire) but hey it still ended in failure [rires]. The funny thing is, Mona has failures but she never gives up.
The arrival of Vanessa (Victoire Dauxerre) in the life of Georges (Mayel Elhajaoui) has damaged Mona’s relationship with her son. Does she react only as a protective mother hen or is she jealous to see Georges escape her?
I think she’s a little jealous to see Georges walking away. She doesn’t want to be alone so she clings to him. It is quite realistic. There are many women for whom the only man in their life is their son and who find it hard to see him go.
Suddenly, she is a bit of bad faith every time Georges meets someone. But at the same time I think Mona really doesn’t like Vanessa. She had affection for Victoire (Solène Hébert) while with Vanessa, she feels that there is a confusion. I don’t know what it is but it is too good to be true.
Indeed, Vanessa’s intentions towards Georges are far from clear. Does Mona have a plan to get him out of the young woman’s clutches?
Mona has already expressed her displeasure but at the moment there is no plan.
We know the strength of the bond that exists between your character and George. Even if she resents him a lot, will they eventually find each other?
Oh yes. They will be reconciled. Mona sulks a little, but she’s not ready to give up. She still lives next door. It’s only a matter of episodes before she settles back down [rires].
There have been a lot of changes for Mona this year. Were you surprised to see your character return to the school benches?
Oh yes. When I was told that Mona was going back to high school, I thought it wouldn’t work. And in fact, I keep meeting fifty-year-old women who tell me “but it’s unbelievable, I too have resumed my studies”. Many women find themselves in Mona and this is the strength of the writers. It’s incredible. It is not fantasy at all. It’s very touching.
And then I like to tour with young people. They are all better than the next. There is really an exceptional cast, be it Sixtine Dutheil, Élisa Ezzedine or Juliette Mabilat. Everybody. They are really very good and it is a pleasure to tour with them.
With a character as funny as yours, it’s easy to imagine that there were a lot of giggles on the set. Which was the most memorable?
When Mona says to Georges, “I didn’t sleep at night “. I don’t know where it came from but it wasn’t written. And suddenly, Mayel went on a lollipop [rires]. Sometimes in improv, there is stuff like that that comes out.
There was also the scene where Mona is cheating on the headset. It was very funny. With Clémence Lassalas, we had a lot of giggles especially because the headset did not fit in my ear. It was a bit complicated [rires].
Among the iconic duets of tomorrow belongs to us, we inevitably remember that of Jeanne (Catherine Allégret) and Mona. Can we hope to see them together again on screen?
I loved this duo but for the moment it is not at all relevant. I love Catherine Allégret. We got along really well and she brought a lot to her character. In the duo, she added things that made the scene explode. It’s a big one. I was very flattered to tour with her, especially since it worked really well.
Are there any actors with whom you would like to share more scenes?
I would have liked to tour with Anne Caillon whom I adore. She makes me laugh. We met on a sequence but we weren’t shooting together and I tell myself that it would be a regret not to shoot with her. With Ariane Séguillon too. And then all the police too. I would really like to tour with them but we would have to find a plot.
Mona could join the police after her studies, for example …
Here ! Mona looks pretty smart and she could be a mentalist for example [rires].
Overall, what do you hope for the future of your character?
May Mona continue to exist already. Maybe she does find another job. Something unexpected as in the police for example and that it happens to him other adventures. I trust the authors.
She could get married too. It would be a beautiful wedding scene. That would be funny [rires]. Everything is open. Having said that, I went from babysitter to stripper while playing the trumpet so I think we can go a long way. [rires]. There is still a lot to explore. As long as I enjoy playing Mona, the writers can write her plenty of adventures.
Do you have other projects outside of Tomorrow belongs to us that you can tell us about?
One of the H series writers pitched the idea of possibly doing a fifth season. For the moment, it’s really on the order of fantasy but if it happens, I hope to put on Bea’s blouse again.
Otherwise, I shot a series this summer called Derby Girl in which I play a somewhat intrusive mother. It’s on the middle of the roller skate. It’s really, really funny. It’s a very good series with Chloé Jouannet who is fantastic in her role.