While he will say goodbye to “Un Si Grand Soleil” in a few days, Fred Bianconi takes stock of his adventure for us and tells us more about the new drama that will affect Virgil in the last episodes of the plot in course.
Soon, nothing will ever be the same for Virgil (Fred Bianconi) in Un Si Grand Soleil. As his marriage to Alix (Nadia Fossier) looms, Virgil must deal with the involvement of Tom (Matéo Paitel), the teenager he took under his wing, in the Buddha blue trade in high school.
Knowing that he was in mortal danger, Virgil decided to hide Tom in a hideout. But Yannis will end up finding the trace of the teenager and the confrontation between the three men will turn into drama. And the nightmare for Virgil.
Met on the occasion of this extremely strong narrative arc, which will lead to the departure of Virgil within a few episodes, Fred Bianconi returned for us to his five years spent in Un Si Grand Soleil, to the evolution of his character, to the death of Léa, which shook up the series in 2020, and what awaits Virgil in the coming days.
Will he be ready to make any sacrifices to save Tom?
AlloCiné: If we go back to the very beginning of the Un Si Grand Soleil adventure, what appealed to you about joining a daily soap opera?
Fred Bianconi : I was coming out of 7 seasons of Engrenages. Such a Great Sun did not exist. They offered me the character of Virgil and gave me around ten lines of development.
There was no script yet. It was very thin and, at the same time, I immediately felt that there was the possibility of a split personality in this character. And as I’m a fan of adventures and group adventures, I said to myself, after some hesitation, “Let’s go for it and then, if I get bored, I’ll stop”.
The scenarios didn’t bore me and the authors had some pretty incredible ideas to bounce this character around. Ultimately, I stayed there for five years, which is huge.
The luck I had was that the authors brought some pretty incredible twists and turns to this character. And then, the death of his daughter which is necessarily the most significant event for the character and the most significant for me as an actor.
Honestly, what they developed around Virgil’s mourning was really good. They completed the treatment. We did two and a half months of filming on this subject. It’s very powerful that they dared to deal with grief over such a long period of time.
It anchored the character in enormous empathy but also in an extreme richness of play for me. Something strong must have happened. I still have people stop me in the street to tell me that I moved them. It’s strong. It’s rare.
We feel that you are very proud to have played the role of Virgil and that you are very attached to him…
I am very attached to Virgil. This character has all the elements of a fictional character. He is loyal, he has this Robin Hood side, he has a real inner heartbreak, he has a dual personality by being both this straight man and this thug.
There are all the ingredients to build a character with a capital P. As we are in the context of a daily life and time is on our side, there is a way to systematically add layers.
So yes, I am obviously attached to it and leaving it remains a heartbreak. The word may be a bit strong but it is a process. You don’t let go of a character that easily.
Virgil has recently taken a liking to Tom, a troubled teenager, whom he desperately tries to get back on the right path. Unfortunately, Tom has associated himself with the wrong people and will quickly find himself in mortal danger. How will Virgil help him?
Virgil tends to do anything to save the people he loves. This guy has nothing left to lose, he’s already lost everything. From there, his own endangerment matters little to him. What motivates him is being able to help the people he loves get out of trouble.
Tom arrives, he has no father, is not well and is adrift. Virgil’s savior mindset kicks in immediately. The attachment is all the more since it is a kid who is the age of his daughter. It touches him.
Taking care of this kid reactivates something he no longer is, namely a father. He really wants to help her get through it and he is 200% committed to the people he loves.
Despite everything, Tom is going to screw him up. From there he will go. Somewhere, he still has a thing with the thugocracy in him. Even though this life is behind him, he is not afraid. Virgil is a character who is not afraid.
Screenshot/FTV
Tom and Virgil have indeed formed a real father-son relationship. Having already lost a child, could Virgil do the irreparable to protect him?
Yes of course. Virgil has already shot Gérald (Christophe Favre) and Kira (Coline Ramos-Pinto) in cold blood. This weapon exists. He used it and he won’t be afraid to use it again if necessary.
The situation will become very dramatic since Yannis will find Tom and will want to kill him. What can you tell us about what awaits us in the next episodes of Un Si Grand Soleil?
Tom will be in danger, yes. Virgil will find him a hideout. Everything is going well until Yannis, the guy who has a grudge against Tom, ends up finding the hideout and sets it on fire. Tom then calls Virgil. When he arrives, everything is in flames. He’s ready to go but he gets shot.
He will believe that everything is ruined and tell himself that once again, he will experience hell. Virgil is about to give up when there is this appearance of Léa (Marthe Fieschi) who tells him “save him daddy”.
What happens in Virgil’s head is that there is this moment of absolute happiness of seeing Léa again as if she were really there and the emotion that goes with it. By the time he realizes she’s missing, he has nothing left to lose.
He will therefore do everything to save Tom from the flames. He tells himself that if he succeeds, so much the better. If he doesn’t succeed, he will die and find his daughter.