Kad Merad (born Kaddour Merad, ar, قدور ميراد, link=no; 27 March 1964) is a French-Algerian filmmaker and actor who has acted both on stage and on screen.

Life and career

Kad Merad was born in

Sidi Bel Abbès Sidi Bel Abbès ( ar, سيدي بلعباس), also called Bel Abbès, is the capital (2005 pop. 200,000)''Sidi Bel Abbes'', lexicorient.com (Encyclopaedia of the Orient), internet article. of the Sidi Bel Abbès wilaya (2005 pop. 590,000), Alger ...

, Algeria, on 27 March 1964 to an Algerian father and a French mother. During his teens, he played drums and sang with various rock bands. Soon afterwards, he started playing roles at

Club Med Club Med SAS, commonly known as Club Med and previously known as Club Méditerranée SA, is a French travel and tourism operator headquartered in Paris, specializing in all-inclusive holidays. Founded in 1950, the company has been primarily o ...

alongside the Gigolo Brothers troupe. In 1990, he was hired by

Ouï FM Groupe 1981 (from 1992 until 2010 ''Groupe Start'' then from 2010 until 2013 ''Sud Radio Groupe'') is a French company established in 1992 which engages in radio publishing and is based in Orléans, France. History In 1992, the Start Group is ...

, the Paris rock radio station where he met

Olivier Baroux Olivier Baroux (born 5 January 1964) is a French actor This is a list of notable actors and actresses from France. ''(Persons are listed alphabetically according to their surname.)'' A * Kev Adams * Isabelle Adjani * Fatima Adoum * Ren� ...

. The duet most known as Kad & Olivier began working together and started their own show, the ''Rock'n Roll Circus'', introducing some of their most famous sketches (Pamela Rose, Teddy Porc Fidèle...). The early success of the show allowed them to meet

Jean-Luc Delarue Jean-Luc Delarue (24 June 1964 – 23 August 2012) was a French television presenter and producer specialising in televised discussion programmes. Early life and education Delarue was born in Paris on the 24 June 1964. His mother, an Englis ...

who brought their act to TV. In 1999, they began appearing on the French Satellite TV channel

Comédie+ Comédie+ (formerly Comédie!) is a French cable network showing humorous programs since 1997. It bears some resemblance to Comedy Central; even the ''comédie'' word in the name is used in the very broad American meaning. It is directed by Domin ...

on their own show, ''La Grosse Emission''. At the same time, Merad started his Cinema career with a lot of secondary roles. In 2003, he scored his First box-office success with ''

Mais Qui a tué Pamela Rose? Mais may refer to: People * John A. Mais (1888 – unknown), a German racecar driver *Petre Mais (1885–1975), a prolific British author, journalist and broadcaster * Roger Mais (1905–1955), a Jamaican journalist, novelist, poet, and playwrig ...

'', co-written with Baroux. In 2007, Kad received the

César Award for Best Supporting Actor List of winners and nominees of the César Award for Best Supporting Actor (french: César du meilleur second rôle masculin). History Superlatives List of winners and nominees 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s 2020s Multiple awards and ...

for his role in Je vais Bien, ne t'en fais pas! and appears in

AaRON According to Abrahamic religions, Aaron ''′aharon'', ar, هارون, Hārūn, Greek (Septuagint): Ἀαρών; often called Aaron the priest ()., group="note" ( or ; ''’Ahărōn'') was a prophet, a high priest, and the elder brother of ...

's film soundtrack video clip. His best challenger was

Dany Boon Dany Boon (; born Daniel Farid Hamidou on 26 June 1966) is a French actor, film director, screenwriter and producer. Starting out as a comedian during the 1990s, he found success in 2008 as an actor and director in the film comedy ''Welcome to ...

. During the shooting of

Bienvenue chez les Ch'tis ''Welcome to the Sticks'' (french: Bienvenue chez les Ch'tis, ) is a 2008 French comedy film directed and co-written by Dany Boon and starring Kad Merad and Boon himself. The film was the highest-grossing French film of all time at the box offi ...

, this friendly struggle was a running joke between the two of them. That same year, he made his first appearance with Les Enfoirés music troop and is still one of its members. He was also inducted as the Godfather of the

Telethon A telethon (a portmanteau of "television" and "marathon") is a televised fundraising event that lasts many hours or even days, the purpose of which is to raise money for a charitable, political or other purportedly worthy cause. Most telethons f ...

. The next year, he starred as Phillipe Abrams in the French movie

. The film was a surprise - and phenomenal - success in France and Europe, becoming the best-attended movie ever made in France, with 21 million moviegoers.

Filmography

As actor

Director / Writer

Theater

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Merad, Kad 1964 births Living people Algerian emigrants to France People from Sidi Bel Abbès French male film actors French male television actors Algerian people of French descent Algerian screenwriters French male voice actors 20th-century French male actors 21st-century French male actors French film directors French male screenwriters French screenwriters Best Supporting Actor César Award winners