Breakthrough (1990s) Ciné Passion festival (
short film section) For his second film, the
Christine Lipinska-directed comedy
Papa est parti, maman aussi (1989), his name appeared at the top of the bill alongside
Sophie Aubry and
Jérôme Kircher. He spent the decade accumulating roles, on television and in cinema, growing up in front of the camera, often under the direction of respected filmmakers. In 1995, Magimel appeared as boyfriend Rémi in
Benoît Jacquot's New Wave-style drama
A Single Girl, which stars
Virginie Ledoyen as a hotel waitress who discovers she is pregnant. That same year, Magimel made a brief appearance in
Mathieu Kassovitz's black-and-white
banlieue drama
La Haine, which went on to become a
cult film. In 1996, Magimel took on a supporting role in
André Téchiné's psychodrama
Thieves, starring
Catherine Deneuve,
Daniel Auteuil and
Laurence Côte. His performance garnered him a nomination for the
César Award for Most Promising Actor in 1997. He then achieved leading roles, often depicting rough and violent characters. In 1998, he shared the screen with
Romain Duris and
Zoé Félix for
Olivier Dahan's crime drama
Déjà mort. He also starred in the
mining drama
Une minute de silence, directed by
Florent-Emilio Siri, who would become one of Magimel's most frequent collaborators. In 1999, he shared the screen with
Juliette Binoche in the romantic drama
Children of the Century. Under the direction of
Diane Kurys, he portrayed
Alfred de Musset. In 2000, he appeared in
Xavier Beauvois's drama
To Matthieu, in which he portrayed the lover of Claire, played by
Nathalie Baye. Magimel surprised audiences with his performance as
Louis XIV in the costume drama
The King Is Dancing, directed by
Gérard Corbiau. The following decade allowed him to secure roles in more popular films.
Rise to prominence (2000s) In 2001, he played a young protégé to a masochistic piano teacher who attempts to engage him in a sadomasochistic relationship, played by
Isabelle Huppert, in the acclaimed drama
The Piano Teacher, directed by
Michael Haneke. He won the
Best Actor award at the
2001 Cannes Film Festival for his performance. Then in 2002, he reunited with Florent-Emilio Siri for the action thriller
The Nest. , for the premiere of
The Piano Teacher In 2003, he shared the screen with
Laetitia Casta for the drama
Errance. He also accepted a supporting role under
Jacques Villeret and
André Dussollier in
Jean Becker's drama
Strange Gardens. He then portrayed a son alongside
Nathalie Baye in
Claude Chabrol's family drama
The Flower of Evil. He continued this momentum in 2004 with
Olivier Dahan's police thriller
Crimson Rivers II: Angels of the Apocalypse, in which he appeared opposite
Jean Reno. He then appeared alongside
Laura Smet in
Claude Chabrol's psychological thriller
The Bridesmaid. He continued in 2005 with the thriller
Trouble, starring
Natacha Régnier. He then shared the screen with
Clovis Cornillac for the blockbuster
Sky Fighters. Around the same time, Magimel was also approached by
Barbet Schroeder to portray French criminal
Jacques Mesrine after
Vincent Cassel withdrew from the role. Magimel refused the role because he felt his physique would be unsuitable to portray Mesrine. The project was later revived by
Jean-François Richet, with Cassel returning, which produced the widely acclaimed
Mesrine. On 2 January 2006, Magimel was named Chevalier of the
Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by Minister of Culture
Renaud Donnedieu de Vabres. He played an office employee in
Lionel Bailliu's
Fair Play, a psychological thriller about moral harassment in the workplace. Magimel had four film releases in 2007. In January, he led the Parisian organized crime thriller
Paris Lockdown, directed by
Frédéric Schoendoerffer; in August, he co-starred with
Ludivine Sagnier for
A Girl Cut in Two, by Claude Chabrol; in October, he reunited with
Florent-Emilio Siri for the Algerian War drama
Intimate Enemies; and in December, he plays in the
multi-narrative drama
24 Mesures, by
Jalil Lespert. In 2008, the novelist
Michel Houellebecq directed Magimel in
a film adaptation of one of his bestsellers,
The Possibility of an Island. Magimel also traveled to Japan to star in
Barbet Schroeder's mystery thriller
Inju: The Beast in the Shadow, based on the novel by
Edogawa Ranpo.
Established actor (2010s) In 2010, he co-starred in the crime thriller
Sans laisser de traces with
François-Xavier Demaison and played the title lawyer in
Cédric Anger's thriller ''L'Avocat''. The year also marked his return to the comedy genre with two new films. He was cast in
Guillaume Canet's hit comedy-drama film
Little White Lies. He also shared the screen with
Édouard Baer in
Marc Esposito's
Mon pote. The same year, he provided the voice for the
Ken doll in the French dub of the
Pixar animation film
Toy Story 3. In 2011, he starred under
Diane Kruger in Afghanistan war adventure film
Forces spéciales. He then reunited with
Jalil Lespert for the intimate drama
Headwinds, appearing opposite
Isabelle Carré. Finally, he lends his voice to the video game
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3. , which held a retrospective in honor of his career In 2012, audiences saw him collaborating once again with
Florent-Emilio Siri for the biopic
My Way, in which he portrayed the entertainment producer Paul Lederman. His performance was hailed and garnered him a nomination for the
César Award for Best Supporting Actor in
2013. In 2013,
Diane Kurys cast him opposite
Mélanie Thierry in the drama
For a Woman. On 9 July 2013, Magimel was promoted to the rank of Officier of the
Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by Minister of Culture
Aurélie Filippetti. In 2015, he co-starred with
Kad Merad and
Charles Berling in the
buddy comedy On voulait tout casser. The same year, he starred in
Emmanuelle Bercot's coming-of-age drama
Standing Tall. His performance as a counselor to a troubled teen was hailed and won him the
César Award for Best Supporting Actor in
2016. In 2016, Magimel was again directed by Emmanuelle Bercot in her medical drama
150 Milligrams, starring
Sidse Babett Knudsen. He was also again directed by
Frédéric Schoendoerffer in the action thriller
Le Convoi. Magimel returned to television for the political drama series
Marseille, developed by
Florent-Emilio Siri for
Netflix. He appeared alongside
Gérard Depardieu and
Géraldine Pailhas. In 2017, he played a supporting role in the drama
Memoir of War, carried by
Mélanie Thierry. He then played the protagonist of the crime thriller
Carbon, which marked his first collaboration with director
Olivier Marchal. Then in 2019, he became attached to
Nous finirons ensemble, the sequel to the hit comedy-drama
Little White Lies, again directed by
Guillaume Canet. The series
Marseille was not renewed for a third season, following poor reviews.
Continued acclaim (2020s) In 2022, he received the
César Award for Best Actor and
Lumière Award for Best Actor for
Peaceful (2021), directed by
Emmanuelle Bercot, in which he starred opposite
Catherine Deneuve in portraying an acting teacher diagnosed with
late-stage cancer. In 2022, he starred as the enigmatic
High Commissioner of French Polynesia De Roller in
Pacifiction, directed by Catalan auteur filmmaker
Albert Serra. Set in
Tahiti, the film explores De Roller's work and social engagements amid the surrounding political and colonial tensions of the island territory. The film is distinct for its lush widescreen panoramic shots of the Polynesian landscape and for its hypnotic atmosphere. With a nearly three-hour runtime,
Pacifiction is a thriller that juxtaposes its "aesthetic sublime" with a "sense of paranoia and dread as its narrative is consistently thwarted in favour of modulated moods and atmospheres". The film premiered in competition at the
2022 Cannes Film Festival, and was awarded the
Louis Delluc Prize. Magimel received widespread acclaim for his performance, for which he received both the César and Lumière awards for Best Actor. In doing so, Magimel became the first actor in the history of both the Lumière and César Awards to win Best Actor two years in a row. In 2023, Magimel starred in three films presented at the
76th Cannes Film Festival:
Stéphanie Di Giusto's
Rosalie, a historical drama set in 1870s Brittany and starring
Nadia Tereszkiewicz as a
bearded lady;
The King of Algiers, a comedy set in Algeria and starring
Reda Kateb; and
Tran Anh Hung's
The Taste of Things, a historical drama starring that depicts a romance between a cook, played by Juliette Binoche, and the gourmet she works for. In June 2024,
Apple TV+ announced the six-part thriller series ''À l'ombre des forêts'' starring Magimel and
Mélanie Laurent, created and directed by Cédric Anger. ==Personal life==