Action hero and joker: Jean Reno turns 70
Despite his many successes in US blockbusters, Jean Reno has always remained loyal to the French film industry. For the actor's 70th birthday, we show images from some of his best movies.
Competitive diving off the Sicilian coast
Jean Reno's (r.) big break was the movie "The Big Blue." He plays the successful freediver Enzo Molinari, who encounters his former schoolfriend Jacques at a world championship in Italy. The two men learnt to dive together as children; they meet again as rivals, but their exciting duel is about more than just sport: They also find themselves vying for the love of a woman.
An unusual double act
Hollywood first noticed Jean Reno when he starred in the French film "Leon: The Professional." He plays a professional hitman living alone in New York City, with no wife or children. The loner Leon develops a close connection to 12-year-old Mathilda, who lives in the same building. When the girl’s family are murdered, Mathilda vows revenge: She is determined to become a contract killer herself.
Hollywood comes calling
In "Mission Impossible," Jean Reno (r.) plays an ex-CIA agent, alongside Tom Cruise. Disguised as firemen, they gain access to CIA headquarters during a false fire alarm, where they squeeze through ventilation shafts to get at a secret list of undercover CIA agents. This action thriller was one of Reno’s first Hollywood roles.
Time travel a la francaise
Despite his success in American movies, Jean Reno remained loyal to the French film industry. One of his biggest successes in France was the time-travel comedy “The Visitors.” He also played the lead in the sequel, “The Visitors II: The Corridors of Time,” but this didn't do as well as the original, which made $100 million (€85.7 million) worldwide.
Hunting reptilian monsters
Back to Hollywood: Jean Reno’s next box-office hit was the science-fiction thriller "Godzilla." He plays a French secret serviceman who joins forces with the scientist Dr. Nick Tatopoulos; they set off together to track down the monster reptile. Unfortunately, they discover that Godzilla has laid a batch of eggs, and her offspring have started to hatch …
Two flops in a row
In the 10th and 11th films of the American "Pink Panther" series, Reno (r.) took the part of the gendarme Gilbert Ponton. Ponton teams with the provincial policeman Jacques Clouseau, and the pair tries to solve the murder of the French national football coach, Gluant. The reception for both films was lukewarm, though; the 11th was even nominated in the negative Golden Raspberry Awards.
On set with Tom Hanks
As part of the all-star cast of “The Da Vinci Code,” headlined by Tom Hanks and Audrey Tautou, Jean Reno’s police inspector Bezu Fache investigated the murder of the curator of the Louvre in Paris. This 2006 film achieved the second biggest cinema release of all time, but it still failed to win over the majority of international critics.
The way to the heart is through the stomach …
One of Jean Reno’s favorite roles was that of the Parisian star chef Alexandre Lagarde in “The Chef”. The actor revealed to the German food magazine "Essen & Trinken" that he, too, loves cooking. In the film, his character is in danger of losing his three-star status. In real life, he says, he won over his wife with an unsuccessful omelette.