Benoît Poelvoorde

Acting

Benoît Poelvoorde

Born 1964-09-22 · Namur, Belgium

Benoît Poelvoorde is a Belgian actor, comedian, and filmmaker, born on September 22, 1964, in Namur, Belgium. He first gained recognition with the cult film C'est arrivé près de chez vous (1992), a darkly comedic mockumentary where he played a serial killer with unsettling charm. This film launched his career and established his unique blend of humor and intensity. Throughout the late 1990s and 2000s, Poelvoorde became a staple of Franco-Belgian cinema, starring in comedies like Les Randonneurs (1997), Le Vélo de Ghislain Lambert (2001), and Podium (2004), where he portrayed an obsessive Claude François impersonator—a role that earned him a César nomination. His versatility allowed him to transition into more dramatic roles, such as Entre ses mains (2005) and Coco avant Chanel (2009), where he starred alongside Audrey Tautou. In recent years, Poelvoorde has continued to balance absurdist comedy (Au poste !, Fumer fait tousser) with auteur-driven projects (Le Tout Nouveau Testament, Saint-Amour). His ability to oscillate between slapstick humor and introspective performances makes him one of the most distinctive actors in European cinema

Acting credits

Asterix at the Olympic Games poster
5.2

Astérix and Obélix have to win the Olympic Games in order to help their friend Alafolix marry Princess Irina. Brutus uses every trick in the book to have his own team win the game, and get rid of his father Julius Caesar in the process.

Asterix at the Olympic Games

2008

Man Bites Dog poster
7.2

The activities of rampaging, indiscriminate serial killer Ben are recorded by a willingly complicit documentary team, who eventually become his accomplices and active participants. Ben provides casual commentary on the nature of his work and arbitrary musings on topics of interest to him, such as music or the conditions of low-income housing, and even goes so far as to introduce the documentary crew to his family. But their reckless indulgences soon get the better of them.

Man Bites Dog

1992

Coco Before Chanel poster
6.9

Several years after leaving the orphanage, to which her father never returned for her, Gabrielle Chanel finds herself working in a provincial bar. She's both a seamstress for the performers and a singer, earning the nickname Coco from the song she sings nightly with her sister. A liaison with Baron Balsan gives her an entree into French society and a chance to develop her gift for designing.

Coco Before Chanel

2009

Beating Hearts poster
7.2

Local rebellious teenager Clotaire falls for his schoolmate Jackie, but gang violence leads him to a darker destructive path. After years apart, the star-crossed lovers discover that every path they've taken leads them back together.

Beating Hearts

2024

The Brand New Testament poster
6.6

God lives in Brussels. On Earth though, God is a coward, morally pathetic and odious to his family. His daughter, Ea, is bored at home and can't stand being locked up in a small apartment in ordinary Brussels, until the day she decides to revolt against her dad...

The Brand New Testament

2015

Adieu Paris poster
4.7

An old Parisian bistro with eternal charm. Eight gentlemen at the table, eight great figures. They were the “kings of Paris”… National treasures, masterpieces in peril. A well-honed ritual ... A sense of humor and self-deprecation intact. Tenderness and cruelty. Eight old friends who hate and love each other. And suddenly an intruder ...

Adieu Paris

2022

Nothing to Declare poster
5.9

During the elimination of the Belgian/French border in the 90s, a Belgian customs officer is forced to team up with one of his French counterparts.

Nothing to Declare

2010

Keep an Eye Out poster
6.7

Louis just found the corpse of a man in front of his apartment building. Taken in for custody by Captain Buron, he finds himself on the wrong end of a surreal interrogation. But how can you prove you are innocent when the cops are crazy?

Keep an Eye Out

2018

Dead Weight poster
5.8

After winning the lottery, a convict must chase down the warden who has his winning ticket.

Dead Weight

2002

How to Make a Killing poster
6.4

Michel and Cathy, wed for longer than they can remember, lead a quiet but monotonous life in the mountains. When a bear bursts out in front of Michel’s car, accidentally killing two drug dealers and revealing a €2 million loot in the process, their life takes an unpredictable turn, especially when they decide to cover up the incident and keep the money! But their plan leads them to stumble upon an unexplained trail of dead bodies. More used to being honest than crooked, Michel and Cathy’s clumsy cover-up efforts soon put an interfering inspector hot on their trail.

How to Make a Killing

2025

Lucky Star poster
5.7

In 1940, in France, Jean Chevalin lives with his family in great poverty after deserting the army. Convinced that some people manage better than others, he decides to pretend to be Jewish in order to receive help from smugglers and reach the free zone. This ruse will lead his family on a journey that will gradually dismantle his prejudices.

Lucky Star

2025

Sink or Swim poster
6.9

40-year-old Bertrand has been suffering from depression for the last two years and is barely able to keep his head above water. Despite the medication he gulps down all day, every day, and his wife's encouragement, he is unable to find any meaning in his life. Curiously, he will end up finding this sense of purpose at the swimming pool, by joining an all-male synchronised swimming team.

Sink or Swim

2018

Narco poster
5.7

Gustave Klopp suffers from narcolepsy, he can fall asleep everwhere at anytime whithout warning. Living a simple life with his wife Pam and his best friend Lenny Bar, Gus decides to undergo therapy sessions and finds out that he can make incredible comics from his dreams.

Narco

2004

How I Became a Superhero poster
6.1

Paris 2020. While superheroes have assimilated into the Parisian society, they discover a new drug that gives themselves personal superpowers to mere mortals. Lieutenants Moreau and Schaltzmann are investigating the case with the support of two ex-superheroes, Monte Carlo and Callista. They'll do whatever it takes to dismantle the traffic. But Moreau's past resurfaces, and the investigation becomes more complicated.

How I Became a Superhero

2020

Smoking Causes Coughing poster
6.0

After a devastating battle against a diabolical turtle, a team of five avengers — known as the "Tobacco Force" — is sent on a mandatory retreat to strengthen their decaying group cohesion, where they share scary stories the film depicts. Their storytelling sojourn goes wonderfully well until Lézardin, Emperor of Evil, decides to annihilate planet Earth.

Smoking Causes Coughing

2022

Modèle déposé poster
7.1

No synopsis available yet.

Modèle déposé

1995

3 Hearts poster
5.5

A twist of fate leaves a hapless accountant romantically torn between two sisters.

3 Hearts

2014

White as Snow poster
5.1

Claire is a beautiful young woman who works at her late father’s hotel, that is now managed by her evil stepmother Maud. Claire unwittingly sparks uncontrollable jealousy in Maud, whose young lover has fallen in love with Claire. Maud decides to get rid of Claire who finds shelter in a farm where she’s allowed to break free from her strict upbringing through encounters with seven “princes.”

White as Snow

2019

Aaltra poster
6.2

In this pitch black comedy the rivalry between two neighbors escalates into an all out war. Through a maintenance error on a tractor they both end up, paralyzed, in a wheelchair. It seems they are doomed to stay together. They no longer focus their rage on each other but on the manufacturer of the tractor, in Helsinki. So get ready for a hilarious wheelchair road movie.

Aaltra

2004

Delete History poster
5.0

In a provincial suburb, three neighbours come to terms with the consequences of the new world of social media. Marie, who lives off her husband’s family allowance, is afraid of losing her son’s respect because of a sex tape. Bertrand can’t say no to advertising calls and is fighting to protect his daughter, who is being bullied online. Christine, after losing everything because of her addiction to TV series, wonders why her rating as an Uber driver is not taking off. These three lone fighters are incapable of finding a solution to their problems on their own — until they join forces to declare war on the tech giants.

Delete History

2020

Inexorable poster
6.1

Desperately seeking inspiration for the follow-up novel to his bestseller "Inexorable", Marcel Bellmer moves in his wife's old family mansion with his family.

Inexorable

2021

The Jews poster
4.3

Four separate stories deal with stereotypical ideas about Jews: their alleged influence on politics, the stereotype of Jewish business-mindedness, the Mossad, the Jewish world conspiracy and the memory of the Holocaust.

The Jews

2016

The Colors of Fire poster
6.8

February 1927. The funeral of Marcel Péricourt, the most powerful banker in Paris. His daughter Madeleine must take the helm of the financial empire of which she is the heiress. But she has a son, Paul, who with an unexpected and tragic gesture will place her on the path to ruin.

The Colors of Fire

2022

Savages poster
6.9

In Borneo, near the tropical forest, Kéria rescues a baby orangutang in the palm oil plantation where her father works. Kéria's cousin Selaï comes to live with them seeking refuge from the conflict between his indigenous tribe and the logging companies. Kéria, Selaï and the little orangutang, now named Oshi, will have to fight against their forest’s destruction.

Savages

2024

Behind the camera

Man Bites Dog poster
7.2

The activities of rampaging, indiscriminate serial killer Ben are recorded by a willingly complicit documentary team, who eventually become his accomplices and active participants. Ben provides casual commentary on the nature of his work and arbitrary musings on topics of interest to him, such as music or the conditions of low-income housing, and even goes so far as to introduce the documentary crew to his family. But their reckless indulgences soon get the better of them.

Man Bites Dog

1992

Man Bites Dog poster
7.2

The activities of rampaging, indiscriminate serial killer Ben are recorded by a willingly complicit documentary team, who eventually become his accomplices and active participants. Ben provides casual commentary on the nature of his work and arbitrary musings on topics of interest to him, such as music or the conditions of low-income housing, and even goes so far as to introduce the documentary crew to his family. But their reckless indulgences soon get the better of them.

Man Bites Dog

1992

Man Bites Dog poster
7.2

The activities of rampaging, indiscriminate serial killer Ben are recorded by a willingly complicit documentary team, who eventually become his accomplices and active participants. Ben provides casual commentary on the nature of his work and arbitrary musings on topics of interest to him, such as music or the conditions of low-income housing, and even goes so far as to introduce the documentary crew to his family. But their reckless indulgences soon get the better of them.

Man Bites Dog

1992

Modèle déposé poster
7.1

No synopsis available yet.

Modèle déposé

1995

Modèle déposé poster
7.1

No synopsis available yet.

Modèle déposé

1995

Ghislain Lambert's Bicycle poster
6.0

In the 70s, there was Merckx and there were the others. Ghislain Lambert was one of the others. This is his story, a quite simple one. The story of a modest Belgian bike racer. His greatest ambition in life? To become a champion. His greatest tragedy? Not having the legs his heart deserves.

Ghislain Lambert's Bicycle

2001

No C4 for Daniel Daniel poster
5.1

A mock trailer for a spy film about a secret agent called Daniel Daniel.

No C4 for Daniel Daniel

1987

No C4 for Daniel Daniel poster
5.1

A mock trailer for a spy film about a secret agent called Daniel Daniel.

No C4 for Daniel Daniel

1987