Dumas, a new series | Luc Dionne reunites with Gildor Roy, his Robert De Niro

Even though he wanted to get away from District 31Luc Dionne recruited Gildor Roy for Dumas, his new series for ICI Télé. “Robert De Niro made eight films with Martin Scorsese. Gildor is my Robert De Niro. »

“Gildor is quite an actor,” added producer Fabienne Larouche on Wednesday on Radio-Canada, in front of a horde of journalists who came to witness the unveiling of the details surrounding this anticipated drama which will go on the air in September. We are talking about a series of 24 episodes per year, which will explore the “mysterious” world of private security firms, these companies that we hire to carry out all kinds of investigations, minor and ambitious: marital infidelity, drug trafficking , undeclared work, industrial espionage, release of hostages, etc. Gildor Roy will play Jean Dumas, the director of one of the largest companies of its kind in the country, called Intelco.

To ensure that no viewer draws parallels between Dumas And District 31 despite the presence of Gildor Roy, Luc Dionne tried to write a character very different from the beloved police chief, whom Gildor Roy played for six seasons, from Monday to Thursday, in front of 1,800,000 fans.

According to the actor, it’s mission accomplished. “I imagine there are people who will expect Commander Chiasson 2.0, but there is nothing further. »

Jean Dumas seems to have quite a character. Director Stéphan Beaudoin (Happiness, Classified secret) described him as a cunning and impetuous boss, “a force not always quiet”. To get a little idea of ​​the avenue we are going down, know that Luc Dionne declared that he would dream of a scene in which his hero would exchange with Logan Roy, the tyrannical patriarch of Successionon HBO.

“These are two characters who would get along. They look stupid too, but one says “Fuck off!” more than the other,” explained the author.

“Five-star” distribution

At a press briefing, Fabienne Larouche described the distribution as Dumas of “five stars”. Observing the imposing line-up of actors gathered around Gildor Roy on the seventh floor of Radio-Canada, it was difficult to contradict the producer on Wednesday. Isabel Richer will play Dumas’ ex-wife, and Jason Roy-Léveillé and Jade Charbonneau, his children. At Intelco, we will also find Sylvain Marcel (a detective sergeant), Vincent Leclerc and Marie-Lyne Joncas. The comedian landed the role of Sophie, “a girl from the field”, after having strongly impressed Fabienne Larouche last winter in STATwhere she played a patient with cravings for metal objects.

Laurent Lucas and Vincent Leclerc will play Dumas’ competitors at InvesCan, a rival investigation firm. David Bélizaire, Lili Francke-Robitaille, Christian De La Cortina, Fred-Éric Salvail and Marie-Laurence Moreau will also appear in the credits.

Mention in relation to the name of the hero, Jean Dumas: Luc Dionne sold him at an auction for the benefit of an association of hospitals in the Laurentians. “I drew the name of a character, and the one who won was called Jean Dumas,” summarized the screenwriter.

However, we do not know the amount paid by the lucky person to win this honor.

Longer than expected

With DumasLuc Dionne rediscovers “ambiences ofOmertà », his detective series from the 1990s. The author decided to write about the world of private security firms after meeting a friend of producer Michel Trudeau, who owns such a company.

The delivery of the soap opera took longer than expected, admitted Luc Dionne in an interview. Initially, the author wanted to start writing again in June 2022, two months after completing District 31but unsurprisingly, fatigue caught up with him.

Once this summer was over, Dionne informed Fabienne Larouche that he wanted to postpone the start of the project for a year. “I started to sleep like I had never slept,” he told us in an interview.

Luc Dionne, who wishes to produce several seasons of Dumas, greeted the management of Radio-Canada, who never showed signs of impatience during the adventure. “The difference between something good and something not good is often four, five versions,” confided the author, who took a whole year to complete the first four episodes.

Today, Luc Dionne claims to have found a “normal” cruising speed, even if he is preparing, in parallel with Dumas, a miniseries intended for Club illico in which he will recount the trials of Maurice “Mom” Boucher, the former big boss of the Hells Angels. This is why he will miss the Cannes Film Festival in a few weeks, his favorite meeting as an informed film buff. Work obliges, he will stay in Quebec.

“I stopped working in the evening,” he said. I take the time to eat like everyone else. I take time with my partner. I promised myself we’d have our weekends, but I like working. On Saturday morning, what else do you want me to do? »

The filming of Dumas will begin on May 21 and last until July. After a break planned for August, a second block of filming will take place in September, October and November.