Five years later, we missed “Call My Agent!” far more than we realized

Read the original article in French here.

In Los Angeles, Hollywood stars are the stuff of dreams. In Paris, they mostly keep our favorite talent agents busy! And while the glitz, celebrity tantrums and behind-the-scenes world of cinema are once again at the heart of Call My Agent! The Movie, what we are happiest about is simply being reunited with the old ASK gang.

When we arrive at Le Bristol hotel in Paris’s 8th arrondissement, we find a cast warm, generous and clearly emotional about being together again. “When I first read the script, I went through every possible emotion because there were several versions — four or five,” laughs Grégory Montel, who plays Gabriel. “They changed a lot. One minute I was thinking, ‘Oh, this is great,’ then, ‘Oh no, this isn’t as good,’ and finally, ‘No, actually, this is really great.’”

Where are our agents five years later?

The series had ended with the sense that a chapter had truly closed: ASK had shut its doors and everyone had gone their separate ways. Wisely, the film doesn’t erase any of that just to reset the clock.

Andréa (Camille Cottin) is now a director preparing to shoot her first film. When an unexpected setback threatens the project, she turns to Noémie (Laure Calamy), who has become a producer. What follows is an unpredictable shoot that pushes Andréa to her limits.

This is where Dix pour cent, le film, or Call My Agent! The Movie, pulls off its biggest challenge. It continues the story without denying what came before — and without feeling like a pale imitation of the series. “I wanted to avoid the usual episode formula: one guest star, one problem,” creator Fanny Herrero explains. “We needed different storylines revolving around this film shoot. The idea was to leave Paris and have everyone experience an adventure together.”

A gang as lovable as ever

The chemistry is still there. The banter flies, old rivalries resurface, and underhanded moves sit comfortably alongside genuine moments of affection. It’s the same distinctive blend that made Call My Agent! so irresistible: a comedy that can make you laugh with a cutting one-liner, then move you just seconds later.

The Andréa-Noémie pairing works particularly well, delivering some of the film’s most enjoyable scenes. And what would Call My Agent! be without its celebrity guests? George Clooney and Eva Longoria make brief but memorable appearances, playfully leaning into their public personas without stealing the spotlight from the characters we really came back to see. Even in Paris, Hollywood is never far away.

A shorter format that can leave you wanting more

Still, the transition from series to feature film inevitably comes with compromises. With just two hours to work with, choices have to be made. Some storylines deserved more room to breathe, particularly those involving Camille (Fanny Sidney) and Hervé (Nicolas Maury), whose relationship takes something of a back seat.

It is a frustration their actors share, even if they understand why. “There’s a time jump between the series and the film, and whatever we don’t see in the movie, I imagine for myself,” Nicolas Maury tells us. “In my mind, Camille and Hervé are still having cocktails together and haven’t let go of each other in five years.”

Call My Agent! The Movie is first and foremost for those who already know and love this slightly dysfunctional family. It simply invites us to spend a little more time with characters we thought we had said goodbye to for good.

And when they leave us once again, we realize just how much more we had missed them than we thought.

A.S.