Call My Agent! on Netflix is the show you need to make time for this week.
There’s a good reason everyone is talking about French TV right now – not only is Lupin the most watched French TV show on the streaming service, but there’s also the brilliant comedy Call My Agent!
The fourth series recently dropped on Netflix – and it’s the final ever season.
If you haven’t watched it yet, what are you waiting for?
Here’s everything you need to know about the comedy series and why it’s so popular!
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Call My Agent! on Netflix: What’s it about?
Call My Agent! launched in 2015 on the public France 2 channel.
It follows the ins and outs of a Parisian talent agency called ASK – a dog-eat-dog world where ruthless agents battle for influence.
It’s been compared to Ricky Gervais’ The Office and Extras, because of its tongue-in-cheek approach to a so-called serious world.
Each episode features a guest star – Béatrice Dalle, Cécile de France, Guy Marchand for example – but rather than being the centre of the storm – they ARE the storm.
The big name is seen as a problem to be fixed.
Call My Agent!, at its heart, makes superstars appear to be very normal human beings.
The material for all of it comes from co-creator Dominique Besnehard, an actor and director who spent two decades as the most well-known agent in France.
The French title of the show is Dix pour Cent, which represents the ten percent of earnings the agents get from any money the talent gets.
Who stars in Call My Agent! on Netflix?
Camille Cotin portrays kick-ass agent Andréa Martel – a lesbian powerhouse agent.
Laure Calamy plays a tenacious assistant, while Stéfi Celma is an aspiring actress who works on reception dreaming of her big break.
Nicolas Maury is the gay office gossip with a rich interior life.
There is also the scheming but charming Mathias Barneville, played by Thibault de Montalembert, the agency’s senior pro.
His attitude to the film industry is “either you eat everyone else, or you get eaten”.
Meanwhile, good-natured but slightly hopeless Gabriel Sarda (Grégory Montel) cannot bear to give his actors any bad news or lie to their faces.
There’s also Arlette Azémar (portrayed by Liliane Rovère), who is the oldest agent in France.
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How many series are there?
There are four series of the French television series, with 24 episodes in total.
In January, Netflix released the final season.
Why is Call My Agent! so popular?
The show is a huge hit in France, with four million viewers per episode.
Due to its success, there are rumblings of remakes from Europe to Asia to the U.S.
It’s direct, fast-paced and utterly bingeable.
Rather than glamourising the world of movie stars, it’s searingly frank about how hellish it is!
Call My Agent! is also properly funny, with killer scriptwriting.
The characters are addictive, it’s super stylish and you can even brush up on your French while enjoying it!
Call My Agent! is essentially an intelligent, romantic, surprising and very addictive satire.
Who has guest starred in Call My Agent!?
French superstars including Jean Reno, Juliette Binoche, Isabelle Huppert, Fabrice Luchini and Joeystarr have appeared on the show, game to send themselves up.
Isabelle Adjani, Charlotte Gainsbourg and Monica Bellucci have also guest starred.
As the show grew in notoriety, Hollywood stars including Sigourney Weaver lined up to take part.
What have the critics said?
The Guardian has called the French comedy a “sharp, hilarious look at the hell of being an agent”.
The BBC says: “If history judges this to be a golden age of television overflowing with magnificent creations and wonderful spectacle, then Call My Agent! will be considered among the epoch’s Crown Jewels.”
They add: “The exquisitely crafted, beautifully written, brilliantly acted French comedy-drama series about life in a Parisian talent agency is close to perfection, unlike its protagonists who are marvellously flawed.”
Author Jonathan Coe tweeted that the show is “the sharpest, lightest, funniest, warmest thing on screen at the moment”.
Call My Agent! is currently available to stream on Netflix.
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