Kaamelott

Kaamelott is a French comedy medieval fantasy television series created, directed, written, scored, and edited by Alexandre Astier, who also starred as the main character. Based on the Arthurian legends, it followed the daily lives of King Arthur (Alexandre Astier) and his Knights of the Round Table in Camelot. The series, which originally ran for six seasons (referred to as "books"), ran from 2005 to 2009, on the network M6. The series was preceded in 2003 by a short film, Dies iræ, with mostly the same cast and concept, which was used to pitch the idea of the series to the network, which at a time was looking to replace another successful short TV series, Caméra Café. However, Kaamelott exceeded Caméra Cafés audience only three weeks after broadcasting started. It is widely regarded as one of the best, most iconic, and most popular French TV series of all time. It has also been praised for its fidelity as, outside of comedic and linguistic liberties, it stays faithful to the mythology and historic context. While the series takes place in the 5th century, it uses modern language and situations to create a humorous view of the Arthurian legend. However, in latter seasons, the mood becomes darker and more dramatic as Arthur's kingdom begins to disintegrate. The cast includes regular Astier collaborator Jean-Christophe Hembert (Karadoc), who directed his two subsequent one-man shows, and Astier's father Lionnel (Leodegrance), his mother Joëlle Sevilla (Dame Séli) and his half-brother Simon (Yvain). After the end of the series in 2009, Astier started working on a film trilogy meant to conclude the story of the series. First announced in 2012 and planned for a shooting in 2013, production for the first film, Kaamelott: The First Chapter, was suspended and then repeatedly postponed due to various issues; filming eventually begun in January 2019, and it was released on July 21, 2021.