Jean Reno's Main TV Roles Show Character(s) Jo Jo St-Clair

Main Movie Roles 2011 - Margaret 2009 - Le Premier cercle 2009 - Armored 2009 - Couples Retreat 2009 - The Pink Panther 2 2008 - Ca$h 2006 - Flushed Away 2006 - Flyboys 2006 - The Da Vinci Code 2006 - The Pink Panther 2004 - Hotel Rwanda 2003 - Tais-toi ! 2002 - Rollerball 2001 - Wasabi 2001 - Just Visiting 1998 - Les couloirs du temps : Les visiteurs 2 1998 - Ronin 1998 - Godzilla 1996 - Mission: Impossible 1995 - French Kiss 1993 - Les visiteurs 1985 - Subway 1983 - Le dernier combat 1979 - Clair de femme

BIOGRAPHY:

Jean Reno (born July 30, 1948) is a French actor. Working in French, English, and Italian, he has appeared not only in numerous successful Hollywood productions such as The Pink Panther, Godzilla, The Da Vinci Code, Mission: Impossible, and Ronin, but also in European productions such as the French films Les Visiteurs (1993) and Léon (1994) along with the 2005 Italian film The Tiger and the Snow.

Early life

Reno was born Juan Moreno y Herrera-Jiménez in Casablanca, French Morocco. His Spanish parents were natives of Sanlúcar de Barrameda and Jerez de la Frontera (Spain), and had moved to North Africa to find work and escape the dictatorship of Francisco Franco. His father was a linotypist. His mother died when he was a teenager, and he has a younger sister called María Teresa ("Maite"). Reno was raised Catholic. He moved to France at the age of seventeen and studied acting in the Cours Simon School of Drama.

Career

Due to his tall, hulking frame (188 cm, 6′3″), he mostly played villainous brutes early on in his career. He later appeared in romantic-comedies and action films. Reno's career began in French cinema, where he appeared in many of Luc Besson's films, including Besson's first film, L'Avant dernier. The two have continued to work together throughout their careers, in films produced, written or directed by Besson. Of the films they have done together, the ones that have achieved the most critical and commercial success include: Nikita (1990), the English-language films The Big Blue (1988), and Léon (1994) (known as The Professional in the United States). Additionally, Reno did the voice-over for Mufasa in the French-language version of The Lion King, a role originally performed by James Earl Jones.

Reno has starred in such high-profile American films as French Kiss (1995) with Meg Ryan and Kevin Kline, Mission: Impossible (1996) with Tom Cruise, Ronin (1998) with Robert De Niro, and Godzilla (1998). Reno turned down the role of Agent Smith in The Matrix. He has not neglected to work in French productions either—e.g., Les Visiteurs (1993) (which was later remade in English as Just Visiting in 2001) and The Crimson Rivers (2000). In 2006, he had a prominent role in the remake of The Pink Panther and its sequel, playing Gilbert Ponton, the partner of Inspector Clouseau opposite Steve Martin, and also portrayed Captain Bezu Fache in the Ron Howard film The Da Vinci Code. Among his most successful films are Les Visiteurs and L'Enquete corse.

In other media, Reno was involved in the production of the third installment in the popular PlayStation 2 series Onimusha (Onimusha 3: Demon Siege), lending his likeness to the protagonist, Jacques Blanc, as well as providing the voice for the character's French dialog. Reno has also appeared in American television commercials for UPS.

Personal life

On July 29, 2006, the actor married a Polish model and actress Zofia Borucka, 35, at the city hall of Baux-de-Provence in southern France. The French President (at the time, only a Presidential candidate) Nicolas Sarkozy was his best man (Reno endorsed Sarkozy for the 2007 French Presidential Elections). They welcomed son Cielo in July 2009 in New York City. He was married twice before and has four older children, two from each marriage. His first wife was Geneviève, with whom he has a daughter, Sandra (born in 1978), and a son, Mickael (born in 1980). His second wife is Polish model Nathalie Dyszkiewicz, with whom he has a son, Tom (born January 10, 1996), and a daughter, Serena (born June 28, 1998). He maintains homes in Paris, Malaysia and in Los Angeles.

Reno is a huge fan of Elvis Presley and can imitate Elvis's voice. He used his "Thank you. Thank you very much" impression in a scene of the film Godzilla when the script needed his character to pass as an American.


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