French actor Arnaud Valois garnered international attention and acclaim for his lead turn in writer-director Robin Campillo’s 2017 ACT UP drama 120 BPM (120 battements par minute), set in early 90s Paris during the height of the HIV/AIDS crisis, and was recognized at home with a prestigious César Award nomination for Most Promising Actor. His latest role sees him appear opposite Schitt’s Creek co-creator and star Daniel Levy in Levy’s feature film debut as writer and director, Good Grief, which is currently playing in select theaters and launches on Netflix on Friday, January 5th, 2024. The film follows London artist Marc (Levy) as he is faced with the unexpected death of his husband (Luke Evans), supported by his two best friends (Ruth Negga, Himesh Patel) as they take a soul-searching trip to France that reveals some hard truths they each needed to face.
Ahead of the film’s premiere on Netflix, Arnaud Valois spoke exclusively with The Queer Review’s editor James Kleinmann about establishing a rapport with Levy before shooting their scenes, what it was like to work with Levy both as a fellow actor and as his director, why being part of telling eclectic LGBTQ+ stories is important to him, and his favourite queer culture.
James Kleinmann, The Queer Review: I found your character Theo immensely charming, what did you enjoy about portraying him?
Arnaud Valois: “Everything. He’s a very interesting, deep character. The aspect of being honest all the time and trying to tell the truth all the time is quite fascinating. I’m still trying to do that in real life, and it’s not that easy. For him too. Theo is a breath of fresh air in Marc’s life and it’s quite exciting to play that kind of character.”
What was Daniel Levy like, firstly as a scene partner, and also as a director?
“He’s a dream partner. He’s so sweet, clever, smart, and profound. We had some very lovely chats before filming to help create a relationship between us in real life because we knew that if we got along from the start that would show on screen and it would feel very organic. The tender scenes were so easy to play because a relationship is based on admiration and trust. As a director, you can tell that he’s an actor because he really puts the actor at the centre of everything, so it was so easy to work with him in that way.”
I loved your performance in Robin Campillo’s 120 BPM, what does it mean to you to be part of films that centre queer characters?
“As a member of the gay community, telling very different stories about LGBTQ+ people is so important to me; new narratives, new characters, in thrillers, in comedies, in dramas, in everything. It’s so important to tell those stories.”
Good Grief is a story I haven’t seen before, partly because it’s specifically about gay men and the nuances of their relationships.
“Yeah, I agree, and at the same time it’s very simple, it’s very genuine and that was really appealing to me, that way of telling the story.”
What’s your favourite piece of LGBTQ+ culture, or a person who identifies as LGBTQ+; someone or something that’s had an impact on you and resonated with you over the years?
“There are so many, but I love the movie A Single Man by Tom Ford. It’s a very beautiful story. I love the very sensitive part of it and there’s something very intimate about that story, which is also about loss and about grief. Even though it’s set in the 60s it feels so modern in a way. I also love the British TV series It’s A Sin created by Russell T Davies. It was really important to me.”
By James Kleinmann
Daniel Levy’s Good Grief is playing in select theaters now and premieres on Netflix on Friday, January 5th, 2024.
