What if… The roles they didn’t get | Dismissed without mercy

In this series, actors talk about a role they didn’t get and imagine how this commitment would have changed their career and their lives

Three words. Charles Lafortune never forgot the three words with which director Jean Beaudin dismissed him, just before he shot his first scene on Mercy.

The year is 1994. Charles Lafortune is beginning his career. Aged 25, the graduate of the Drama Conservatory “is not rolling in gold”. Fortunately, he has just obtained a contract: he plays Marina Orsini’s younger brother in Mercya miniseries by Fabienne Larouche and Réjean Tremblay which relates the journey of a nun.

Filming is in full swing in Beloeil, south of Montreal. Since the action of the drama intended for the TQS network takes place in the heart of the 1970s, Charles Lafortune wears a Beatles haircut. In period costume, he waits patiently to do so.

Then, Jean Beaudin arrives. The director of Daughters of Caleb and of JA Martin photographer sees him with Rémy Girard (his father), Dorothée Berryman (his mother), Étienne de Passillé (his brother) and Marina Orsini (his sister). Measuring 6 feet 3 inches and “built like asparagus,” Charles Lafortune stands out. And Jean Beaudin expresses it without restraint. Faintness.

The verdict falls a few seconds later. The director looks at his assistant and says the following three words: “Wrap this for me.” » Meaning: send this flesh to Kodak.

After a few minutes, Charles Lafortune was effectively “wrapped”. Alone in his car, a 1986 Pontiac Sunbird, the poor guy is stunned and slightly disgusted. But what happened?

The feeling lasts for a few days.

The incident seriously shakes the actor’s confidence. Fortunately, he got back in the saddle quickly thanks to the role of Guy Lebeau in Watatatowa popular daily youth broadcast from Radio-Canada that also attracts an adult audience.

“I was lucky to fall into Watatatow. It was the American League of gaming.”

The repercussions

The case Mercy deeply marked Charles Lafortune. Thirty years later, she continues to influence his decisions, but this time, as Senior Vice President, Content and Creation at Pixcom, the television production company behind Indefensible, Sleepless night and several other titles.

After knowing the other side, Charles Lafortune believes he can better defend the interests of the actors. “In the food chain, it’s hard to be an actor. When a show sells out, you come last. It’s a job of seduction; you must please. »

“For this reason, I always take notes when someone has a really good audition without necessarily getting the role. Maybe it wasn’t the actor or actress we needed, the right shape of the piece of the puzzle we were making, but for something else, it might be. . »

Roy Dupuis or Luc Picard

Charles Lafortune left the Conservatoire in 1993, within a cohort which included Suzanne Clément and Paul Ahmarani, among others. When he started, the newcomer had only one goal in mind: to become Roy Dupuis or Luc Picard. “I wanted to be mysterious and dark… but I’m anything but. I am an open book,” he analyzes, looking back.

Charles Lafortune almost landed several roles that could have transformed his professional career. In an interview, he mentions his audition for Corneille in Rooms in towna character that Guillaume Lemay-Thivierge ultimately inherited.

Still on the small screen, he almost played Jerzy Pawlowski in These children from elsewhere (1997), a miniseries inspired by the novel by Arlette Cousture. But Patrick Goyette beat him at the finish line. In a completely different register, he was expected to portray Carl Charest in Radio Hellthis situation comedy broadcast on Canal Famille from 1995 to 2001, but the author and director Louis Saïa (The boys), who wanted “a little bum”, convinced the producers to opt for François Chénier.

In the cinema, David La Haye beat him to The water child (1995), by Robert Ménard.

“In our business, things can change overnight. You can be in the right place, at the right time. You can star in a big hit that lasts several seasons. You can touch people, get into their hearts, and suddenly become an actor darling [chouchou]. »

Let your talent decide

If he played roles in several fiction series, such as Diva, Catherine, Russian dolls And Rivière-des-Jérémie, Charles Lafortune is better known as a TV host, as evidenced by his numerous Artis trophies. He has found himself at the helm of several TVA shows over the past 20 years, such as The fan school, The circle and, of course, The voice.

“I was talking about it recently with Patrice Bélanger [qui vient aussi du Conservatoire]. I said, “Stop fighting against yourself. You can act, you can host, you can do stand-up… It’s a talent to be able to do a lot of business!” »

Charles Lafortune has not practiced his acting profession much in recent years. His last continuous role dates from 2015, in Karl & Max, a Club illico series with Guy Jodoin which only had one season. In 2019, savvy viewers also saw him in Murdoch Mysteriesa crime drama from the English-Canadian network CBC.

Although he is very busy, Charles Lafortune misses playing. On Alerts, a series that he produces, he would have liked to play Sergeant Guillaume Pelletier, played by Danny Gilmore. But when we listen to him speak with passion – and pride – about the performances of Michel Laperrière in Indefensible or the major challenges facing our television, we see that it is being accomplished elsewhere.