Super-héros malgré lui

Super-héros malgré lui (translating to "A Superhero in Spite of Himself," and also released as *Superwho?* and *Badman*) is a French superhero comedy from 2021. Philippe Lacheau directed the film and co-wrote the script with Julien Arruti, Pierre Dudan, and Pierre Lacheau. The cast includes Lacheau, Tarek Boudali, Arruti, Élodie Fontan, Alice Dufour, Jean-Hugues Anglade, Amr Waked, and Georges Corraface. The movie first screened on 14 November 2021 in Sarrebourg, then went nationwide in France on 2 February 2022.

The story follows Cédric Dugimont, a struggling actor whose biggest gig is advertising small condoms. He lands the lead in a superhero film called *Badman* after the original choice dies in a celebration accident. After months of training, he starts shooting with veteran actor Alain Belmont, who plays the villain Clown. Following the first day, Cédric learns his father, police chief Michel, has collapsed. Still in his Badman costume under a jacket, he rushes to the hospital in the Badmobile, but a faulty prop explosive in the trunk sends him crashing through a bank. Waking up with amnesia, he sees the film props and believes he is the real Badman, attacking two police officers by a lake before vanishing.

A family takes him in for the night, but Cédric activates his prop watch, which plays a prerecorded scene of Clown holding Badman's wife and son hostage. Believing it's real, he heads to Clown's hideout—actually Belmont's home in Vaucresson. He hitches a ride with reporter Laure Laville, but she detours to cover a bank robbery by Le Schizo's gang. When a thug tries to kidnap Laure, Cédric knocks him out and drives off, ditching her. Chased by the gang, he sneaks into Belmont's mansion during a birthday party and realizes the hostages are Belmont's real family. He kidnaps Belmont's son and hides in a barn, but his father Michel knocks him out and lets him escape upon recognizing him.

Cédric's sister Éléonore and friends Adam and Seb take him to the studio to jog his memory. Just as he remembers his real life, Le Schizo shows up to settle the robbery score. Cédric uses his grappling hook to disarm him, sending the gun into a neighboring studio. After a tough fight, he defeats Le Schizo and leaves him for Michel and the police. The next day, Cédric visits Laure and learns she is his ex-girlfriend; they reconnect.