Roy Dupuis - Rotten Tomatoes Celebrity Profile

Biography

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Roy Dupuis (April 21,1963) is a French-Canadian (Québécois) actor. Internationally, he is renowned for his role as counter-terrorism operative Michael Samuelle in the television series La Femme Nikita.

Biography

Roy Dupuis was born in New Liskeard, Ontario to parents of Franco-Ontarian and Québécois descent. From early infancy until he was eleven years old, Roy Dupuis lived in Amos, Abitibi, Québec. The next three years he lived in Kapuskasing, Ontario, where he learned to speak English. His father was a traveling salesman for Canada Packers; his mother is a piano teacher. He has a younger brother and an older sister. When he was fourteen, after his parents divorced, his mother moved the family to Sainte-Rose, Laval, Québec, where he finished high school. After high school, he studied acting in Montréal, at the National Theatre School of Canada (L'École nationale de théâtre du Canada), from which he was graduated in 1986.

While becoming an accomplished actor in Québec and well-known in some of the rest of Canada, Dupuis performed in many theater productions, movies, and television series. Among the stage roles that he has performed so far are: Luc in Michel-Marc Bouchard's Les Muses orphelines (The Orphan Muses), directed by André Brassard in 1985; Roméo in a Québécois adaptation of William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet (Roméo et Juliette), directed by Guillermo de Andrea in 1989; and Jay in Jean-Marc Dalpé's Le Chien (The Dog), Adrien in Jeanne-Mance Delisle's Un Oiseau vivant dans la gueule (A Live Bird in Its Jaws), and Lee in a Québécois version of Sam Shepard's True West, all three productions directed by Brigitte Haentjens, in 1987-89, 1990, and 1994, respectively.

Roy Dupuis gained national celebrity virtually overnight as Ovila Pronovost in the "télésérie Québécoise" Les Filles de Caleb (also known as Emilie) when it premiered on Radio Canada (1990-92), and he co-starred as the journalist Michel Gagné in four seasons of Scoop (1991-95). He was introduced to the American public on television as Oliva Dionne in Million Dollar Babies (1994)--Les jumelles Dionne: La véritable histoire tragique des quintuplées Dionne (The Dionne "Twins": The True Tragic Story of the Dionne Quintuplets). In the United States, he also debuted on the big screen in such film roles as Becker in Screamers (1995) and as John Strauss in Bleeders (1996), also known as Hemoglobin (1997) in the UK. In 1997 he began appearing as Michael Samuelle in the television series La Femme Nikita, also known as Nikita. Recently, he won a MetroStar Award for his role as Ross Desbiens in Le Dernier Chapitre: La Vengeance (2003), the sequel to Le Dernier Chapitre (2002), both filmed simultaneously in dual-language versions broadcast in French and English on Radio-Canada and the CBC, respectively.

Among Roy Dupuis' "tour-de-force" film performances are: Yves, in Being At Home with Claude (1991; Cannes, Un Certain Regard 1992)--his first major screen role--directed by Jean Beaudin, adapted from a screenplay by Johanne Boisvert based on the 1986 stage play by René-Daniel Dubois; and Kevin Barlow, in Manners of Dying (2004), the first feature film directed by Jeremy Peter Allen, adapted from his own screenplay based on the short story first published in the 1993 collection The Facts Behind the Helsinki Roccamatios and Other Stories by Yann Martel. His performance as Alexandre Tourneur in Mémoires affectives (2004), directed by Francis Leclerc, who co-wrote the screenplay with Marcel Beaulieu, has recently received awards.

Dupuis lives southeast of Montréal, on 50 acres (200,000 m²) of land in an 1840 farmhouse which he bought in 1996 and has restored and renovated. Sports in which he has participated include hockey, sky-diving, and golf. His hobbies include astronomy and physics (his interests in high school). He learned to play the cello as a boy and, at times, still plays, sometimes in dramatic roles. In preparing his role in the film Jack Paradise (2004), Dupuis learned very precise jazz piano hand movements accompanying the actual piano playing (performed on the movie sound track by pianist James Gelfand, the composer of the original music). For the past few years, between television and film projects, he has been occupied with learning to sail; he owns a couple of sailboats, and he is custom-outfitting the larger aluminum-keeled vessel in preparation for extended ocean voyages.

In Maurice Richard (The Rocket), directed by Charles Binamé (Séraphin: un homme et son péché) and released in late November 2005, Roy Dupuis stars as French-Canadian ice hockey icon Maurice "Rocket" Richard, who played for the Montréal Canadiens from 1942 to 1960 and whom he portrayed previously on Canadian television in 1997 and 1999. Dupuis' own experience playing hockey and his ability to perform on the ice on authentic period hockey skates were useful for this film, in which several professional hockey players were cast in supporting roles. The film was nominated for the Prix Jutra 2006 in fourteen categories, including Dupuis for Best Actor.

In December 2005, Roy Dupuis completed filming That Beautiful Somewhere, based on the 1992 novel Loon, by Bill Plumstead its executive producer, and both set and filmed on location in North Bay, Ontario. The film, directed by Robert Budreau, is produced by Lumanity Productions. Its world première was on August 26, 2006, at the Montreal World Film Festival (24 August to September 4, 2006); it will also be presented at Cinéfest Sudbury: International Film Festival (16-24 Sept. 2006), the Calgary International Film Festival (September 22-October 1, 2006), and other film festivals, as well as broadcast on Canadian pay cable television.

On location in Kigali, Rwanda, in mid-June 2006, Roy Dupuis began filming the dramatic feature film "Shake Hands with the Devil," in which he performs the principal role of Lieutenant-General Roméo Dallaire, head of the United Nations Assistance Mission for Rwanda (UNAMIR) during the Rwandan Genocide. The film is based on Dallaire's autobiographical book Shake Hands with the Devil: The Failure of Humanity in Rwanda. After two months in Kigali, filming continued in Halifax, Nova Scotia, in August 2006. This film is slated for release in fall 2007.

In October 2006, along with Gabriel Byrne, Christopher Plummer, Max von Sydow, and Susan Sarandon, Roy Dupuis is to begin filming the upcoming Canadian film "Emotional Arithmetic." Directed by Paolo Barzman, the film is adapted by Barzman and Jefferson Lewis from the novel by Canadian writer Matt Cohen (1942-1999), who had written several drafts of a screeplay adaptation himself before his death. Dupuis plays Benjamin Winters, the "embittered" son of Melanie Lansing Winters (Sarandon) and her husband, David Winters (Plummer)."Casting Adds Up for 'Emotional Arithmetic,'" Production Weekly 12 Sept. 2006, accessed 15 Sept. 2006. See also Agnès Gaudet, "Emotional Arithmetic: Roy Dupuis dans un film sur l'Holocauste," Journal de Montréal 15 Sept. 2006, accessed 16 Sept. 2006.

Civic and Philanthropic Activities

For two decades, Roy Dupuis actively supported the Mira Foundation, a non-profit, community-based organization which provides and trains guide dogs and service dogs for the visually and physically challenged.
Roy Dupuis is co-founder and co-president of the Rivers Foundation (Canada), an environmental organization whose mission is to protect the rivers of Québec and their natural and cultural habitats from small hydroelectric power dam projects and other environmental and economic threats and to encourage the development of alternative energy sources through education.

Selected Awards

Tokyo International Film Festival: 2006: Best Actor: The Rocket
Jutra: 2005: Meilleur acteur [Best Actor]: Mémoires affectives
Genie: 2004: Meilleure interprétation dans un premier rôle masculin [Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role]: Mémoires affectives
MetroStar: 2003: Rôle masculin/Télésérie québécoise: Le Dernier Chapitre: La Vengeance
MetroStar: 1992: Comédien de téléroman ou mini-série québécoise: Emilie [English-dubbed version of Les Filles de Caleb]
MetroStar: 1991: Comédien - Téléroman ou mini-série: Les Filles de Caleb
Gémeaux: 1991: Meilleure interprétation dans un premier rôle masculin: série dramatique: Les Filles de Caleb
Fipa d'Or: 1991: Festival International de Programmes Audiovisuels (Cannes): Best Actor: Les Filles de Caleb

Selected Stage Performances

True West, by Sam Shepard, trans. Pierre Legris (1994)
Un Oiseau vivant dans la gueule (A Live Bird in Its Jaws), by Jeanne-Mance Delisle (1990)
Roméo et Juliette (Romeo and Juliet), by William Shakespeare, trans. Jean-Louis Roux (1989)
Les Muses orphelines (The Orphan Muses), by Michel Marc Bouchard (1988)
Le Chien (The Dog), by Jean-Marc Dalpé (1987-1989)
Toupie Wildwood, by Pascale Rafie (1987)
Au pied de la lettre (At the End of the Letter), by André Simard (1987)
Fool for Love, by Sam Shepard, trans. Michèle Magny (1987)
Harold et Maude (Harold and Maude), trans. and adapt. by Jean-Claude Carrière of the play by Colin Higgins (1986)
Les Deux Gentilshommes de Vérone (The Two Gentlemen of Verona), by William Shakespeare (1985)
La Passion selon Pier Paolo Pasolini (The Passion According to Pier Paolo Pasolini), a play by René Kalinsky based on Teorema (1985)

Selected Television Work (TV-ography)

Les Règles du jeu: Roy Dupuis (The Name of the Game: Roy Dupuis) (2005)
Un monde sans pauvreté: Agissons! (A World without Poverty: Take Action!) (2005) Public-service voiceover (in collaboration with Pascale Montpetit) sponsored by the Québécois section of Make Poverty History (Abolissons La Pauvreté) on behalf of Global Call to Action Against Poverty
Le Dernier Chapitre: La Vengeance (The Last Chapter: II: The War Continues) (2003)
Le Dernier Chapitre (The Last Chapter) (2002)
La Femme Nikita [Also known as: Nikita] (1997-2001); dir. episode 506: "The Evil That Men Do" (2001)
Les Beaux Dimanches (Beautiful Sundays): Maurice Richard: Histoire d'un Canadien. [Also known as: Maurice Rocket Richard Story (Canada: English title)] (1999)
Heritage Minutes (Minutes du patrimoine) [Also known as: Historica Minutes or History by the Minute]: Louis Riel and Maurice "Rocket" Richard (1997)
Urgence (Emergency Call: Hospital Code 66) (1995)
Dark Eyes (Pilot) (1994)
Million Dollar Babies (1994) [Also known as: Les jumelles Dionne: La véritable histoire tragique des quintuplées Dionne (The Dionne "Twins": The True Tragic Story of the Dionne Quintuplets)] (1994)
Blanche (1993) [Sequel to Les Filles de Caleb]
Emilie (1992) [English-dubbed version of Les Filles de Caleb]
Scoop (1991-95)
Les Filles de Caleb (Caleb's Daughters) (1990-91) [Also known as: Emilie]
Lance et compte (He Shoots, He Scores) (1986-89): Tous Pour Un (All for One [1990]--"téléfilm" based on the tv series)
La Maison Deschênes (The House of Deschênes) (1987-89: episode in 1989)
L'amour avec un grand A [Also known as: Avec un grand A) (Love with a Capital L)] (1985-95): Hélène et Alexis (1988)
Le Grand Jour (The Big Day) (1988)
L'Héritage (The Inheritance) (1987-90; episode in 1987)
Les enfants de la rue: Danny (Children of the Street: Danny) (1987)
Le Parc des Braves (The Park of the Brave) (1984-88; episode in 1987)

Selected Filmography

"Emotional Arithmetic" (In production)
"Shake Hands with the Devil" (In production; expected release: September 2007 [English version]; October 2007 [French version])
That Beautiful Somewhere (2006)
Maurice Richard: The Rocket (The Rocket: The Maurice Richard Story) (2005)
Les États-Unis d'Albert (Albert's America) (2005)
C'est pas moi(,) c'est l'autre! (It's Not Me...It's Him!) (2004)
Mémoires affectives (Looking for Alexander) (2004)
Manners of Dying (L'Exécution) (2004)
Monica la Mitraille (Machine-Gun-Molly) (2004)
Jack Paradise (Les Nuits de Montréal) (Jack Paradise [Montreal Nights]) (2004)
L'Invitation aux Images (Invitation to the Images) (2003)
Les Invasions barbares (The Barbarian Invasions) (2003)
Séraphin: un homme et son péché (Séraphin: Heart of Stone) (2002)
Free Money (1997)
Hemoglobin (1997 [UK]) [Also known as: Bleeders (1996 [US & Can.]), The Descendant (TV), and Dark Harbour (Can.) ]
J'en Suis (Heads or Tales) (I'm One of You [Heads or Tails]) (1996)
Waiting for Michelangelo (1996)
Bleeders (1996 [US & Can.]) [Also known as: The Descendant (TV), Dark Harbour, and Hemoglobin] (1997 [UK])
L'Homme idéal (The Ideal Man) (1996)
Aire Libre (1995/1996) [Also known as: Out in the Open; Open Air; and Passage des Hommes Libres] (1997 [VHS])
Screamers (1995)
C'était le 12 du 12 et Chili avait les blues (1993) [Also known as: Chili's Blues]
Cap Tourmente (1993)
Entangled (1992)
Being At Home with Claude (1991)
Le Marché du Couple (The Singles Game) (1990)
Jésus de Montréal (Jesus of Montreal) (1989)
Dans la ventre du dragon (In the Belly of the Dragon) (1989)
Comment faire l'amour avec un noir sans se fatiguer (How to Make Love to a Negro without Getting Tired) (1989)
Sortie 234 (Exit 234) (1988)
Gaspard et Fils (Gaspard and Son) (1988) [Also known as: Gaspard et Fil$]
Anémique cinéma (Anemic Cinema) (1987) [Inspired by 1926 film of the same title by Marcel Duchamp]

Notes

Selected References

Books and Articles (Print Publications)

Hampson, Sarah. "A Home Boy, Happy That Way." Globe and Mail 31 Aug. 2002. (Metro ed.): R3. Biographical account based on interview with Roy Dupuis.
Heyn, Christopher. "A Conversation with Roy Dupuis." Inside Section One: Creating and Producing TV's La Femme Nikita. Introd. Peta Wilson. Los Angeles: Persistence of Vision Press, 2006. 77-81. ISBN 0-9787625-0-9. In-depth conversation with Roy Dupuis about his role as Michael on La Femme Nikita, as well as his thoughts on acting and directing.
St-Denis, Danièle. Dans les peaux de Roy Dupuis. (In Roy Dupuis' Skins.) Outremont, Qc: Les Éditions internationales Alain Stanké, 2004. ISBN 2-7604-0955-4. Detailed account of Roy Dupuis' characters as embodied in some of his documented stage, television, and film performances.

Interviews and Other Articles (Online Publications)

Cooper, Gina Pia. "The Actor's Method". Fashion Finds July 1999. Interview with Roy Dupuis (cover article). Full text, audio extract, illus., archived issue cover.
"What's New." Lumanity Productions: "That Beautiful Somewhere (Feature)" 29 Jan. 2006. Production news (official site).
Thompson, Allan. "One Last Dance with the Devil: On Location in Rwanda, As the Cast and Crew of Shake Hands with the Devil Try to Recreate an Unimaginable Horror." Toronto Star 22 July 2006.

Audio-Visual Sources

Les Règles du jeu: Roy Dupuis. (The Name of the Game: Roy Dupuis. In French with English subtitles.) 23 mins. Documentary film about Roy Dupuis completed in 2005 and first broadcast on Super Écran on 26 January 2006. (Clips accessible on YouTube.com.)

External links

Nôtre Cinéma à Radio-Canada: Les Vedettes: Roy Dupuis ("Our Cinema at Radio-Canada: The Stars: Roy Dupuis.") Selected filmography and related links in French.
Roy Dupuis at Agence Premier Rôle. English version of official webpage.
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