Thomas Jolly is a French actor and director. He made it to the news for being the man behind the 2024 Summer Olympics’ opening ceremony act.
Born on 1 February 1982 in Rouen, France, the 42-year-old personality has around 15 acting credits and over 20 direction credits per Wikipedia.
Quick Info
Real Name | Thomas Jolly |
Age | 42 [as of 2024] |
Birthplace | Rouen, France |
Education | University of Caen |
Height | N/A |
Weight | N/A |
Ethnicity
Thomas Jolly is of French heritage. His religious beliefs are unknown. As per Le Monde, he celebrated Christmas in his childhood. Also, his grandfather gave catechism classes. On the other hand, people across social media uttered that he is Jewish following the 2024 Paris opening ceremony act controversy.
While his parents’ identity is unknown, his father is a printer and his mother is a nurse.
Personal Life
Jolly interest in acting sparked at a young age. He joined a children’s theatre company in 1993 and continued to work in various theatres throughout his high school days.
He pursued theatre studies at the University of Caen. Thomas founded a university theatre troupe and appeared in a few festivals. In 2003, he joined Théâtre National de Bretagne to receive additional training.
He is gay. He is married to a man per Mercator.
Career
Thomas Jolly started his career as a director with Marianna and La Photographie in 2004 and 2005. After finishing training, he began acting and acted in the play Spendid’s. The next year, he acted in Peanuts, directed by Stanislas Nordey.
He directed four plays and made three acting appearances for the rest of the decade. In the early 2010s, he was best known for directing and acting in William Shakespeare’s Henry VI trilogy.
Additionally, he directed Richard III which was a sequel to Henry VI in 2015. He got into opera and directed Eligabalo and Fantasia in 2016 and 2017. During the global pandemic, he performed Romeo and Juliet on his balcony.
In September 2022, he became the artistic director of the 2024 Paris Olympics and Paralympic Games opening and closing ceremonies. A couple of months later, he resigned from his position at Quai d’Angers after serving there for three years.
He sparked controversy after recreating The Last Supper scene featuring Paris celebrities and LGBTQ+ personalities. Upon airing, Jolly received online backlash from millions across the globe citing it was disrespectful to Christians.
Unknown Facts
- He has over 131k followers on Instagram.
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Photo credit: @thoma.jolly – Instagram.