Baron Noir

Baron Noir (screened as Republican Gangsters in some markets) is a French political drama television series which premiered on Canal+ on 8 February 2016. The series was developed by Eric Benzekri and Jean-Baptiste Delafon.

Premise
Baron Noir is the political and judicial saga of Philippe Rickwaert, member of Parliament and mayor of Dunkerque, who is driven by an irrepressible thirst for personal revenge. Between rounds of the presidential election, he sees his future collapse when his mentor, the leftist candidate, sacrifices him to save his campaign. Determined to reinvent his career, Rickwaert uses cunning and connections to win political fights against those who betrayed him, creating a new alliance with the closest adviser of his enemy. Formidable but uncontrollable, conflicted between truth and lies, cultivating friendships in all strata of society (including within the police and organized crime), Philippe Rickwaert's life dissolves into a fascinating organised chaos. Rickwaert takes the fight to his opponents - and to his own demons - at every opportunity.

Main

 * Kad Merad as Philippe Rickwaert
 * Niels Arestrup as Francis Laugier (Season 1)
 * Anna Mouglalis as Amélie Dorendeu
 * Hugo Becker as Cyril Balsan
 * Astrid Whettnall as Véronique Bosso
 * François Morel as Michel Vidal (season 3)

Recurring

 * Laurent Spielvogel as Armand Chambolle
 * Jade Phan-Gia as Françoise Levasseur
 * Lubna Gourion as Salomé Rickwaert
 * Scali Delpeyrat as Martin Borde
 * Philippe Résimont as Daniel Kalhenberg
 * Eric Caruso as Laurent Mirmont
 * Erika Sainte as Fanny Alvergne
 * Maryne Bertieaux as Alison

Guest

 * Season 1
 * Michel Voïta as Jean-Marc Auzanet
 * Jean-Pierre Martins as Bruno Rickwaert
 * Michel Muller as Gérard Balleroy
 * Mahdi Belemlih as Medhi Fateni
 * Patrick Rocca as Alain Chistera
 * Alban Aumard as Sylvain Buisine
 * Yannick Morzelle as Bruce Rickwaert
 * Rémy Stiel as Jordan Rickwaert
 * Marie Lanchas as Elodie Jacquemot
 * Alain Pointier as Jean-Pierre Barthélémy
 * Stéphane Ropa as Boris Valentin
 * Phénix Brossard as Sébastien
 * Damien Jouillerot as Toph
 * Alain Pronnier as Eddy
 * Jean-Erns Marie-Louise as Ménadier
 * Brigitte Froment as Maryse
 * Léon Plazol as Théo
 * Sébastien Beuret as Arthur


 * Season 3
 * Marie-France Alvarez as Malika

Development and production
On 29 February 2016, Eric Benzekri, the writer of the series announced that the season 2 will be shot during the next presidential and it was aired in 2018. Season 3 debuted in February 2020.

Reception
The TV Series was very well received by French critics. Le Monde, L'Obs, Les Inrockuptibles, Metro International, Paris Match and Télérama gave the first season 4 out of 5 stars. L'Express and Libération gave 3.5 out of 5 stars.