“L’hôtel du temps” attracted a few viewers, but the curious caught their eye.

© Third Eye Production Company

TELEVISION – Thierry Ardisson presented on Monday, 2 May on France 3 the first episode of Hôtel du temps, a program of a less specific concept: meeting the characters … the deceased. How do ? Thanks to the “face engine”, known as “deep fake”, which allows to recreate a face from a large number of archives.

To celebrate its launch, the presenter brought a cinema and music icon back to life: Dalida, played by actress Julie Chevalier who digitally changes her face. His voice has also been arranged to make the interview more believable.

Despite the intriguing concept, the audience numbers are somewhat disappointing: only 1.40 million curious people posted themselves in front of their television, according to data published on Tuesday by Mediamétrie.

On the other hand, among these viewers, this new project captured many. During the broadcast, enthusiastic reactions escalated. “A program out of the ordinary, but its effects are amazing!” Can we read privately on Twitter.

I loved this great show from start to finish. And Dalida seemed alive to me thanks to the wonderful actress who played her! Encourage ! # HahahaT_Ardisson

– Johan Secnazi (@johansec) May 2, 2022

And for good reason, France 3 has put the package on technical influences. Created by the French company Mac Guff, the original company I’m despicable about me, a film for which Gad Elmaleh lent his voice in 2010. Using thousands of archival photos and videos collected for the occasion, Mac Guff was able to recreate a completely cloned “pseudo” Dalida. The result is worrying.

On the other hand, of course, the production retrieved the real comments from the interviews that Dalida gave during her life. His heirs, notably his brother Orlando, were also informed and validated the final show for the episode.

It remains to be seen whether the positive feedback after this first interview will increase the audience for the following, or whether the curiosity generated by the show’s discovery will run out over the weeks. After Dalida, Jean Gabin and Lady Diana or even François Mitterrand in particular were announced.

See also on The HuffPost: At “L’hôtel du temps” on France 3, Thierry Ardisson gives interviews to the dead