ESTEBAN VIAL

“I’ve broken everything”

ESTEBAN VIAL

photographed by Nicolas Wagner

styled by Tomer Almoznino

interview by Ariel Kenig

full look TOMMY HILFIGER

Esteban Vial, the new romance genre shifts gears

Fancy cars, bold girls and popular guys: the series Campus Drivers, coming to Prime Video on November 6, adapts the hit saga by C. S. Quill, one of the major figures of French new romance. Esteban Vial plays Lewis, a student who is free in his attractions and not inclined to judge. In his circle, you can be a virgin, talk about consent and still keep your place in the sun.

How would you describe Lewis, your character in Campus Drivers?

The word “fluid” lets me describe him without boxing him into a category like bisexuality. If he loves someone, he’ll go for it, regardless of the person’s sex or gender. He’s a very free guy in his head. What defines him is kindness and freedom.

Were you familiar with the world of new romance before working on the series?

I discovered it all through this series. I wanted to read the books after working on it, and I got hooked! I read all 800 pages in two or three weeks. It’s very funny. You wonder what’s going to happen, you want the next part. It plays a lot with clichés, subverts them and reveals the complexity of the characters.

Are you thinking in particular of the cliché of the group of popular guys who love beautiful cars?

Yes, for example! The cars give an image that’s very “macho” at first, and then you discover something else… The guys in the series have their dark side, but for the most part they’re pretty healthy in their relationships. There’s a lot of talk about consent… And I like the fact that, in this group, the popular guys can be openly fluid or virgins.

The series imagines an American-style campus on the French Riviera, in an aesthetic displacement reminiscent of The Substance. How did you approach this world apart?

It’s a parallel universe, a bit like the one you enter through Platform 93⁄4 in Harry Potter. There’s something dreamlike about it. If we’d gone for a more realistic approach, I think we’d have lost something in terms of entertainment. The landscapes and sets are beautiful. We managed to Frenchify the American codes of the genre, right down to the dialogue, which really reflects the way people talk today.

You also write and direct. What would you like to develop in that area?

I hope to direct comedy. That’s where I feel most at ease. When I watch a scene, I’m interested in its comic potential, in the other actors’ reactions, in how the ping- pong between them works.

How did your desire to do comedy come about?

I’d discovered a show by Éric et Ramzy, whom I was a huge fan of. Then there was the show On n’demande qu’à en rire, which gave me the spark. Until then, doing comedy seemed out of reach: the people I watched were super famous. That show showed me that much younger people could also get onto the stage.

Love and intimacy take up a big place in your social media videos. Why these subjects?

Sometimes I feel like this theme chose me. Two people can be on such different wavelengths in what they feel! That opens up plenty of possibilities for things to go very badly… Hence the comic potential. What amuses me is putting a slightly lost character in a situation that pushes him out of his comfort zone.

Skateboarding has also mattered a lot in your life. What did it give you?

It let me make a huge number of friends. In middle school and high school, fifteen or twenty of us would meet up at the skatepark in Lille. It was an escape. Skating was also the origin of my first trips: we’d go to Los Angeles or Barcelona to find spots to skate. We’d meet local skaters or ones passing through.

Skating gave me a lot in terms of open-mindedness and patience. You go from pain to anger. After a year or two, you still get hurt, but it becomes cool! You’re out on the street, with other people. There’s a lot of solidarity in this community.

Do you still skate as much?

I’m near the end… It’s painful to admit. I’ve broken everything, my joints hurt. I know I can’t really afford to get injured anymore. I’m still a bit in denial…

Are other passions taking over?

It stays close to skating… I’ll say surfing! When I see men or women of 70 on their boards, I tell myself that’s the old age I want.

Interview by Ariel Kenig