Franco-Algerian Actor Brahim Bouhlel Reflects on Moroccan Prison Experience

"Emotionally, are you okay?" asks an accomplice about his incarceration. "I feel like crying, but I can’t." "Before, all the friends were there, but once you’re inside, there’s no one. When I tell you about it, it doesn’t surprise you, but once you live it, it’s not the same. You learn to know yourself," Brahim Bouhlel recounts without wanting to dwell on the subject. His incarceration in Morocco has left a deep mark on him. "It was very, very hard for him at times. In prison, he clung to each upcoming deadline to hold on. Since he’s been back, he doesn’t show anything," confides one of the Franco-Algerian’s close friends to Le Parisien.

Brahim’s legal troubles had started after the filming of the film "Citoyen d’honneur" in which he plays the role of Medhi. He had made a "bad joke" about Moroccan women and children. It all started from a controversial video shot in a restaurant in Marrakech, where the star of Validé, the Franco-Algerian actor Hedi Bouchenafa and the Franco-Moroccan snapchatter Zbarbooking were in the company of three Moroccan minors. The video, which went viral on social media, had caused an uproar. The accused had apologized, explaining that it was a "parody" video.

Placed in pre-trial detention the next day, Brahim Bouhlel and the influencer Sammy Tami were sentenced on April 21, 2021 to eight months and one year in prison respectively. This decision was upheld on appeal on May 31. Hedi Bouchenafa had meanwhile left Moroccan territory before the investigation was opened. Brahim Bouhlel’s appeals and requests for royal pardon had been unsuccessful. The 26-year-old actor had resigned himself to serving his sentence.