Panayotis Pascot, born on August 9, 1998, in Amiens, has established himself as a unique figure in the French cultural landscape. Comedian, writer, actor, and director, he stands out for his rare sincerity and sharp insight into the nuances of life. Revealed at just 17 in Le Petit Journal, he quickly became one of the most authentic and touching voices of his generation.
The Rise of a Prodigy
A gifted and daring teenager, Panayotis Pascot began as a columnist in Le Petit Journal on Canal+ in 2015, where he made a sensation with his offbeat humor and ability to capture the absurdities of everyday life. He continued the adventure alongside Yann Barthès in Quotidien on TMC, before leaving this comfort zone in 2017 to reinvent himself.
This reinvention reached its peak with Presque, his first solo show directed by Fary. This one-man show, which met with critical and public acclaim, tackles universal themes — the quest for self, family ties, childhood wounds — with a mix of lightness and raw emotion. Available on Netflix, Presque propelled Pascot to the forefront of the international stage.
In parallel, he ventured into cinema, with appearances in popular comedies like Adopte un veuf or more unique works like Le Daim by Quentin Dupieux. In 2023, he surprised once again in En Place, a Netflix series where he plays Jérôme, a character both funny and tragic, mirroring the dualities that mark his art.
An Intimate Writer
With his autobiography La prochaine fois que tu mordras la poussière, published in 2023, Panayotis reached a new artistic milestone. This moving narrative explores deeply personal aspects of his life: his depression, his complex relationship with his father, and the discovery of his homosexuality. Unfiltered, the artist bares himself, breaking taboos around mental health and male vulnerability.
The success is immediate: in two months, the book sells over 100,000 copies, reaching a wide and diverse readership. Through a pen both modest and incisive, he restores the nobility of autobiographical literature.
The Desire for Transmission
At only 26 years old, Panayotis Pascot approaches with surprising maturity a subject often reserved for older artists: fatherhood. In his new show Entre les deux, he explores his desire to become a father, which he considers a process of abandoning the ego. "Being a parent is loving more than oneself. It’s the antithesis of fear," he confides.
This desire, however, is fraught with complexity. As a homosexual, Panayotis recounts the obstacles on the path to parenthood: administrative procedures, endless waiting, but also the time it gives him to prepare. "Sometimes, this wait feels like a curse, but it also forces me to become the man I want to be for this child."
With rare sensitivity, he evokes his dream of passing on, of reliving through his children the wonder of childhood. This quest for legacy, he links to his own past, marked by a bright childhood but crossed with wounds.
Resilience and Light
Panayotis Pascot’s confessions about his struggle with depression add a poignant depth to his journey. At 18, he faced a melancholic depression, a malaise he describes as a confrontation with the unnameable. "Depression is a reset. It forces you to look at what’s left when everything collapses."
His suicidal thoughts, which he addresses with disarming frankness in his book, become a turning point. Choosing life, he transforms this ordeal into a creative engine. On stage, pain becomes catharsis, his humor becoming the means to make the unbearable bearable. His audience, often young, finds in his shows a mirror of their own struggles.
Towards New Horizons
Panayotis Pascot does not let himself be confined to a single category. A multidisciplinary artist, he is preparing his first feature film while embarking on the tour of Entre les deux. His approach, which he himself describes as "chaotic but sincere," is driven by a constant desire to explore, question, and share.
Fatherhood, which he has not yet realized, acts as an emotional compass for his future projects. His works — whether literary, stage, or cinematic — testify to an artist in search, a creator who refuses to cheat with himself or his audience.
Fragments of a Life
Panayotis Pascot belongs to this generation of artists for whom the boundary between private life and work is porous. His creations, imbued with intimacy, dialogue with his vulnerabilities. Behind the humor, one senses a man in perpetual search for meaning, torn between his dreams of the absolute and a sometimes brutal reality.
His work, at the crossroads of genres, illustrates a simple but universal idea: it takes courage to turn one’s wounds into beauty. Panayotis Pascot is more than a comedian or a writer. He is a conveyor of emotions, a voice that reminds us that laughter is sometimes the noblest form of resilience.
Get La prochaine fois que tu mordras la poussière by Panayotis Pascot by clicking the link below:
