Photo : Elyot Boudart, CC BY-SA 4.0
Thomas Ngijol
The Jamel Comedy Club comedian turned filmmaker
Born in 1978
Cameroonian roots : Born in Paris to a Cameroonian father, he grew up in Maisons-Alfort, in the Paris suburbs.
Who are they?
A comedian, actor and director born in Paris in 1978, the son of Cameroonian sociologist Gilbert Ngijol. He rose to fame in the mid-2000s with the Jamel Comedy Club, and has since divided his career between the stage, television and film.
What made them famous
In 2011 he co-directed "Case dĂ©part" with Fabrice ĂbouĂ© and Lionel Steketee, a comedy about slavery in the French Caribbean that drew 1.8 million cinemagoers. In 2025 he directed "Indomptables", a crime drama set in YaoundĂ©, shown in the Directors' Fortnight at the Cannes Film Festival.
Key facts
- In "Indomptables" he plays Commissioner Billong, a character inspired by childhood memories of his reserved Cameroonian father.
- In 2014 he starred in "Le Crocodile du Botswanga", a satire of African dictatorships directed by Fabrice ĂbouĂ© and Lionel Steketee.
- In 2025 he took one of the lead roles in the Quebec series "Empathie", an unusually dramatic part for him.