Once a huge star, George (Depardieu) is now ageing and in all kinds of decline. When his right-hand man and only friend takes a leave of absence for several weeks, Aïssa (Déborah Lukumuena), a semi-pro wrestler who earns a living as a security officer, is appointed as a replacement. Despite their many differences – one a pragmatic, hard-working young bodyguard, the other a cosseted, dissipated actor – George and Aïssa gradually develop a friendship, finding out that their lives have shaped them more similarly than they first thought.

Charming and briskly unsentimental, Robust is superbly well cast and performed, with the scene-stealing Lukumuena playing off Depardieu’s bluster and bombast with amused practicality and calm. A delightful odd-couple comedy-drama bringing together one of France’s most prolific stars and one of its newest.