Rachid Badouri has been saying it for several years: He would like to break into the USA. The comedian will take another step in this quest by seeing his latest showThe flowers of the carpetwill be released next week on Netflix with English subtitles.
When Rachid Badouri's team told him last year that Netflix wanted to film his show and that it would be broadcast around the world, the comedian couldn't believe it. “There were negotiations and I really wanted it to work. I didn’t want to escape!” He mentions it to the Journal.
Rachid Badouri has been visiting comedy clubs in the USA for several years. He even has an agent representing him in New York. “But she couldn’t wait to show people a business card,” he said. Every time she talks about me, obviously no one knows me. There she can tell them to go to Netflix.”
On January 18th, the popular platform will make “The Flowers of the Carpet” available. The show, recorded in July 2023 at the Olympia in Montreal as part of Just for Laughs, will be available with subtitles in English, French and… Quebec!
“The people at Netflix accepted that we do it in Quebec because there are differences with the French in France,” explains the comedian. For the English subtitles, I spent hours with my producer looking at every word.”
Courtesy of Netflix
Rachid Badouri does not hide his pride at arriving on this world-famous platform. “For me it’s huge. I am the third Quebecer to have a recording [d’un spectacle complet sur] Netflix, based on Martin Matte and Mathieu Dufour. It’s a lot, it’s the biggest comedy show machine.”
Last year, Just for Laughs and Netflix announced a three-year deal to broadcast three solo comedy shows in French.
Note that in 2019, Netflix also launched the series Humoristes du Monde, which featured 47 international comedians, including four from Quebec (Louis-José Houde, François Bellefeuille, Katherine Levac, Adib Alkhalidey). There they presented small 30-minute shows.
In an ocean of legends
Rachid Badouri is expected to continue his collaboration with Netflix next May with the Netflix Is a Joke Festival in Los Angeles. Last month, his name appeared on the festival poster alongside Jerry Seinfeld, Chris Rock and David Letterman.
“I have no information about where, when and under what circumstances I will play,” he said. But whatever, I'm ready for anything. People told me if I played in a car wash and cracked a joke when I got out of the car, I wouldn't have a problem with that! [rires]»
“When I saw the festival poster, I was like Nemo in a sea of legends. They capitalized my name quite a bit and it couldn't have made me more uncomfortable. […] Being invited there is a great victory for me. It’s something extraordinary.”
This winter, Rachid Badouri plans to spend a week in Los Angeles and a week in New York performing at comedy clubs. “I’m going to call my friends and my contacts,” he said.
Rachid Badouri's show The flowers of the carpet will be available on Netflix on January 18th.