Stéphane Bak

EARLY LIFE

Stéphane Bak was born on 19 September 1996 in Le Blanc-Mesnil, in the Seine-Saint-Denis department north of Paris. He is of Congolese origin; his parents emigrated from Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of the Congo) to France in the 1980s. His father worked as a baggage handler at Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport and his mother as a customer service agent. He grew up with several siblings (sources cite four to six) in the Tilleuls neighbourhood of Le Blanc-Mesnil, a sensitive urban area, remaining there until around age 21. In 2011 he was expelled from Nelson Mandela Middle School due to disciplinary issues and continued his education through correspondence courses. He obtained authorization from the French social services (DDASS) to begin working at age 14, enabling him to pursue comedy full-time. In 2012 he received formal acting training at the Cours Florent in Paris.

CAREER

Bak began as a stand-up comedian in December 2010 at the age of 14, performing in small Paris clubs such as Le Pranzo, Le Palace, and Théâtre Trévise. He quickly gained attention as “the youngest comedian in France.” Early high-profile appearances included the Montreux Comedy Festival (2011), performances at the Grand Rex (as a guest of Jamel Debbouze), the Nuit de l’Outre-mer at the Accor Arena, and charity events. He contributed sketches to television programmes including Bref, Le Grand Journal (with a regular segment called Bakstage), and Laurent Ruquier’s L’Émission pour tous on France 2, as well as radio appearances on Europe 1 and Virgin Radio. He transitioned to acting in the early 2010s with supporting roles in Les gamins and Serial Teachers (both 2013). Notable early film work includes Max in Once in a Lifetime (Les Héritiers, 2014), Omar in Paul Verhoeven’s Elle (2016), Jules in Team Spirit (L’Outsider, 2016), and the lead role of Dodji in Alone (Seuls, 2017). In 2018 he earned international recognition with the lead role of Private Faustin in Joël Karekezi’s The Mercy of the Jungle, which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival, where Bak was selected as a TIFF Rising Star. The same year he began voicing Miles Morales / Spider-Man in the French dub of Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (and later Across the Spider-Verse). Subsequent notable roles include Bilal in André Téchiné’s Farewell to the Night (2019), William in Sebastian Schipper’s Roads (2019), Amani in Tokyo Shaking (2021), Samba in Robert Guédiguian’s Dancing the Twist in Bamako (Twist à Bamako, 2021), Jean in Léonor Serraille’s critically acclaimed Mother and Son (Un petit frère, 2022), and Djibril in Cédric Jimenez’s November (Novembre, 2022). He has also appeared in three Wes Anderson films: The French Dispatch (2021), Asteroid City (2023), and The Phoenician Scheme (2025).

Stéphane Bak is regarded as one of the prominent young French actors of Congolese descent. In addition to acting he has worked as a brand ambassador for the fashion house Loewe and for Cartier haute jewelry. He continues to balance dramatic leading roles, international collaborations, and voice work while advocating for greater representation of diaspora stories in French and European cinema.