We are in 2021 after Jesus Christ. No territory of Gaul is occupied by zombies. No ? No ! A village of irreducible Gauls is still in the hands of the invaders. This hamlet, located at Parc Astérix, welcomes this year again around twenty personalities who will try to challenge horrific creatures in the second season of District Z. On June 8, 20 minutes was invited to set foot in the professor’s enclosure to see what was going on without taking the risk of getting his calf bitten.
So like that, it lacked “fight”?
It is 6.30 p.m. The celebrities of the day, Bruno Sanchez, Baptiste Lecaplain, Monsieur Poulpe, Inès Vandamme and Maxine, winner of Koh-Lanta: The Secret Weapons, arrive at the place. Before eventually catching the bacteria that transforms humans into zombies overnight, antigen testing and distribution of FFP2 masks are mandatory, in order to prevent the spread of another virus. Until the end, everything is sealed and the candidates see nothing of the decor, not even the district gate, hidden by vehicles.
For the five personalities, the adventure has not yet started. While we dress them and they eat, we are invited to take a tour of the plateau. Denis Brogniart still has his work cut out for him before filming begins, but he takes the time to show the places to journalists. “We had messages that the zombies were not impactful enough, that it lacked one or two tests and” fight “with the zombies … You will see tonight”, he warns from the first moments.
Eleven new events
This year, the bunker has disappeared. Thus, the personalities stay with the host all night and those who do not play during an event can be called to the rescue if one or one of their comrades has their life stolen, hanging on their back. , by zombies. They are fiercer, more offensive and more frightening than last year. “If I were a candidate, I would prefer to do it this year because it is more ‘pushy’, the events are more complicated, the mano a mano with the zombies is stronger”, summarizes Denis Brogniart who will no longer arbitrate the three mini-games this season, now entrusted to the butler who left his shelter to settle in a makeshift trailer.
As for the events, we find the same facilities as last year such as the Vertigo hotel, the memento and the cursed forest. On the other hand, each has an “bis version”. Concretely, two different games can be played at the same place. In the first season, the candidates stayed at the Vertigo hotel. From this Saturday, they will also be able to climb to its top in the alternative version. Thanks to this stratagem, the show can boast of offering eleven new proofs.
“It’s not the same show anymore”
Rémi Faure, director of TF1 flow programs, came to watch the filming of the show. “We wanted something a little more intense than season 1 from all points of view,” he explains. This requires shorter and therefore more games. “We added a big test and the exit which is a test in itself now,” he says. In addition, the channel and the production agreed to give the audience the impression that the participants could lose everything. “For this reason, we encourage the zombies to steal more lives, they go a little more”, concludes Rémi Faure. With each life stolen, it is ten seconds less in the vault, where the stars initially have two minutes.
On the set, a man runs in all directions. This is Arthur, “very excited” to start a new shoot. “It’s not the same show anymore”, he assures us, compared to the first season which hired 25 zombies against 50 this year. When it aired in December 2020, the program had been criticized for its lack of action, stakes and fights with the creatures. “We didn’t think that people were more drawn to zombies than to games, they were almost disappointed with the non-aggressiveness of zombies. This year, zombie fans will get their money’s worth, ”promises the producer.
The longest night of their lives?
As the sun has set for a few minutes, the atmosphere changes on the plateau. It is 10:15 p.m. and the doors of the District Z close to welcome the five guests for the evening. A few words are exchanged with Denis Brogniart upstream. The host finds Maxine, whom he left four days earlier for the final of Koh Lanta. At the top of the two towers, two guards shine their spotlight on us. Four cameramen focus their objective on the candidates, two others are focused on Denis Brogniart. Then begins one of the longest nights of their life.
Twenty minutes later, a horde of zombies stalks its prey behind the wreckage of a car. The monsters are docile: they wait for the participants to pass in front of them to attack them. That’s it, the celebrities have the green light to enter Professor Z’s lair. Their cries mingle with the growls of the zombies. Once the personalities have reached their checkpoint, the zombies take on a more human appearance and find their voice. “It was intensive,” exclaims one creature. “Me too, I’m out of breath,” replied another.
Two tests in two hours
An hour after the start of filming, it is finally time for the five volunteers to submit to the first test. This is a novelty, the crypt of Meroe. Two candidates tied back to back must find pieces of talisman that must be reconstituted. Problem: one is blindfolded and the other has his hands tied up. At the time of the presentation of the instructions by Denis Brogniart, the jokes fuse. Even Baptiste Lecaplain manages to distract the facilitator who must recover. Between the explanations and the preparation of the candidates, the test does not start until fifteen minutes later. Will they wipe the casts successfully?
Midnight has passed. Denis Brogniart is in place for the second round and is reminded of the rules by a member of the production. The team is gathered at the foot of the Vertigo hotel to play the new version. Baptiste Lecaplain and Maxine from Koh Lanta climb onto the net while Mr. Octopus, on the cow floor, reconstructs a message thanks to clues caught in the air by his comrades. It’s a big mess not organized, Baptiste shouts in all directions. “I do not mean but Olivier Minne, he would have given clues”, launches the comedian to Denis Brogniart at the end of the game.
The show is far from over for the candidates as well as for Denis Brogniart and the technical teams. A break will be welcome between 4 a.m. and 5 a.m. before resuming hostilities until approximately 8 a.m. By then, the celebrities will have had time to do a few injuries that they will remember for a long time.