The 2010 Golden Globe Awards ceremony. In the room, absolute Hollywood greats like Meryl Streep, Tom Hanks, Cameron Diaz, or Leonardo DiCaprio. Comedian Ricky Gervais (65) explains to the assembled acting celebrities in his opening monologue: "Just looking at all the faces here reminds me of the great work that has been done this year - by cosmetic surgeons."
It's a typical example of a very prominent aspect of Ricky Gervais's work, who is now celebrating his 65th birthday. The stand-up comedian, writer, actor, and podcaster is known for his extremely biting humor, which some perceive as crossing boundaries.
Gervais himself naturally sees things a bit differently. Speaking to the British "Guardian", he once said about his appearances at the Golden Globes: "Should I pander to the 200 billionaires in the room or the 200 million people at home drinking beer, not winning awards, who aren't billionaires? For a comedian, that's not a question. I'm a court jester. I perform for the other rabble stuck in the mud."
At the Golden Globes, incidentally, this has worked out quite wonderfully for Gervais. He has hosted the awards show five times so far.
More Than Just a Provocateur
Gervais experienced his breakthrough relatively late. The original British "The Office", conceived by him and Stephen Merchant (51) at the BBC, aired on screens in the summer of 2001. At that time, Gervais was almost exactly 40 years old.
The format about a boss who makes his employees shudder and a workplace of daily madness found fans worldwide and was adapted as local versions in numerous countries. The American version with Steve Carell (63) in the lead role ran for nine seasons, the longest to date. The German version "Stromberg" was also a hit - and just recently produced another feature film after a long break.
As the creator of "The Office", Gervais has earned a lot of money with this worldwide achievement. The "Guardian" estimated his wealth in 2021 at 105 million pounds, which is over 120 million euros at today's exchange rates.
Perfect Meta-Series "Extras"
That series creator Gervais is not a one-hit wonder was proven by his very next production after "The Office". In the BBC-HBO series "Extras", he plays an extra who hangs around the sets of major Hollywood productions and gets into absurd situations with the stars. In season two, "Harry Potter" star Daniel Radcliffe, Sir Ian McKellen, David Bowie, and Robert De Niro played fictionalized versions of themselves.
But "Extras" offers even more than just meta-humor, also captivating with a wonderfully drawn friendship between Gervais's Andy Millman and his best friend Maggie, played by Ashley Jensen (56).
Gervais was also successful over the years with many other projects, such as his humorous travel documentary "An Idiot Abroad" or his podcast "The Ricky Gervais Show".
In his private life, the comedian has been in a relationship with his partner since 1982, the author and TV producer Jane Fallon (65). However, the couple never wanted to walk down the aisle, because for Gervais it wouldn't make sense to "have a ceremony before God because there is no God", the comedian explained once to the British "Times". He and Fallon also haven't brought children into the world, because they had "no desire to spend 16 years of their lives on it ... and of course there are too many children anyway".
