Aahana Swrup
Netflix’s French biographical drama show, ‘Class Act,’ follows the life and legend of Bernard Tapie, the country’s most infamous business tycoon who left a lasting impression on culture during the 70s and 80s. With big ambitions and humble beginnings, Bernard’s story charts the tale of an underdog who starts off as the son of two working-class parents and goes on to become an iconic personality in business, sports, and politics.
The show follows Bernard’s tumultuous professional journey, focusing on his career cornerstones and highlights. In the narrative, Dominique Damianos, Bernard’s partner in business and private life, plays a crucial role in the latter’s success. Considering the character’s significance in the show, viewers must be curious to know about her real-life counterpart and where she is nowadays. Read on to find out!
Where Is Dominique Tapie Now?
Dominique Tapie née Mialet-Damianos, was born on May 19, 1950. At the age of 19, while working as a Secretary for a businessman affiliated with Bernard Tapie, the young woman crossed paths with the former. At the time, both individuals were reportedly in separate committed relationships; while Dominique was engaged, Tapie was married to Michèle Tapie (née Layec), with two kids — Nathalie and Stéphane. Nonetheless, once the two fell in love, they left their previous lives behind to be with each other. Thus began Dominique’s life in the public eye by her husband’s side.
May of 1987 saw their official union as spouses when they tied the knot in Corfu, Greece. The couple also had two kids, Laurent and Sophie, and continued to have a close relationship with Tapie’s kids from his first marriage. Throughout Tapie’s career, Dominique continued to support her husband through thick and thin, even during his imprisonment in 1997. Following Tapie’s prison release, the duo continued on with their lives as a happy family until 2017 brought the tragic discovery of Tapie’s stomach cancer.
Three years in the future, the couple underwent another mishap when violent burglars attacked their house in Seine-et-Marne, Combs-la-Ville. During the home invasion, Dominique somehow escaped their captor’s hold and brought an end to the traumatic night by rushing to the neighbor’s house and calling the cops. On October 3, 2021, the woman lost her husband after his years-long battle with cancer. These days, Dominique prefers to live a life out of the media’s attention and keeps to herself on most days. Recently, she returned to the limelight as the Netflix miniseries ‘Class Act’s’ release neared.
Prior to his death, Tapie was reportedly against the fictionalization of his life at the hands of the director-writer duo Olivier Demangel and Tristan Séguéla. Similarly, Tapie’s family members have been vocal critics of the series in the past weeks. In Dominique’s case, she acknowledged the strong performance delivered by Laurent Lafitte as Bernard Tapie’s character. However, Dominique was also displeased by the several creative liberties the narrative takes to tell Tapie’s story. In particular, Dominique stated that she took offense to her on-screen character’s portrayal as an active participant in control of Tapie’s business affairs.
Dominique insists that the showrunners chose to alter reality and portray Tapie and Dominique’s relationship akin to the infamous couple Bonnie and Clyde, to bring an entertaining dynamic into the story. She believes that the approach only resulted in an inaccurate depiction of Dominique Tapie. Therefore, citing similar inaccuracies within the show in the depiction of Tapie’s personal life, Dominique has condemned the show, making her disapproval clear. Furthermore, since the show lacked any consultation from Tapie’s family, Dominique urged the public to read her book, ‘Bernard, la Fureur de Vivre,’ about her relationship with Tapie, written in collaboration with Catherine Siguret released on March 22, 202.
According to Dominique, her debut venture into writing holds the real truth behind Bernard Tapie’s life. Consequently, Dominique brief return to the media to discuss her thoughts on the Netflix show has also included interviews and conversations where she promotes her book, sharing details about her life. Fans of ‘Class Act’ or people interested in Tapie and Dominique’s lives can find several of these interviews given by the latter across different French channels.
