"You Don't Change a Winning Team": The Success Story of "Sahbek Rajel" Continues
La Presse — Following the commercial success of the film "Sahbek Rajel" and the series broadcast during Ramadan on Nessma el Jadida, Kais Chekir is back with a second season of "Sahbek Rajel", the film and the sitcom. In terms of box office performance, this installment has far surpassed the director's previous films, namely "Sabak El Khir" and "Super Tounsi", and even other Tunisian films, according to its producer-distributor Lassaâd Goubantini.
As the saying goes, "you don't change a winning team", and indeed, "this second installment is a continuation of the previous one, still composed of the same technical and artistic team, with, of course, some changes in the story and casting," notes Goubantini.
The production has brought in new actors, such as Moez Gdiri, Samira Magroun, who replaces the unavailable Dora Zarrouk, popular singer Hichem Sallem, and others, alongside Karim Gharbi, Yassine Ben Gamra, Kaouther Bardi, Sofien Dahech, Slah Msadak, Lobna Dziri, Younes Ferhi, and Noureddine Bouhjaja. The characters are already well-established: Azouz, Mehdi, Titou, Bakhanou, Habib, Sassi, Souad, Maissa, etc. The storylines of some of these characters, such as Titou and Bakhanou, will be further developed in this police comedy, whose main theme is friendship and rivalry between two police officers, Mehdi and Azzouz.
The screenwriters, Ahmed Sayed, Zine Mastouri, and Kais Chekir, have also drawn inspiration from current events for this new version. The film falls under the action-comedy genre. Filming, which began three weeks ago, is set to wrap up in mid-October 2025, with a total of six weeks of filming for the movie. The filming of the 15 episodes of the sitcom will start in December and will last six weeks, while the film will already be released in theaters. "The sitcom's storylines will be more developed. The screenwriters are concerned with improving the story based on the film's impact on the audience," adds the producer.
As for the budget, it is higher than that of the previous film. Goubantini regrets the lack of movie theaters for this type of film, which attracts a large audience. "In inland cities where theaters are scarce, we resort to cultural centers, youth houses, and sometimes we are forced to rent party halls to screen the film. Last year, we had some problems with some cultural centers that refused to schedule the film without giving reasons," he laments. In Lassaâd Goubantini's opinion, Kais Chekir is improving with each film. This is the first Tunisian franchise, and it is the first time a Tunisian film has a second part. "We can even imagine a third installment. The criteria for the success of 'Sahbek Rajel' are first and foremost the scenario, dialogue, plot, twists, casting, which includes big stars, and direction," the producer rejoices. The film features special effects for the action scenes, which will be created by a team of Tunisian and Egyptian technicians. Kamel Touati, who starred in the films "Sabak el Khir" and "Super Tounsi", is not in "Shabek Rajel". "We thought of him, but I think he had commitments. He is a great actor who deserves all the respect, and he will surely have a place in future productions," our interlocutor concludes.
