Investigation“Successions season II” (1/6). The future of the Pathé group? At 87, his powerful boss and sole master on board refuses to mention him. This authoritarian man is however at the head of a large family, but torn, bruised by deep wounds.
On the cliffs of the Pays de Caux, in Normandy, nestles, nestled in lush greenery, a mansion with one of the most beautiful private gardens in the world: the Bois-des-Moutiers. Located in the town of Varengeville (Seine-Maritime), this 12-hectare park was laid out at the end of the 19the century by a couple of lovers of nature and exceptional landscapes. In this unique place, open to the public for a long time, aesthetes can stroll among Chinese azaleas, Himalayan rhododendrons, Atlas cedars or Japanese maples. Claude Monet, Pablo Picasso, Marcel Proust, André Breton, Jean Cocteau, Claude Debussy, Maurice Ravel or Erik Satie all came here to seek tranquility and inspiration.
It is this treasure that the president of Pathé, Jérôme Seydoux, 87, bought in March 2019. Since his wife, Sophie, fell in love with this place, he embarked on pharaonic works, entrusting the renovation of the building to the famous decorator Jacques Grange and the layout of the gardens to Madison Cox, renowned landscaper and heir to businessman Pierre Bergé, former shareholder of the Le Monde group. As if he had eternity ahead of him…
Fight against time
A small, dry silhouette, a piercing blue gaze, a fierce determination, Jérôme Seydoux is a man to fight against time and decline. This film tycoon is a secretive, cold and brittle Protestant, a demanding boss, attentive to his figure and his diet, an accomplished sportsman (golf, skiing, gymnastics). Two years ago, he parachuted. He surrounded himself with reputable doctors and, like other powerful men of his generation, warded off death by working tirelessly. “At 50, he said he would stop ten years later. At 60, he swore to retire at 70. Since he was well over 80, he no longer talks about anything! », laughs a former employee of Pathé. The big boss ended up believing himself immortal.
Jérôme Seydoux Fornier de Clausonne, whose company is estimated at more than 1 billion euros, is a heir of a particular kind: he refuses to consider his own succession. He goes to his office every day, throwing himself energetically into new productions, without telling anyone who will take his place when the time comes. In the corridors of Pathé, a stone’s throw from the Champs-Elysées, those in charge evoke in a low voice the” after “, but no one would dare to ask the question out loud. Asked about this by The world in 2013, the person concerned replied: “I am not an artist, but I share with them the conviction that one should not retire and that it is appropriate to die on stage. » His succession is a taboo subject that he never broaches. Needless to say, he again refused to tell us about it.
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