Dikkenek Fans Flood Place Poelaert for 20th Anniversary

Fans of the cult Belgian comedy Dikkenek converged on Brussels’ Place Poelaert this weekend to celebrate the film’s 20th anniversary, packing the square where one of its most famous scenes was shot. The two-day event, held on 10 and 11 October 2026, featured free open-air screenings of an extended version of the film, the return of its iconic telephone booth, and appearances by members of the cast and crew, according to RTBF.

By Sunday, the broadcaster reported, the square in front of the Palais de Justice was “pleine à craquer”—packed to bursting.

A Homecoming for a Cult Classic

Released on 21 June 2006, Dikkenek was directed by Olivier Van Hoofstadt and co-written with Olivier Legrain. The film flopped at the box office on release but became a cult favourite through word-of-mouth, home video, and television, prized for its memorable one-liners and eccentric characters. Its title comes from a Brussels expression, borrowed from Dutch, for a boastful show-off.

The film’s cast includes François Damiens, Jean-Luc Couchard, Marion Cotillard, Mélanie Laurent, Dominique Pinon, and Florence Foresti. Organisers chose Place Poelaert deliberately: it is where the film’s celebrated car-jacking scene was filmed, with a telephone booth specially installed for the shoot.

As RTBF/Tipik noted in June, the film has become one of the pillars of Belgian comedy and a defining reference for a generation of Belgian millennials.

Festivities and Fan Devotion

The weekend programme included two free screenings of Dikkenek in a long version with roughly 13 minutes of restored cut scenes, alongside a grand quiz and screenings of two short films by Van Hoofstadt, A/K and KEO. Entry was free but required advance registration, and organiser details of the event were previewed by the broadcaster in September.

The actual telephone booth from the car-jacking scene was reinstalled on the square, allowing fans to lift the receiver and hear famous lines from the film.

Fans travelled from across Belgium and beyond. Romain and Nivong, two friends who drove five hours from France, told RTBF they arrived among the first. “We’ve known each other for more than 20 years, and whenever we message or call, there’s always a line from the film,” Romain said. “We simply had to be here.”

Others dressed as characters from the movie. Two fans, Thomas and Elliot, came as Claudy Focan, the role made famous by Damiens. One of them quoted a favourite line before reflecting on the film’s deeper pull: “I love Dikkenek because it really helped me in my personal life. It helped me get over quite a few heartbreaks.”

Director Reflects on an Accidental Hit

Van Hoofstadt, who attended the celebrations, reflected on the film’s unlikely success. “Making people laugh is still great. It’s not given to everyone,” he said. Of the film’s endurance, he added: “Its success? First of all, I didn’t do it on purpose.”

The director recalled an artisanal working method: he and Legrain tested scenes in cafés, watching the reactions of regulars before reworking them. The goal, he said, was “Belgian-style surrealism.” The car-jacking scene was a deliberate exercise in that register—outlandish, comic, and, in his words, “something never seen before.”

Familiar Faces in the Crowd

Among the attendees was Catherine Debroux, who had a small role in the film with a much-quoted line. Twenty years on, she said she has lost 100 kilograms and now passes almost unnoticed. “People don’t recognise me anymore either. It’s a bit invisible here,” she said, adding: “It was a great experience, I loved it. There’s nothing to be done—it gives you a boost.”

Claudine Frigant, who played the second of the film’s two memorable “women with chips,” was also present.

What’s Next

The anniversary confirmed that Dikkenek retains a durable hold on Belgian popular culture two decades after its release, sustained by a fan base that treats its dialogue as a shared language. Whether the momentum leads to further public screenings or the reinstallation of other fixtures from the film remains an open question—but for one weekend, Place Poelaert belonged once again to Claudy, Jean-Claude, and the line that started it all.