Christophe Lambert does not open up easily, even when it comes to talking about his brother Gilles. Born under a bad sign, his brother struggled with disabilities and illness throughout his life, succumbing to bone cancer at only 58 years old. Deeply attached to his suffering brother, Christophe Lambert was profoundly affected by his loss. Appearing on the show “Le Jet de Luxe” in late February 2026, the international success from his role in “Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan” spoke emotionally about the relationship he had with his brother. “He was in dreams, in painting, in gardening. He was a dreamer! (…) Between us, there was a difficult communication because he remained at an age between 8 and 12 years old,” he explained.
Despite the love he had for his brother, Christophe Lambert admits to struggling to live with him, as all his parents’ attention was focused on his disabled brother. Years passed, and the actor’s father made a decision that young Christophe never understood. “It was very complicated for me to have a brother like him because we learn to love him and, at a certain point, my father was hiding him. So we also learn to listen to our father and start to hide him too. It was something very complicated,” he shared before getting emotional and breaking down in tears.
Although Christophe Lambert was close to his brother, he never really discussed his illness with him. However, his brother was fully aware of the seriousness of his condition. “In his personal universe, he had clarity. When the doctor told him he had bone cancer, he said ‘I’m really unlucky.’ And that is heavy because he was right, he really had no luck. Handicapped as a child, bone cancer, died at 58,” he concluded in tears.
Ten years have passed since the younger brother of Christophe Lambert passed away. For the actor, who struggled with alcoholism for a long time, the wound is still very painful even if he wants to focus on the positive aspects of their complicated relationship. His brother was his biggest inspiration for his career. “Most of my theater acting classes were with him and the monkeys. Watching him, understanding him, learning how to remain naïve, how to remain a child, how to stay human,” he revealed. In 1986, Christophe Lambert even dedicated his César award for Best Actor in the film “Subway” to his younger brother, finally shining a light on him.
