# Les Visiteurs 2: The Corridors of Time
**Les Visiteurs 2: The Corridors of Time** (French: *Les Visiteurs II: Les couloirs du temps*) is a 1998 French comedy directed by Jean-Marie Poiré and the direct sequel to the 1993 hit *Les Visiteurs*. It continues the time-travel misadventures of the medieval knight Count Godefroy de Montmirail ([Jean Reno](https://www.edgepedia.org/jean-reno)) and his servant Jacquouille la Fripouille (Christian Clavier), who swap places across the Middle Ages and the 20th century. Poiré wrote the screenplay and dialogues with Clavier, and the film was released in French cinemas on 11 February 1998 with a running time of about 118 minutes.[1](https://www.allocine.fr/film/fichefilm_gen_cfilm%3D1919.html) • [2](https://www.cnc.fr/professionnels/visas-et-classification/89797)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Release | 11 February 1998 in France; CNC visa dated 11/02/1998, rated "tous publics"[2](https://www.cnc.fr/professionnels/visas-et-classification/89797) |
| Director and writers | Jean-Marie Poiré; screenplay and dialogues by Christian Clavier and Jean-Marie Poiré[1](https://www.allocine.fr/film/fichefilm_gen_cfilm%3D1919.html) |
| Running time | 118 minutes (CNC lists 119 min)[1](https://www.allocine.fr/film/fichefilm_gen_cfilm%3D1919.html) • [2](https://www.cnc.fr/professionnels/visas-et-classification/89797) |
| Budget | 140 million francs, against 50 million for the first film; one of the largest budgets then assembled in France[3](https://www.allocine.fr/film/fichefilm-1919/secrets-tournage/) |
| French admissions | 8,039,528 (CNC figures), against about 14 million for *Les Visiteurs* (1993)[4](https://voyage-en-liberte.fr/boxoffice/Visiteurs2.php) |
| Recasting | Valérie Lemercier declined to return; Muriel Robin took the role of Béatrice/Frénégonde[3](https://www.allocine.fr/film/fichefilm-1919/secrets-tournage/) |
| Music | Éric Lévi[5](https://www.canalplus.com/cinema/les-visiteurs-2-les-couloirs-du-temps/h/433262_40099/resume-casting/) |
## Spoilers
### Plot
The story picks up moments after the end of the first film. Godefroy de Montmirail believes he has returned to his own era with his squire, but Jacquouille has in fact stayed in the 20th century, sending his descendant Jacques-Henri Jacquart back to the Middle Ages in his place.[6](https://www.cineserie.com/news/cinema/les-visiteurs-2-pourquoi-muriel-robin-regrette-davoir-fait-le-film-5629591/)
Godefroy's wedding to Frénégonde de Pouille is annulled by her father because jewels belonging to the family, including the sacred relic known as the "dentelette de Sainte-Rolande", have been stolen. The thieves are Jacquouille and Ginette (Marie-Anne Chazel), who have carried the treasure back with them to the present day, where they sow disorder. Godefroy must recover the goods of his future in-laws before he can hope to marry Frénégonde.[7](https://tf1pro.com/programmes/produit/les-couloirs-du-temps-les-visiteurs-ii) • [8](https://www.telepoche.fr/programme-tv/fiche/45700793/les-visiteurs-2-les-couloirs-du-temps)
The corridors of time remain open, and characters cross repeatedly between the two eras. In the 20th century, Béatrice manages to send Jacquouille back to the Middle Ages, accidentally accompanied by her husband Jean-Pierre, who has drunk the time-travel potion by mistake; the two arrive in the middle of a Burgundian war that Godefroy repels. Godefroy then discovers that Jacquouille is the true thief and brings him, Jean-Pierre, and Jacquart back to the 20th century to find the relic, learning that the jewels have passed to Cora, widow of a descendant of the count.[6](https://www.cineserie.com/news/cinema/les-visiteurs-2-pourquoi-muriel-robin-regrette-davoir-fait-le-film-5629591/)
## Production
**A sequel from the start.** Poiré had imagined a second film while writing the first, but the financiers, already nervous about the subject, did not follow the idea at the time. The open ending of *Les Visiteurs* left room for a sequel, and after the first film drew 14 million admissions, Clavier and Poiré developed one quickly.[9](https://www.jeanmariepoire.com/realisateur/) • [3](https://www.allocine.fr/film/fichefilm-1919/secrets-tournage/)
**The recasting.** Valérie Lemercier, who played both Frénégonde and her descendant Béatrice in the first film, had said during its promotion that she did not wish to continue the adventure if a sequel was made; AlloCiné's production notes call this the main reason the shoot was delayed, while a [France 2](https://www.edgepedia.org/france-2) report at the time stated that Lemercier "had not approved the second screenplay". Muriel Robin took over the dual role.[3](https://www.allocine.fr/film/fichefilm-1919/secrets-tournage/) • [10](https://www.ina.fr/ina-eclaire-actu/video/cab98005860/les-visiteurs-ii)
**Budget and locations.** At 140 million francs, the production was one of the largest ever mounted in France at the time, nearly triple the 50 million of the first film; the two stars each received 10 million francs. The medieval scenes were shot in [Dordogne](https://www.edgepedia.org/dordogne) at the Château de Beynac, with the remaining scenes in the Paris region and at the Studios d'Epinay.[3](https://www.allocine.fr/film/fichefilm-1919/secrets-tournage/)
## Reception
The film opened strongly, with a first weekend of more than 2 million spectators in France, exceeding the most optimistic forecasts.[11](https://www.lemonde.fr/archives/article/1998/02/19/les-meilleures-entrees-en-france_3658075_1819218.html) It finished with 8,039,528 admissions in France, making it, according to Poiré's own account, the second-biggest French success of 1998, beaten at the last moment by *Le Dîner de cons*.[4](https://voyage-en-liberte.fr/boxoffice/Visiteurs2.php) • [9](https://www.jeanmariepoire.com/realisateur/) In 1998, *Le Dîner de cons*, *Les Visiteurs 2*, and *[Taxi](https://www.edgepedia.org/taxi-1998-film)* together accounted for half the admissions (22.73 million) of all French films that year.[12](https://scholar.lib.vt.edu/InterNews/LeMonde/issues/2000/monde.20000509.pdf)
Critical and audience response was cooler than for the first film. AlloCiné spectators gave it an average of 2.4 out of 5 across about 32,000 notes, and the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer stood at 48 percent.[1](https://www.allocine.fr/film/fichefilm_gen_cfilm%3D1919.html) • [13](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/les-couloirs-du-temps-les-visiteurs-2) Recurring criticisms in viewer reviews target the repetition of gags from the 1993 film, the louder register of Clavier's performance, and above all the replacement of Valérie Lemercier by Muriel Robin, which many reviewers cite as the film's main weakness.[14](https://www.allocine.fr/film/fichefilm-1919/critiques/spectateurs/recentes/) Télé-Loisirs judged that the special effects took precedence over the comedy, while still calling it a joyful film carried by the actors' amusing hamming.[5](https://www.canalplus.com/cinema/les-visiteurs-2-les-couloirs-du-temps/h/433262_40099/resume-casting/)
Muriel Robin herself later expressed regret. In a January 2022 interview she said she should not have accepted the role: "I wasn't happy, so I wasn't very funny, and I wasn't very good either, because you have to be chosen to give your best."
## Aftermath
The film ends on an open ending, and Poiré and Clavier considered a third installment at the time; a third film, *Les Visiteurs: la Révolution*, was eventually released in 2016.[15](https://actus.sfr.fr/cine-series/cinema/les-visiteurs-ou-voir-tous-les-films-de-la-saga_AN-202307190005.html) Poiré and Clavier also traveled to the United States for the English-language remake *[Just Visiting](https://www.edgepedia.org/just-visiting)* (2001), which underperformed commercially.[9](https://www.jeanmariepoire.com/realisateur/) • [16](https://www.ozap.com/actu/christian-clavier-et-jean-marie-poire-travaillent-a-une-suite-des-visiteurs/443381)
## References
1. [Les Visiteurs 2 : Les couloirs du temps – Fiche film, AlloCiné](https://www.allocine.fr/film/fichefilm_gen_cfilm%3D1919.html)
2. [Visas et Classification – Les couloirs du temps – Les visiteurs II, CNC](https://www.cnc.fr/professionnels/visas-et-classification/89797)
3. [Anecdotes du film Les Visiteurs 2 : Les couloirs du temps, AlloCiné](https://www.allocine.fr/film/fichefilm-1919/secrets-tournage/)
4. [Les couloirs du temps – Les visiteurs 2 : Box office du film en France (chiffres CNC)](https://voyage-en-liberte.fr/boxoffice/Visiteurs2.php)
5. [Résumé et casting – Les visiteurs 2 : les couloirs du temps, Canal+](https://www.canalplus.com/cinema/les-visiteurs-2-les-couloirs-du-temps/h/433262_40099/resume-casting/)
6. [Les Visiteurs 2 : pourquoi Muriel Robin regrette d'avoir fait le film ?, CineSérie](https://www.cineserie.com/news/cinema/les-visiteurs-2-pourquoi-muriel-robin-regrette-davoir-fait-le-film-5629591/)
7. [Les couloirs du temps – Les visiteurs II, TF1 Pro](https://tf1pro.com/programmes/produit/les-couloirs-du-temps-les-visiteurs-ii)
8. [Les visiteurs 2 : les couloirs du temps, Télépoche](https://www.telepoche.fr/programme-tv/fiche/45700793/les-visiteurs-2-les-couloirs-du-temps)
9. [Réalisateur – Jean-Marie Poiré (site officiel)](https://www.jeanmariepoire.com/realisateur/)
10. [Les visiteurs II, reportage France 2 (INA, 8 février 1998)](https://www.ina.fr/ina-eclaire-actu/video/cab98005860/les-visiteurs-ii)
11. [Les meilleures entrées en France, Le Monde (19 février 1998)](https://www.lemonde.fr/archives/article/1998/02/19/les-meilleures-entrees-en-france_3658075_1819218.html)
12. [Le Monde, 10 mai 2000 (box-office 1998)](https://scholar.lib.vt.edu/InterNews/LeMonde/issues/2000/monde.20000509.pdf)
13. [The Corridors of Time: The Visitors II, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/les-couloirs-du-temps-les-visiteurs-2)
14. [Dernières Critiques du film Les Visiteurs 2 : Les couloirs du temps - AlloCiné](https://www.allocine.fr/film/fichefilm-1919/critiques/spectateurs/recentes/)
15. [Les Visiteurs : récap de la saga disponible en VOD, SFR Actus](https://actus.sfr.fr/cine-series/cinema/les-visiteurs-ou-voir-tous-les-films-de-la-saga_AN-202307190005.html)
16. [Christian Clavier et Jean-Marie Poiré travaillent à une suite des "Visiteurs", Ozap](https://www.ozap.com/actu/christian-clavier-et-jean-marie-poire-travaillent-a-une-suite-des-visiteurs/443381)
---
*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Franchise and series entries as standalone works › Teen and comedy series film entries › Entries released in the 1990s*
*Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 21, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license