Jamel Debbouze (born 18 June 1975) is a French-Moroccan actor, comedian, producer, director, and screenwriter.
Debbouze was born in Paris, France. His family, from Taza, moved back to Morocco the following year. They returned in 1979 and settled in Trappes in 1983, in the Paris region, where Debbouze spent the rest of his childhood. He is the eldest of six siblings: Jamel, Mohamed, Hayat, Karim, Rachid and Nawel Debbouze.
On 17 January 1990, at the train station in Trappes, he was struck by a passing train travelling at 150 km/h. He lost the use of his right arm in the accident, which killed another young man, Jean-Paul Admette, the son of the singer Michel Admette from Reunion. Debbouze was sued by the victim’s family for manslaughter but the case was dismissed for lack of proof. In December 2004, he was going to perform on stage on the French island of Réunion, but Debbouze cancelled, claiming illness, as Michel Admette's parents had organized a demonstration against his arrival.