- Born
- Died
- Nickname
- Pico
- Former Flemish actor Walter Michiels graduated from Royal Conservatory Antwerp in 1988. Remembered in the Dutch speaking part of Belgium, he suffered from an epoch-making breakdown in the 2000s. From 1990 to 1993, he played the ironically iconic character Hippoliet "Pico" Coppens in the sitcom F.C. De Kampioenen (1990) before he fell upon hard times due to an alcohol and drug addiction, which led to his dismissal, and subsequent mental health problems.
Considered a promising actor in the early 1990s, he established himself alongside contemporaries such as Koen De Bouw, Filip Peeters and Michael Pas. He starred in the show's early stages, from 1990 until 1993. Back in that time, the show quickly reached the peak of its popularity. He will likely forever be remembered since the titles he appears in generally enjoy iconic status in Flanders, often attributed to of his own, Jacques Vermeire's and Carry Goossens's contributions.
He was fired from F.C. De Kampioenen after four seasons. His portrayal of Pico Coppens, a part given to Peter Van Asbroeck at first but who was unable to due to physical problems, would become Michiels's only significant work.
He became a drug dealer years after his dismissal. He was convicted to 18 months in prison for selling drugs to minors in 2002, controversially displaying indifferent attitude in a Flemish documentary. In 2004, Belgian Court recommended an internment for Michiels. As late as 2023, he lived at the bottom of Belgian society, homeless for almost ten years, and came into contact with police and judiciary almost constantly. He was in a relationship with his co-star Ann Tuts. They separated in 1994.
- IMDb mini biography by: cnuddearthur
- SpousesSabine Melaerts(2009 - ?)Ann Tuts(? - 1994)
- RelativesKarel Michiels(Cousin)Nico Michiels, PhD(Sibling)
- In the 1990s, a thatched straw haircut resembling the hairdo of The Office UK's Gareth Keenan (Mackenzie Crook) and Jommeke, a Flemish cartoon figure drawn by cartoonist Jef Nys.
- Margriet Hermans, a Belgian singer and talk show host, for her show Margriet (1989) conducted an interview with Michiels in 1993. In it, Michiels said nothing. Before he went on the air with Hermans, he would have smoked a large amount of pot before he entered the building. She described it as the most awkward moment she ever had on her show. He may have done it on purpose, as he had said in many interviews that he did not understand the point of programs covering show business.
- His co-stars Herman Verbruggen and the late Johny Voners have described him as "Everyone should have a bit of Walter Michiels in him or her but he himself had too much of him" and "Walter's an idealist, he's too good for this world", respectively.
- Michiels has lived in Jamaica for six months in the mid-nineties.
- He got the part of Pico Coppens when co-creator Willy Vanduren saw his performance as Mercutio in Romeo en Julia (1991). Ann Tuts played Julia in the Flemish version of the famous Shakespeare play directed by Dirk Tanghe. Tuts helped him get the part of Pico, although Michiels did not actually want to become a television actor. He stated he accepted for the money it would make, not out of pure passion for acting. The Flemish Romeo and Juliet released as a TV movie in 1991.
- Did not like the show he co-starred in; F.C. De Kampioenen (1990). Did not want to become television actor in the first place and wanted to stay a stage actor. His passion for art and poetry did not come to full blossom, due to his public demise and subsequent problems. After his downfall, in a documentary Michiels was seen painting on canvas in his apartment.
- "Some youths claimed they bought drugs from Pico, but I'm not Pico, I'm Walter" - Walter Michiels in 2004
- My father used to say 'I have the impression that you always laugh at us'. Dora van der Groen told me 'Walter either you're a genius or you're just laughing at us'.
- Am I a weird bird? It's not like I'm standing in a traffic jam after work. It's not like I come home and want my plate of soup ready, so I can watch TV, lie in my bed, and get up in the morning. I'm not in that big current. I'm outside the aviary.
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