Billy Bob Thornton appears to have lifted his
Sling Blade (1996) performance---for which he lost the Best Actor Oscar, but won one for writing---entirely from
Hervé Sand's Chéri-Bibi, down to his facial expressions, mannerisms and vocalizations (lower pitched voice and grunting). The French series being completely obscure and unheard of in USA, no one was the wisest back in 1996.