Daniel Prévost, alias Denis Forestier, was born to Micheline Chevalier and Mohand Ait Salem.

After attending drama school in Paris, Prévost made his theatre début alongside the likes of Michel Serrault in Un certain M. Blot.

In his early beginnings he both performed alongside Boby Lapointe and became acquainted with Jean Yanne, later becoming one of the latter's favourite actors.

Although his television and cinema career began in the 1960s, it was in the 1970s that he found fame through Jacques Martin's satirical news programme Le petit rapporteur, the part for which he is best known.

He excelled as an evilly leering tax inspector – "he'd audit his own mother" in Francis Veber's 1998 comedy Le Dîner de Cons for which he won the César Award for best supporting actor.