French acting icon Isabelle Adjani says she is set to co-star opposite Adèle Exarchopoulos in a Mission Impossible-style action comedy directed by Mélanie Laurent.
The feature is inspired by Bastien Vivès, Jérôme Mulot and Florent Ruppert’s French graphic novel ‘La Grande Odalisque’ about a gang of female expert thieves targeting high-end loot.
Adjani spilt the beans on the new role in an interview with the French newspaper ‘Nice Matin’ on Thursday.
“It will be a female ensemble film set between Paris and Corsica with Mélanie [Laurent] facing the camera and Adèle Exarchopoulos,” she said. “We are awaiting the reply of a fourth actress.”
She described the production as a “female Mission Impossible” adding “that is the touch of Mélanie Laurent who wants to do something out of the ordinary for France.”
Adjani is coming off a busy 2022, with credits including starring roles in François Ozon’s Fassbinder tribute and Berlinale 2022 opener Peter von Kant and upcoming TV movie Diane de Poitiers, in which she stars as the titular 16th Century courtier opposite Virginie Ledoyen and Gérard Depardieu.
The actress, who lives between Portugal and Paris, was in the South of France this week for a performance of Olivier Steiner’s play Le Vertige Marilyn at the annual Ramantuelle performing arts festival. The work imagines a conversation between Marilyn Monroe and Adjani, with the actress oscillating between both roles.
According to other French media reports, pre-production has begun on Laurent’s upcoming film which is set to shoot in September, with a call for extras launched this week for a day of shooting on the world-famous Le Mans 24 Hours racing circuit.
The film is reportedly produced by Gaumont and will mark Laurent’s sixth feature behind the camera after The Adopted, Breathe, documentary Tomorrow, Diving and The Mad Women’s Ball.
Laurent has also been busy in front of the camera with upcoming credits including a supporting role in Netflix Murder Mystery 2, opposite Adam Sandler and Jennifer Aniston, which wrapped in France in July.
A number of works by comic book artist Vivès have been adapted for cinema including Polina, which was the inspiration for the 2016 feature by Valérie Müller and Angelin Preljocaj, and Cannes 2022 Directors’ Fortnight title Falcon Lake which is based on his 2017 work Une Soeur.
Contacted by Deadline for confirmation of the details provided by Adjani, Gaumont said it had no comment to make at this time.
The agents of Adjani, Exachopoulos and Laurent have yet to respond to requests for confirmation of the production and roles.
