Julie de Bona in “Erica”, the new TF1 series: “A sunny character but also full of wounds”

It’s a role that fits him like a glove. After playing a maid disfigured by a fire in The Charity Bazaar then a nun in The FightersJulie de Bona now slips into the skin of a novelist in Ericathe new series broadcast this Monday on TF1 and in free streaming on TF1+ (new window). Adaptation of three novels from the series Fjällbacka by Camilla Läckberg (The Ice Princess, The Preacher et The stonemason), the fiction transposes the universe of the queen of Swedish crime fiction into the Landes.

Returning to her hometown to settle her parents’ estate, Erica Faure, a crime writer lacking inspiration, discovers with horror her childhood friend dead in her bathtub, her wrists slashed. Convinced that it is not a suicide, she launches into an investigation where the past and the present will intertwine. She doesn’t know it yet, but her meeting with police captain Patrick Saab (Grégory Fitoussi) will also change the course of her life.

Did you know the world of Camilla Läckberg?

No not at all. I read the books just before filming. These are big books! I also read the fifth volume of the series because it talks more about the intimate story of Erica’s character.

Are you a fan of thrillers?

No, I’m not particularly a fan of thrillers. It’s not my favorite world. I have the impression that today we see a lot of murders on television. To tell a story, you need deaths and investigations. What I liked about Ericais that there is magic in writing. But also more romantic comedy and solar comedy. It’s very human. But above all, I fell in love with the character.

Erica is a little tart candy with flaws and an immense need for love

Julie de Bona

Erica Faure is a sunny woman in appearance, but she hides a lot of wounds…

That’s what I liked. She is sunny, but she is also full of wounds, of neurosis, of things that she has not resolved. She’s a little tart candy with flaws and a huge need for love. It also transforms people, it makes them happy. She made me happy, like she was my best friend. And then I find that we forgive her everything, she is a little irresistible!

Do you have anything in common with Erica?

This is perhaps the character closest to who I am, even if there are things that I looked for outside of myself. It was a bit of a meeting between her and me, we gave to each other. But it’s true that we have the same energy.

I dream of a badass role in an action movie

Julie de Bona

The six episodes follow three investigations which are each time completed…

Yes, it’s an original format that we’ve seen less on television. It’s not a 6 × 52 minute series with six murders. Each evening, made up of two episodes, follows a crime. Moreover, during the second evening, we will find the characters of Erica Faure and Patrick Saab after a leap forward in time. Same for the third evening. We’re going to do story ellipses which give a little bit of stakes and excitement for the viewer. The more we progress into the evenings, the more we become attached to the two characters and their love story.

In front of you, we find Gregory Fitoussi with whom you play the game of cat and mouse…

Ah yes, the handsome Grégory Fitoussi! I couldn’t have imagined a better partner than him, he’s perfect. They will indeed play cat and mouse until the end, I think it’s very good.

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Have you met Camilla Läckberg?

Yes, she came to the set several times. It’s a love. She was very happy to meet me. She is a woman who has sold millions of books, but who is incredibly simple and kind. She is very accessible.

You’ve played a lot of different characters. What role have you wanted, but have never been offered?

I dream of a role of “badass” in an action film, like Jennifer Lopez in Shotgun Wedding. I’ve never done that and yet I love everything physical and sporty. That would amuse me a lot.