The actor is making his fifth film, a legal thriller, which allows him to work with his two daughters, Aurore and Nelly.
Interviewing Daniel Auteuil is to verify this belief: the greatest are often the most humble. Despite a fifty-year career, almost a hundred films and unforgettable collaborations with Claude Sautet, André Téchiné and Nicole Garcia, he is kindness and simplicity personified. Without cheating or posturing. This authenticity makes him one of the most respected actors in the profession, but also a director with a unique vision.
After adapting Marcel Pagnol (The Well-Digger’s Daughter, Marius, Fanny) and made a marital comedy (In love with my wife), he tackles the trial film. Adapted from a true story, The Thread features a lawyer who finds meaning and returns to criminal cases to defend a father accused of murdering his wife. In the shoes of the accused, the fragile colossus Grégory Gadebois. In that of the criminal lawyer, Auteuil himself, who, behind and in front of the camera, is at his best.
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Madame Figaro. – The Thread is produced by Hugo Gélin and your daughter Nelly. Is it she who brought you the subject?
Daniel Auteuil. – Yes, I had no intention of directing again, preferring to concentrate on my musical adventures and my acting activities. But Nelly, who was a lawyer, asked me to read Maître Mô’s blog. I was fascinated by Nicolas Milik’s story and what it conveyed: the solitude of the lawyer driven by his innermost conviction, the distress of a man who does not have the words to defend himself, the notions of truth and morality that differ according to individuals…
What was it like working with your daughter? Who was the boss on set?
It was Nelly. And I had to get used to it. (Laughs.) But I did well to listen to her. She and Hugo put me in touch with technicians of their generation: that allowed me to renew my perspective. On the other hand, since it is the first film that my daughter has produced, I had only one fear: to fail and drag her down with me. I had many doubts, until I decided to act in the film.
How did that reassure you?
Acting has always been my driving force. Being an actor in my films allows me to be at the heart of the reactor, to have a point of reference, a base. When I saw Claude Berri on the set of John of Florette, I understood this: no matter where he comes from, a director always identifies with one of his characters who becomes his anchor, his source of inspiration. For me, who has been an actor all my life, this feeling is tenfold. And it was easy for me to identify with this experienced lawyer, who, deep down, has no certainties. I have no more when I act.
A court of justice is a place where absolute dramas are played out and where great roles in the dramatic repertoire are written.
Daniel Auteuil
There are also points in common between a court and a theatre stage…
The talents of an orator and the power of conviction, no doubt. But, for me, the comparison ends there. If I make a mistake on stage, no life is at stake. The only thing I risk is the black hole, the ridicule, and, from experience, I can tell you that we recover very well from that. In a court of law, a mistake or a bad performance… and the guy gets twenty years. The notion of responsibility is not the same.
Did you immerse yourself in the legal environment to prepare the film?
I attended three days of the closed-door trial of a pedophile who had raped his stepdaughter between the ages of 10 and 13. I was moved by the courage of this woman who, now 40 years old, needs reparation that allows her to stand up. I was also struck by the absence of spectacle in the courtroom: the attorney general, the civil party, the presiding judge, all carried out their profession without any showmanship, with humanity. It was very surprising to see the simplicity of the words exchanged to evoke atrocious realities. That is what I wanted to report.
Was the trial film a director’s fantasy?
It’s a genre I like. A court of justice is a place where absolute dramas are played out and where great roles in the dramatic repertoire have been written. Embodying the law is also a balancing act: you must not fall into the grandiloquent. A few films have managed to avoid this pitfall: Autopsy of a murder, by Otto Preminger, The Truth, by Henri-Georges Clouzot, Verdict, de Sidney Lumet…
Being an actor in my films allows me to be at the heart of the reactor, to have a point of reference, a base
Daniel Auteuil
How do you explain the public’s enthusiasm for trial films or crime stories?
I can’t explain it: I discovered the popularity of these subjects with this film, noting that it was easier to put together than others. Perhaps viewers are fond of this type of story because it helps to keep evil at a distance? Besides, a courtroom offers a dive into all that is dark and unspeakable in our nature, and transgression has always fascinated human beings.
A word about your daughter Aurore, who plays in the film.
I had already worked with Aurore in 36 Quai des Orfèvres, and in The Imaginary Invalid, in the theatre. It’s delightful to work with my daughters, but it took me a while to take the plunge. Out of modesty, and because I was afraid that it would be a disservice to them to be associated with me. But Aurore is talented enough for that not to happen. Nelly too, but she will be compared less to her mother anyway (Emmanuelle Béart, Editor’s note) or to me, because she chose to work in the shadows.
Over time, do you fear that roles will become scarcer?
No, because I will do something else: sing, direct… Despite my age, I am lucky that young filmmakers approach me. For example, I am very proud to have been chosen by Rebecca Zlotowski to play Jodie Foster’s husband in her next film. Maybe I sent the right signals by navigating all genres, trying to break down barriers as much as possible. I have never forbidden myself anything.
The Threadby and with Daniel Auteuil, Grégory Gadebois… Released on September 11.
