No one has forgotten that evening in May 2019 when Virginie Efira suffered an unfortunate shoe accident while climbing the steps of her film Sibyl. Simply sublime in a long, glittering and slit black dress, on the arm of her companion Niels Schneider who plays with her in the film just like Adèle Exarchopoulos and the late Gaspard Ulliel, the 45-year-old Franco-Belgian actress had caused a sensation on two counts. The lace of her shoe coming off, she had been forced to sit down on the steps of the Palais des Festivals, her lover flying to her aid by retying her lace. A true lifesaver…
Three years later, and as she takes on the very important role of mistress of ceremonies for the 75th edition of the Cannes Film Festival, Virginie Efira talks about this shoe accident in a long interview granted to the Sunday newspaper, even if for her “it doesn’t have much interest to tell it”.
To “retame” or to sit on the steps?
“I’m on the red carpet wearing lace-up shoes that come undone. I have two options: re-stamp me or stop to re-lace them. Apparently sitting on the steps of Cannes is a small event. It created a stir among the photographers until Niels came as a savior to help me.. As if the march of the world depended on my damn shoelaces“, relates Virginie Efira. If more than one actress would have seen it with her stylist, not her. “I remember the face of my stylist, who thought he had made a serious mistake. But no, nothing is serious!“, concedes this year’s mistress of ceremonies to the JDD.
During this same interview, Virginie Efira does not hide all her love for Niels Schneider, with whom she has been in a relationship since 2018 and their meeting on the film An impossible love. Asked if it is difficult to live with an actor, the mother of little Ali (9 years old) – whom she had with the director Mabrouk El Mechri – answers: “Not if it’s Niels Schneider anyway! I recommend it to everyone.“A most touching response.
Her look for the opening already chosen
Actively working on her speech for Tuesday’s opening ceremony, which will be broadcast live on France 2 from 6:55 p.m. and which she will host herself (a return to her job of yesteryear), Virginie Efira has already solved the question of the outfit. “Yeah, I’m not going to arrive naked! “, she answers with humor to the newspaper which asks her if she knows how she will be dressed. “I will be in a Saint Laurent dress. It’s structured, no frills. It’s very French, even if the creator is Belgian. Anthony Vaccarrello and I, we were also in the same school in Brussels“, reveals Virginie Efira.
Looking forward to next Tuesday to discover this look which already looks very glamorous!