In the world of cinema, on-screen chemistry sometimes hides behind-the-scenes discord. On the set of the cult film Visitors, where Valérie Lemercier played the dashing Frénégonde, she encountered significant friction with her co-stars Jean Reno and Christian Clavier. These tensions weighed on his filming experience, despite the resounding success of the film which attracted more than 13 million spectators in France.
Manifest disagreement between Jean Reno, Christian Clavier and Valérie Lemercier
From the first days of filming, the atmosphere between the actors was far from ideal. Valérie Lemercier revealed in an interview with Here is : “They can’t get away with it, it’s incredible”. She explains that, unlike the apparent friendship between Jean Reno and Christian Clavier
his relationship with them was tinged with distance and coldness. “I wasn’t on the same team with them,” she confides. A clear divide which isolated her during the months of filming.
Filming Visitors under pressure
The work climate was so tense that even the simplest interactions became complex. “It was very hard every day”, admits Valérie Lemercier. Attempts to create a light atmosphere often failed, giving way to a general feeling of unease. During one scene, an exchange of lines between the actors had to be interrupted several times due to electric atmosphere. “I didn’t feel their complicity transforming into inclusion”, she says. A work dynamic where she regularly felt excluded.
Impossible mediation between the actors
Faced with a heavy atmosphere, production tried to intervene by organizing
mediation sessions
. However, the efforts proved unsuccessful. “We tried meetings to clarify things, but there was really a wall between us”, declares Lemercier. These attempts at rapprochement did not succeed in breaking the ice, which allowed a persistence of clear division until the end of filming.
The disagreement on the plateau of Visitors reminds us that behind the cameras, actors sometimes have to navigate much more tumultuous waters than what the scenes on screen suggest…
Valérie Lemercier: her refusal to play in Visitors 2
Valérie Lemercier therefore chose not to reprise his role in the sequel to the film, Visitors 2. A decision which deeply disappointed Jean-Marie Poiré, director of the first film. He considers this refusal like an error.“When Valérie Lemercier refused to play in the second, she broke my heart. She was wrong” he confides. Jean-Marie Poiré adds: “She’s having a wonderful career, she’s a great clown, but it wouldn’t have hurt to add 8 million admissions to her list.”