“Pierre Niney Takes on the Complex Role of ‘The Count of Monte Cristo’ in Ambitious New Adaptation”[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_500yyojxlY[/embed]

We met him during the Cannes Festival last May. He was waiting for us on the terrace of a central hotel on the Croisette – smiling, warm, direct. And why not? The now 35-year-old Pierre Niney (“Yves Saint Laurent,” “Frantz,” “The Unraveling of Life,” “Camouflage”) is experiencing the best decade of his career, choosing projects that deftly straddle – from heavy French dramas to surreal comedies, and from small indie festival films to expensive, epic blockbusters.

At the Cannes Festival, he was there to present, out of competition, “The Count of Monte Cristo,” the new cinematic adaptation of Alexandre Dumas’ classic novel, as envisioned by creators Matthieu Delaporte and Alexandre de la Patellière – grand in ambition, spectacular, sparkling in production values but dark and melancholic in the portrayal of the avenging hero. As he confessed to us, this was also the great challenge of the role – its contradictions.

Surrounded by Pierfrancesco Favino (“The Traitor”), Anaïs Demoustier (“The Snows of Kilimanjaro”), Patrick Mille (“The Three Musketeers”), Laurent Lafitte (“That Man”), and Ana Maria Bartolomei (“The Event”), Niney transforms from the innocent sailor Edmond Dantès, full of dreams for the future, into the mysterious “Count of Monte Cristo” to avenge those who unjustly imprisoned him and deprived him of marrying the love of his life.

Read what he confessed to Flix about whether he was anxious about the comparisons with previous cinematic adaptations of the emblematic hero’s adventure, who was the collaborator he loved and hated at the same time, and how strategically (or not) he plans each step of his career.

When one faces such a famous story, such an iconic hero, who has been depicted several times on the big screen, and through such a blockbuster, what are the feelings? A challenge? A little fear? Or pure enthusiasm?

Only enthusiasm. Because I had in my hands a truly dream role. It took me out of my comfort zone and challenged me to showcase the entire spectrum of my acting range. Because the character has many and contradictory moments – innocence, anger, madness, obsession, jealousy, revenge. You feel you will play an unjust hero, but you also play the devil – an obsessive avenger who loses his sense of proportion. It’s such a rich work – it shows pure love and raw hatred, drawing you into the brightest and darkest sides of human nature. It resembles ancient Greek tragedy: how can one transform into something evil while starting off to do good. So, such a role, such an opportunity was a real gift.

The book by Alexandre Dumas is classic – a piece of French tradition. Were you one of those kids who grew up with this story? Did you ever imagine that you would grow up and play “The Count of Monte Cristo”?

Yes, of course, I grew up with the myth of the Count, we all in France consider it part of our popular tradition. I was about 16 years old when I read Dumas’ book and the truth is that I fell in love with it – I couldn’t put it down, I spent many nights staying up late to finish it. It’s a treasure, and as you read it over the years, you discover many much more mature facets. Dumas’ language successfully dissects human nature, which is capable of the greatest good and the greatest evil. The fact that 20 years later I have the opportunity to play this hero is crazy and unexpected. I wish I could go back and whisper it in my teenage self’s ear (laughs).

The directing duo confessed that you were their No. 1 and only choice for the lead role. They wanted someone “handsome and mysterious, charming and melancholic.” When an actor hears such a statement, do they feel flattered or does this put extra pressure, extra weight to meet expectations?

(Laughs) No weight – they chose me, that’s what I wanted, I got the role, perfect! If they were wrong, that’s their problem (laughs). Look, no, I don’t feel pressure anymore with the challenges of the job. Perhaps because I’ve grown up. I’m 35 years old, I have two children, I see things a bit differently now. My work is joy and creation. Over the years, I’ve learned to relax and not stress about others’ expectations. I took on a role in a wonderful, huge production. We suggest a reading of Dumas’ book, we all worked hard and hope that it will be enjoyed.

The preparation for the film must have been a serious commitment. What troubled you the most? The training for the action scenes, or the hours you spent in makeup every day to be transformed into the Count?

The sword-fighting scenes, horseback riding, action scenes in general were well worked on with plenty of training and choreography, and everything went smoothly, having beside me a capable team of trainers and stuntmen. However, the person I ended up knowing better than my own father, the one I loved, hated at times and loved again was the makeup artist of the film, Pierre Olivier Persin. I spent a total of 155 hours in his chair during the 80 days of filming. We were the first to arrive on set, in the deep darkness before dawn, in some frozen, huge towers in the wilderness, and the processing began with dozens of chemicals on my face to make the prosthetic makeup stick and transform me. And at the end of the day, we were the last to leave, because all of this had to be peeled off my face. But I was in the hands of a true artist and I am very proud of the result. I believe that in our version, you can believe that the Count of Monte Cristo has transformed so much that he wasn’t recognized. He doesn’t wear a mask; he truly is another person. We do it, and it looks realistic – something that was never the case in any version of the past.

What’s particularly interesting in this modern rendition of the story is how much the hero resembles Batman. Both are avengers, they have a secret lair with their gadgets, they wear masks. Do you agree?

Absolutely! I indeed felt like Bruce Wayne! However, the mythology of Batman also stems from Dumas’ book. Many ideas have been borrowed from the Count of Monte Cristo; Bruce Wayne – a rich man who has the power to create any gadget he wants and to follow through on his revenge. So, no, we didn’t copy Batman, but went to the source of inspiration for all of us – the book.

We have been watching you for over 15 years move flexibly between comedy, drama, indie small festival films, and blockbusters. How do you choose what you want to play? What criteria do you use?

What I want is not to do the same things over and over. I want to shoot a different movie every time. Something that challenges me to step out of my comfort zone and test my limits. I think I agree to a project when I read a smart script and when I am offered collaboration with artists who guarantee that we will create something interesting, that will make a proposal, that justifies why we ask viewers to pay a ticket and come to see it. Otherwise, I don’t have strategies for the direction of my career. I am open, or at least I try to be. My only desire, but also requirement, is to have something good to say in a story. People may read us and think, “oh dear, there are always good stories out there.” That’s not the case. Very few scripts have real interest. Those are what I’m searching for.

“The Count of Monte Cristo” is hitting theaters on Thursday, September 5, distributed by Spentzos Film