Riots in France start to worry Hollywood

While filming of The White Lotus, Ocean’s Eleven and Pumping Black continues in the south of the country, urban violence is beginning to alert American studios, according to an investigation by Variety.

France remains a popular setting for Hollywood, but images of the riots shaking the country are beginning to worry American productions. This is revealed by Variety, which reports that several studios have already sent precautionary instructions to their teams, particularly for filming and location scouting planned in Paris and Marseille.

For the moment, current productions have not been disrupted. On the Côte d’Azur, the fourth season of The White Lotus is finishing filming, while Bradley Cooper is finishing the prequel to Ocean’s Eleven in France, with Margot Robbie, George MacKay and Monica Barbaro. In Nice, the thriller Pumping Black, directed by Mimi Cave with Natalie Portman and Jonathan Bailey, is also continuing production.

But the concerns are very real. Raphaël Benoliel, French executive producer who works on Pumping Black, explains to Variety that the Americans asked him if the situation was dangerous. He reassured them, while recognizing that the studio security services have already transmitted precise instructions: “Be careful. Avoid Paris. Avoid Marseille.” He insists: “This was explicitly communicated.”

The producer goes even further: “Because of what happened, France has now been identified as a problem area.” A warning that could weigh on future scouting and filming decisions by American studios.

Isabelle Desgorges, from Gaumont, who is working on the film Ocean’s, is however more measured: “I wouldn’t go so far as to say that the Americans no longer want to come to France. But that will inevitably create tensions for a few weeks.” She also emphasizes that the situation could have been more delicate in the middle of summer, when the country welcomes more international productions.

These events come as the country experiences renewed activity in international production. In Cannes, 310 days of filming had already been recorded at the beginning of September, notably for The White Lotus and Emily in Paris, the final season of which has already been filmed. A context all the more worrying for French professionals as the media coverage of the riots can weigh on filming decisions, even in relatively spared regions.

The consequences are also felt in the theaters. According to Éric Marti, from Rentrak France, last weekend recorded around 100,000 fewer entries than the previous one, even though the school holidays should have boosted attendance. The curfews introduced in several cities to contain the violence have notably dissuaded part of the public from going to the cinema in the evening. The film which seems to have suffered the most from this news is, paradoxically, a film recounting a popular insurrection: Les Miserables.