Earlier this year, we shared the news that Academy Award winners Anne Hathaway (Les Misérables) and Jessica Chastain (The Eyes of Tammy Faye) – who also happen to be close friends in their personal lives – would be starring in the psychological thriller Mothers’ Instinct, a remake of the 2018 Belgian film Duelles, which was loosely based on Barbara Abel’s 2012 novel Behind the Hatred (Derrière la haine). At the time, Duelles director Olivier Masset-Depasse was also at the helm of this English-language telling of the story, but he ended up having to drop out due to a family commitment. Mothers’ Instinct did make it into production with cinematographer Benoit Delhomme (The Theory of Everything) directing, making his feature directorial debut. The film recently wrapped, and during an interview with Vogue Hong Kong Hathaway revealed that she found it very difficult to play her role in this movie.
Scripted by Sarah Conradt-Kroehler (50 States of Fright: 13 Steps to Hell (Washington)), Mothers’ Instinct has the following synopsis:
Set in the early ‘60s, best friends and neighbors Alice (Chastain) and Celine (Hathaway) both live an idyllic traditional lifestyle with manicured lawns, successful husbands and sons of the same age. Life’s perfect harmony is suddenly shattered after a tragic accident. Guilt, suspicion and paranoia combine to unravel their sisterly bond and a psychological battle of wills begins as the maternal instinct reveals its darker side.
Hathaway described her role in Mothers’ Instinct as “the hardest role I have played. It touched my worst fear and I almost backed out of the film because I didn’t know if I could go there as an actress.“
Hathaway and Chastain are joined in the cast by Josh Charles (The Good Wife) and Anders Danielsen Lie (The Worst Person In The World).
Anton fully financed Mothers’ Instinct, which was produced by Hathaway and Chastain, as well as Paul Nelson of Mosaic, Jacques-Henri Bronckart, and Kelly Carmichael, Chastain’s producing partner at her Freckle Films banner. Anton’s founder and CEO Sébastien Raybaud oversaw the project with John Zois, the company’s President of Production. Masset-Depasse couldn’t direct, but did remain involved as an executive producer.
I haven’t seen Duelles, but the story of Mothers’ Instinct sounds very interesting to me. I look forward to checking it out, especially now that Hathaway has revealed that working on the movie was difficult for her. Are you interested in Mothers’ Instinct? Let us know by leaving a comment below.