Apple TV+ release first clip from Liaison starring Eva Green

Apple TV+ has released a sneak peek clip from the series premiere of Liaison starring  and Vincent Cassel — amid Eva’s High Court battle over a doomed sci-fi movie.

The actress, 42, is embroiled in a bitter legal battle with the makers of the £4.6million movie, with each side blaming the other for the production’s demise in October 2019. 

She is suing White Lantern Films for her fee of $1million (£810,000) — even though the movie was never made.

Eva stars as Alison Rowdy in the series, a London-based agent who works for the . 

Meanwhile, Vincent stars as Gabriel Delage, a French private contractor who in the clip ends up being tortured by two men for information on some hackers.

Presuming him to be a member of the Directorate-General for External Security, they pin him down and cut off his toenail.

He is saved from further harm by his friend Mitzia who recognises him and vouches for him.  

The series is a high-powered, gripping and emotional thriller in which espionage and political intrigue play out against a story of passionate and enduring love.

‘The action hurtles from the Elysée Palace in Paris to the Home Office in London, and to Brussels’ European Quarter from the ravaged suburbs of Damascus to a refugee camp in Belgium, as one woman must uncover whether she can save her country from catastrophe without losing herself in the process. 

It comes amid Eva’s High Court battle over the doomed sci-fi film, A Patriot,

Eva had been due to play the lead role of a soldier, and told the High Court in London that she ‘fell deeply in love’ with ‘one of the best scripts I have ever read’.

But things turned sour, the court has heard, with White Lantern Films claiming the star breached her £810,000 contract by making unreasonable demands which undermined its efforts to produce the movie.

It has revealed messages sent by the Hollywood star about the film’s producers and backers, calling them ‘super weak and stupid’.

While she apologised for ‘inappropriate language’ and ‘some horrible things’ sent by email and text, giving evidence last week Eva said that this was ‘my Frenchness coming out… this was my emotions speaking’.

The Paris-born actress and model, who began her career in French theatre after spending time in London and Ireland, added: ‘Sometimes you say things you don’t actually mean, of course they are not weak and stupid.’

Another text message, sent by one of the film’s producers, said that he thought Eva would ‘rather eat tumours’ than make the film with another of the producers whom she disliked. 

Eva, who was an executive producer for the project, dismissed claims from White Lantern that she sought to undermine the film’s production, telling the High Court: ‘My heart and soul was in making A Patriot.’

She said: ‘It is one of the best scripts I have ever read. As an actor it was very exciting, it is the role of a soldier which I have not played before. It was about climate change, which is very dear to my heart.’ 

However, the Casino Royale star revealed how she feared A Patriot may become a low-budget ‘B-movie’ after disagreements behind the scenes with the film’s financiers and producers.

‘When an actor is in a B-movie, you will be labelled as B-actor,’ she told the court, adding: ‘It could kill my career… I don’t care about the money, I live to make good films, it is my religion.’

Mr Mallin has previously claimed that Eva had an ‘animosity’ towards a vision for the project held by Mr Seal.

In WhatsApp exchanges with her agent and the film’s director, Ms Green claimed Mr Seal was planning to make a ‘cheap B-movie’, describing him as ‘the devil’ and ‘evil’, he said.

Max Mallin, KC, for betmatik White Lantern, asked Eva if she remembered sending a different text message suggesting that the film under executive producer Jake Seal would be a ‘B-s****y-movie’.

The actress said she remembered the message. Eva added: ‘I never wanted this to be a B-movie, but I realised more towards the end that it was going to happen.’

The actress, who played Vesper Lynd in Casino Royale and also starred in the BBC1 series The Luminaries, is suing White Lantern for her fee of $1million (£810,000), which she claims she is entitled to under a ‘pay or play’ clause in her contract.

The term ‘pay or play’ is used in the film industry to refer to when an artist is paid whether or not they are called upon to perform.

White Lantern is defending the claim and bringing a countersuit.

Lawyers for Eva say she is being portrayed unfairly as a diva by White Lantern. Edmund Cullen KC, for Eva, told the court last week ‘this case is designed to paint my client as a diva to win headlines and damage her reputation’.

Instead, Mr Cullen insists that Eva bent over backwards to try to complete the project.

Detailing accommodations the actress made in order to assist the film, he listed how ‘she repeatedly agreed to move back the start date, she agreed to move production from Ireland to the UK, she made repeated offers to use part of her fee to finance the project’.

The film was also due to feature The Jewel In The Crown and Game Of Thrones actor Charles Dance and As Good As It Gets star Helen Hunt. Misery star Kathy Bates was also attached to the movie at one point.

Director Dan Pringle said the proposed budget had been reduced from the £8million originally discussed with Ms Green to a lower estimate of £4.6million.

Liaison will premiere globally on Apple TV+ on Friday, 24th February 2023.