If you had a feeling of déjà vu while watching Néro on Netflix… that’s normal. The music recalls the score by Hans Zimmer for Sherlock HolmesTHE decorations are those of the Spaghetti Western and the “father-daughter” dynamic is all over the small screen right now. If the series led by Pio Marmaï has many strings to its bow, recent statements from its creators risk frustrating more than one. In fact, the series had to be the adaptation of one of the most popular French fantasy novels.
During an interview with Allocinatedcreators Jean-Patrick Benes, Allan Mauduit, Martin Douaire and Nicolas Digard confirmed that Néro was originally supposed to be the adaptation of Win the war by Jean-Philippe Jaworski. They explain: “Netflix came to us with a French heroic fantasy novel to which they had acquired the rights: Winning the War. We had been thinking about action projects, adventure projects, pulp projects for a long time that would allow us to dust off the genres. So we thought about adapting Winning the War to finally move away from it and create a work in its own right.”
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Full-fledged really?
Many spectators have noticed similarities between Néro et Win the war from the first episodes. Both stories focus on a lawless assassinplunged despite himself into the heart of a major conflict. Nero, like Benvenuto Gesufal, has devastating charm, questionable morality and above all a sharp blade. In both cases, they work for someone high up and find themselves at the center of political machinations. We will keep silent on the other similarities between the two stories, to preserve the surprise, but it is clear that they are numerous.
Enough to convince Netflix to abandon the adaptation of Win the war ? For the moment, the platform has not provided any news about the project. While fantasy struggles to convince on the small screen, the Red N has preferred to rely on the promise of a swashbuckling story in dirty kid mode to convince its audience. After all, the success of Comte de Monte Cristo at Pathé opened the way for ambitious historical frescoes.
We would still be tempted to say that French fantasy, more frank than in Néropopular lately. The release of Kaamelott: Second part (part 1) should confirm this. As a reminder, Astier’s first film attracted more than 2.5 million spectators in 2021, even though the pandemic had a heavy impact on theater attendance. We can hope that this success, if confirmed, will push French producers to take a closer interest in fantasy universes that appeal to the French public. And there are…
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