Isabelle Huppert in a role inspired by Liliane Bettencourt
In 2025, Isabelle Huppert will play Marianne Farrère, a character inspired by Liliane Bettencourt, in Thierry Klifa’s next film, The Richest Woman in the World. A captivating plot set against the backdrop of a politico-financial scandal.
After a year of varied roles in 2024, Isabelle Huppert returns to the cinema with an ambitious project. Thierry Klifa is proposing a drama inspired by the life of Liliane Bettencourt, heiress to L’Oréal, and her controversial relationship with François-Marie Banier, a writer-photographer 25 years her junior. This relationship, a mixture of fascination and scandal, made headlines in 2010 and remains a captivating subject.
An intrigue at the heart of the elite
Isabelle Huppert stars as Marianne Farrère, the billionaire head of the Windler Group. This complex character oscillates between power and fragility, confronted by Pierre-Alain Fantin, a charismatic figure of the Parisian elite played by Laurent Lafitte. Director Thierry Klifa describes the story as that of “a woman who comes out of her torpor thanks to a man who breaks into the closed world of the Catholic haute bourgeoisie, marked by controversial historical roots”.
Marina Foïs plays Frédérique Spielman, the daughter worried about her mother, while Raphaël Personnaz lends his features to the butler, a privileged witness to this tumultuous relationship.
Isabelle Huppert and power roles
With a filmography of almost 100 works, Isabelle Huppert excels in powerful female roles. Whether in Claude Chabrol’s L’ivresse du pouvoir or Paul Verhoeven’s Elle, she marvelously embodies characters combining authority and complexity. This new role adds to this memorable gallery, promising an intense performance.
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