The Big Picture

Becoming Karl Lagerfeld
captures Lagerfeld’s rise in the fashion world, his iconic style, and his romance with Jacques de Bascher.
Daniel Brühl discusses preparing to play Karl Lagerfeld and the unique dynamic between Lagerfeld and Jacques.
Théodore Pellerin speaks about his portrayal of Jacques and the truth he held onto.

Based on the biography Kaiser Karl: The Life of Karl Lagerfeld, Hulu’s splashy new limited series, Becoming Karl Lagerfeld, lives up to its name, as it focuses on the ten years leading up to Lagerfeld becoming, well, Karl Lagerfeld. Lagerfeld, who passed in 2019, was an iconic German fashion designer, who made a name for himself as he worked his way through several of the top fashion houses in Paris in the 1970s and 80s, before becoming the creative director of Chanel until his death. Known best for his slicked-back ponytails and chic sunglasses, there was more than met the eye when it came to Lagerfeld, and that’s the story that the fashionable French series aims to explore.

While Lagerfeld was quite shrewd about his personal relationships in life, there is quite a bit known about his decade-spanning romance with noted socialite Jacques de Bascher, and Becoming Karl Lagerfeld respects Lagerfeld’s insistence that he and de Bascher’s relationship was never physical. This dynamic, brought to life by Daniel Brühl’s Karl and Théodore Pellerin’s Jacques, makes for a rather enthralling watch, as it evokes images of chaste 19th century romances. An idea which does come up in our conversation about the series. Ahead of the premiere, I had the privilege of chatting with Brühl and Pellerin about their respective roles, and how the relationship between the two men functioned.

Brühl kicked the conversation off by discussing how bringing Karl Lagerfeld to life differed from some of his previous roles playing characters based on real-life men, and from there he and Pellerin proved to be just as delightful as the roles they played. In addition to speaking about their roles and their sweet tooths, Brühl also spoke briefly about his upcoming film The Collaboration, though he wasn’t able to share much more than Paul Bettany was when asked a few months ago. You can watch the full conversation in the player above or scroll on for the full transcript.

Becoming Karl Lagerfeld (2024) A captivating series that chronicles the rise of Karl Lagerfeld, from his formative years as an aspiring designer to becoming one of the most influential figures in fashion. The narrative captures his initial struggles and breakthroughs, leading to his pivotal roles at prestigious fashion houses like Chanel and Fendi. As Lagerfeld’s unique vision and style reshape the industry, the series also explores his personal life, including his relationships, challenges, and the iconic persona he crafted.Release Date June 7, 2024 Cast Daniel Brühl , Agnès Jaoui , Théodore Pellerin , Alex Lutz , Julia Faure , Jeanne Damas , Arnaud Valois , Théodora Breux Main Genre Biography Seasons 1 Creator(s) Raphaëlle Bacqué , Isaure Pisani-Ferry , Jennifer Have

Daniel Brühl on What It Was Like ‘Becoming Karl Lagerfeld’

COLLIDER: Daniel, you are no stranger to playing characters based on real people. How did your preparation for Karl compare to somebody like Niki [Lauda], Roland [Gumpert] or even Matthias Erzberger?

DANIEL BRÜHL: You could say that, on the one hand, it’s always a similar process and on the other hand, obviously, specifically different in whatever is demanded of you. I’m always trying to look out for projects that offer me the chance to do something that I haven’t done before, so there were a lot of new doors and fields and paths that I was exploring and trying to find the truth for me to believe myself that I could play this iconic man called Karl Lagerfeld. I guess it always starts with reading a lot. That’s what I did. There were three different biographies. Then, fortunately, even at a young age, Karl Lagerfeld was very clever in promoting himself, so there’s a lot of interviews that you can find of that time, which were very helpful, photos, documentaries, et cetera, et cetera.

Then, there’s a moment when you put all that away and try to become the character. I do this preferably on my own, of course. I moved to the mountains in Spain, so my first spectators were two sheep and a donkey, who were always looking at me when I was walking up and down, talking to myself in French to sound like Karl Lagerfeld. [Laughs] Then, one day, something in you clicks because you found something interesting, and you follow that thread, that path, and so forth. It’s like a jigsaw puzzle that you slowly put together. And then the moment of truth is when you meet the other actors and when you really go for it. I was so lucky because, at the core of this show, the heart of this show is the love story between Karl Lagerfeld and Jacques de Bascher. It was an immense luck to have had the opportunity to do this with this gentleman here.

That leads me to my next question, which is Karl and Jacques have very different love languages, they have very different approaches to passion and intimacy, and I’m curious for both of you, what was it like getting to play with those two extremes and finding that balance between the two men?

THÉODORE PELLERIN: I think that that’s the whole show, trying to find that balance, and the thing is that they don’t. When you exist as such polar opposites, it’s almost impossible to find a common ground. They also are such excessive characters and huge personalities that they aren’t really people who are that willing to allow to make the steps but they both try, and they do, and they will, and then they come back. It’s this constant dance and battle. And also, a dance with the other one because there’s an inner battle to try to reach the other. I think that’s what’s so fascinating about the two of them is that for 10 years they try, and they try, and they try, and it gets ugly. It really does. But it’s also such breaches of beauty through that.

BRÜHL: What I found so interesting in the show and touching is that anachronistic element to it because it’s the wild ‘70s. It’s about sex, drugs, and rock and roll, and these guys, in a novel of the 19th century, they live their strange fairy tale-like romance. For Karl Lagerfeld, he was truly the only big love of his life in times when everybody was sleeping with each other and there was such sexual liberation. It was so out of tune and time, which is a very interesting aspect, also, in this show.

I love that you mentioned that it’s like this 19th-century romance because the most memorable scene for me was the scene at the chateau where he goes to his bedroom and he’s in the nightgown with the lantern, and he’s like a romance-shy maiden out of one of Jane Austen’s novels or something like that. It was such a great moment to see that.

PELLERIN: They both live in fiction. They’re both trying to build this world around themselves, and so, how do they meet in real life is this constant fight, also.

Were Karl and Jacques “True Loves”?

Absolutely. Théodore, a question for you. Essentially, Jacques spends a lot of this series spiraling, for lack of a better word. What was the center point, like the truth that you kind of held onto to keep him grounded when he is in this free fall?

PELLERIN: I think in the show, particularly, it’s the love that he has for Karl. That had to be the foundation of it. Because, at the beginning, I was like, “Is it really love or is he just wanting to have access to this world? Is he just fascinated by him?” But then I was like, “No, it cannot be anything else but a true love.” I’m sure that there are other aspects and that sometimes it morphs, but that love is kind of the basis of it, right? So, I would say that that was the thing. For me, the truth of Jacques in the show lay in constant reaction to Karl’s actions, or lack of actions. It’s always kind of trying to be seen by him and get the love and be loved by him in the way that he wishes. So, yes, I think that that’s why he is spiraling in a way, because still Karl, even though he tries, is a very inaccessible man and he still has a wall.

I really like the way that the series used food to examine how Karl is feeling at different points in his life, and I had a fun question for both of you. Is there a dessert or a food dish that you lean on during stressful times at all?

PELLERIN: Yes! I eat chocolate a lot. I love it. Sorry, it’s kind of boring. “I got a crazy one for you guys!” [Laughs]

The true question is dark chocolate or milk chocolate?

PELLERIN: I try! Sometimes I’m like, “I’ll be a good one,” and I go for dark chocolate, but then I’m like, “Fuck that shit. I want the sugary stuff.”

BRÜHL: Do you say “sweet tooth” in English?

Yes.

BRÜHL: I’m not that much of a sweet tooth, but in France, now that we are in Paris, it’s incredible what they come up with. So, starting with a tartelette, it’s like mini tarts with raspberries. Oh god, raspberry and– [Laughs] Anyways, the fact that they have the boulangerie and pâtisserie that is so specific. In Germany, if you want to buy a cake, you buy it at the same place where you buy the bread. Here it’s just so refined that even I sometimes think, like, “Hm, delicious.”

Will ‘The Collaboration’ Come Out This Year?
I love that. Daniel, seeing Andy Warhol in this series reminded me that we still don’t have a release date for The Collaboration yet. Has there been any movement at all for that movie on your side?

BRÜHL: That’s a very good question. No. I have to check in. The other day, I was thinking about them too. I enjoyed it a lot to work on the film and to play Bruno Bischofberger. So, no, to be honest. I don’t know. I can’t give you any news, but it will come out soon, I guess.

I’m waiting for that one. I really love art history, so that’s on my list of films. I’m like, “When is this release date gonna happen?”

BRÜHL: That was before Karl Lagerfeld. We shot it in Boston. Paul Bettany and Jeremy Pope. I mean, wonderful. They had the play, and then they did the adaptation. It was the same director who did the play.

All six episodes of Becoming Karl Lagerfeld are streaming now on Hulu and Disney+.

Stream on Hulu