The confessions of Anaïs Demoustier, the moving heroine of The Count of Monte Cristo

Publié le 2 april 2025. Modifié le 4 April 2025.

In the epic blockbuster The Count of Monte Cristo, released in theaters in June 2024, Anaïs Demoustier plays the radiant Mercédès Herrera, the great love of Edmond Dantès (played by Pierre Niney), whom he struggles to forget. Over the years, as the man she was to marry languishes in prison (the victim of a conspiracy), she transforms into a remarried woman, austere and melancholic, devoid of affection. With her talent and moving gaze, the 37-year-old French actress convinces us that she has truly aged and lived through all the devastating consequences of lost love.

The confessions of Anaïs Demoustier, actress nominated for the 2025 César Awards for The Count of Monte Cristo

This beautiful performance, for which she is nominated for a 2025 César, offers a chance to revisit the rich career—ranging from zany comedies to poignant auteur films—of an actress who dazzled in the subversive, romantic historical drama Le Temps d’aimer (2023), alongside Vincent Lacoste. Demoustier gave nearly two hours of her time for a masterclass at the Forum des Images in Paris, at once witty and riveting. Here’s a look back at her most intimate confessions, shared as part of the “Actors, Actresses & Avatars” series held in January 2024.

On her beginnings at age 13, acting alongside Isabelle Huppert in Michael Haneke’s Time of the Wolf

“It was a very happy experience, but Michael Haneke is a director who expects a lot from his actors—just as much from children as from adults. He didn’t treat us like kids at all. He asked all the actors in Time of the Wolf (released in 2003) to stay in a remote Austrian village and not return to France during filming. Only Béatrice Dalle managed to escape. She’d built a rapport with a crew member who secretly drove her to the airport so she could fly back to Paris. Her stand-in would occasionally take her place.”

On her first Cannes Film Festival, as a teenager

“I remember it vividly—and every time I return to Cannes, those memories come back. It was such a joyful time. My whole family crammed into a single hotel room. It was a fantastic way to experience the Cannes Festival, because I was with the other young actors from Michael Haneke’s film, Time of the Wolf—Lucas [Biscombe] and Hakim [Taleb]. We were doing cannonballs in the Majestic’s pool, just pure fun, while everyone else in Cannes is uptight and no one swims. The screening was pretty wild—the film was controversial, so some people were booing and slamming their seats. Then there was the red carpet, with photographers shouting Isabelle [Huppert]’s name.”

On spending part of her teenage years on film sets

“I loved hanging out with my girlfriends, living a normal life (my dad worked at Auchan and my mom was a homemaker). I adored life in Villeneuve-d’Ascq. I felt a little embarrassed when cinema intruded too much into my school life—like when an article about me ran in La Voix du Nord and was pinned up in class. I just wanted to be like everyone else, so that was awkward. I remember once my parents and sister told me, ‘Come on, clear the table!’ I was too used to film set canteens… It was a good reality check.”

On her favorite film to shoot

“I really enjoyed filming Bird People (2014) by Pascale Ferran. The director asked me to spend a week cleaning rooms in a hotel to understand the repetitive, mechanical nature of the gestures involved. It helped me grasp the solitude of a chambermaid. You enter this strange, almost meditative state when stepping into a room filled with someone else’s intimacy.”

The time she crashed a car on François Ozon’s set

“François Ozon based his film The New Girlfriend (2014) on a news story. It’s about a man who starts cross-dressing after his wife’s death because he misses her. Ozon takes it further by having me play the best friend of the deceased woman, who falls in love with the man dressed in her friend’s clothes. On set, I had to drive a red car, which I crashed during a scene in Canada. François had pressured me before filming: ‘Get your license, or I’ll hire Léa Seydoux (laughs).’ I got my license quickly, but I didn’t know how to park properly—I’d lucked out with angled parking during the test.”

On working with Quentin Dupieux

“Before acting in a Michael Haneke film, my friends and I used to make fake commercials and mock news broadcasts for fun. I’d put my hair under my arms and pretend to be in a razor ad. That childlike, playful spirit is what I rediscover with Quentin Dupieux, along with his wonderfully written scripts and their incredible musicality. I also love playing completely idiotic characters with a touch of madness. It’s a refreshing break from roles like lawyers or philosophers. Playing dumb is incredibly fun (laughs). It’s so relaxing.”

The Count of Monte Cristo (2024), directed by Matthieu Delaporte and Alexandre De La Patellière, is available on Canal+. Alice and the Mayor (2019) by Nicolas Pariser airs on Arte on April 2, 2025.