English Canada’s revival of Plan B retains its Quebec essence, to the delight of actors Karine Vanasse and François Arnaud, who play the role.
Posted at 8:00 am
Screened on Séries Plus in 2017 before being picked up by Radio-Canada, the first season of the psychological drama by authors Jean-François Asselin and Jacques Drolet narrated the journey of Philippe, an ambitious lawyer (played by Louis Morissette) who used the services of a mysterious company to go back in time and save his marriage.
In the English adaptation, out this week on CBC, the hero is defended by Ontario actor Patrick J. Adams, whom we know from Suits. Karine Vanasse plays her wife Évelyne, who translates Magalie Lépine-Blondeau into French, and François Arnaud plays her business partner, brother-in-law and best friend Patrick, to whom Émile Proulx-Cloutier initially lent his feature films.
The box KOTV, which was behind the original work, oversaw this six-episode re-production. Jean-François Asselin resumed his post as director, this time sharing it with Maxime Giroux (Norbourg) and Aisling Chin-Yee (No Ordinary Man).
Despite the language switch, the story stayed rooted in Montreal, where all filming took place last summer. “It’s a source of pride for me that we’re taking a project from Quebec to English Canada and that the same creators, the same producers are involved,” says Karine Vanasse in an interview.
We find that Montreal-Quebec culture. I find it funny that the CBC wanted to keep it.
Karen Vanasse
Viewers watching this new version of Plan B will also hear multiple responses in French. These sporadically started sentences are of course accompanied by subtitles so that monolingual English speakers can understand everything.
“It was important that we present a fair picture of Montreal; no picture where everyone speaks English, says François Arnaud. Because it’s not true that we only speak English. French is not an outdated business. On the other hand. »
living memory
Karine Vanasse and François Arnaud had both been watching the first season of Plan B in French when they received an offer to join the English-speaking cast. The first recalled the rollercoaster feelings she experienced as a spectator, watching Évelyne spin in a spiral to the rhythm of Philippe’s time travel.
“When you meet Évelyne, the first thing you realize is that she’s a girl who’s been holding her breath for quite a while. She no longer feels comfortable in her relationship and decides to end it. It becomes all the more confusing for them when Philippe adopts a different behavior with each time travel. She no longer knows what to expect. The confusion that sets in for her… She loses her bearings, she loses her bearings… As an actress, it was super interesting to explore. It was dizzy too. »
PHOTO ERIC MYRE SUPPLIED BY CBC
Karine Vanasse and Patrick J. Adams in Plan B
For François Arnaud, the challenge was to “go somewhere else”, to move away from the portrait painted by Émile Proulx-Cloutier.
I loved what Emile [Proulx-Cloutier] made character. It was very rhythmic and colourful. But I didn’t want to do what he had done again.
Francois Arnaud
“Even Émile would not have wanted to do what he did. I didn’t want to imitate someone else’s performance. I just tried to forget that and approach the character differently,” explains the actor, who can be reached by phone in Los Angeles.
PHOTO DANNY TAILLON SUPPLIED BY CBC
Patrick J. Adams and François Arnaud in Plan B
With Plan B, François Arnaud completes what he calls his “Financial Idiot Trilogy” after playing con artist Vincent Lacroix in “Norbourg” and co-starring in “Surface,” a series produced by Reese Witherspoon on Apple TV+.
“Patrick is afraid he will run out of money. He makes morally questionable decisions. I don’t always agree with him, but I understand what drives him to act that way. »
“As an actor, that’s often what I enjoy the most, like in The Borgias, people who commit atrocities. The intellectual gymnastics someone does to justify their terrible deeds, to make sense of them… That interests me the most. »
science fiction?
Although it is about time travel, neither Karine Vanasse nor François Arnaud describe Plan B as a science fiction series.
“Sci-fi is an excuse to tell a very, very human story,” says the 37-year-old actor. That’s the kind of question we ask ourselves every day. We regret something we’ve done and we say, ‘Ah! If only I could go back 30 seconds!” It’s part of everyday life. It’s nothing special. »
“Hyperrealism is not always the best way to talk about the human experience,” continues François Arnaud. What goes through my head every day is much more like the whirlwind plan B than a slow-moving author’s film with many fixed takes! »
CBC starts the first season of Plan B starting Monday at 9 p.m. The series is also available for free on CBC Gem, the broadcaster’s online viewing platform.
Karen Vanasse
PHOTO SERGE GAUVIN PROVIDED BY RADIO-CANADA
The actress Karine Vanasse
Back from a trip to Japan in spring, Karine Vanasse caresses a few confidential projects. Later this year she will direct the second season of Before the crash, which will be broadcast on ICI Télé next autumn. She’ll don the suit of Évelyne, a high-performing investment banker a far cry from the Évelyne she plays in Plan B. “It’s interesting to explore two extremes with two girls with the same first name. In Plan B, Évelyne has a harder time accepting the choices she makes. It’s also harder to get answers. She’s a girl who didn’t follow her dreams, who put herself aside to serve others. I’m curious where [les auteurs Éric Bruneau et Kim Lévesque-Lizotte] will bring our characters to Before the Crash,” she continues. I can’t wait to start listening to techno again in the morning when I go to work to get in the mood. »
Francois Arnaud
PHOTO MARCO CAMPANOZZI, PRESS ARCHIVE
The actor Francois Arnaud
From March 24th, François Arnaud can be seen in Yellowjackets, an American series that chronicles the turbulent journey of a soccer team in survival mode in the middle of the forest. The Quebec actor will play the coach’s secret lover. The first season, which aired on Showtime (and Crave in Canada) in 2021, was a huge success. “I saw the first episode but I didn’t like it,” admits François Arnaud over the phone. When they approached me about the sequel, I tried again and really got a kick out of it. I watched all the episodes in two days! The actor really enjoyed his filming experience. “Melanie Lynskey gave me a very warm welcome. She came to see me do my makeup and she said, “We’re lucky to have you.” It was great because I’ve loved her since I saw her in Heavenly Creatures with Kate Winslet in the mid-1990s.”