By Hanna Rantala
LONDON (Reuters) – Oscar winners Alfonso Cuaron and Cate Blanchett say their new television show “Disclaimer” is woven around characters that challenge audiences to suspend their judgment.
The seven-part psychological thriller is based on Renee Knight’s 2015 novel of the same name and created, written, directed and produced by “Gravity” and “Roma” director Cuaron.
Viewers meet Blanchett’s character Catherine Ravenscroft, a respected documentary-maker, in a moment of crisis, when she is sent a book detailing dark secrets from her past.
Catherine tracks down the novel’s author, retired teacher Stephen, played by Kevin Kline, and discovers he is bent on sharing her story and his truth with the world, with potentially ruinous effects on her reputation and relationships.
The twisty tale, that also stars Sacha Baron Cohen as Catherine’s husband, Lesley Manville as Stephen’s late wife, Louis Partridge as their son and Melissa George as the young Catherine, combines narratives and timelines.
“My character is, people transplant their own judgement upon her. In a way she’s a glass of water, she seems relatively passive,” said Blanchett.
“I found there was a lot that I was confronted by from my very first read of the script. I had a profound judgement of the characters in a way that I was quite shocked by,” she said.
The opportunity to explore and juxtapose the different narratives was what prompted Cuaron to adapt Knight’s novel.
“I was intrigued about what was happening internally with each one of these characters and how that was creating a completely free interpretation of everything,” said Cuaron.
In addition to taking on the lead role, Blanchett boarded the project as an executive producer and quizzed Cuaron about character motivations and plot details.
“Cate’s involvement is the one that triggered all the important questions. It triggered a whole rewrite of the whole script,” said Cuaron.
“Your thumbs must be really athletic,” he said, referring to Blanchett. “I’d never received so many text messages!”
“Disclaimer” starts streaming on Apple TV+ on Oct. 11.
(Reporting by Hanna Rantala; Editing by Christina Fincher)
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