Marie Antoinette and Louis may be beloved right now, but history tells us a change is coming. Oscar Lesage teased some of the change coming in Marie Antoinette, and what Chartres is up to right now.
Chartres was originally an Antoinette supporter, but it turned out that there was an ulterior motive. He shared his romantic feelings for Antoinette at the end of the first season, only to be rejected. That stings, and now he is a man on a mission to get revenge. Lesage talked about that, teaming up with another enemy, and playing a person from real history in a fictional series.
Oscar Lesage teases Chartres’s next steps in Marie Antoinette season 2
Claire and Jamie: We know the trajectory that Chartres should go on, so what’s it like for you having this fictionalized version of the story?
Oscar Lesage: Yeah, it’s history, but at the same time, it’s a TV show. You’ve got screenwriters, and there’s a structure to the storytelling. I’m just really doing it as if it were a fictional character. I’m not thinking about historical accuracy. I mean, he’s a French guy speaking English, so we already have a problem there.
It’s still a story. It feels like a story as an actor, and I’m treating it as if it were fiction.
C&J: There’s a lot more historical accuracy in Marie Antoinette than there was Reign, so you’re okay there. Chartres is now a man scorned. He was in love with Antoinette and then she rejected him, and now he wants revenge. What’s it been like to bring this storyline?
OL: I think it was love at first at some point, but then it just became obsession. I think she might have been the first woman that rejected him, and he’s just bitter and can’t move on. He’s also been banished from Versailles, so I think there’s a lot of resentment involved. He’s literally hired a prostitute to be Marie Antoinette for him, so I wouldn’t call that love. Anymore, at least.
There’s someone who actually cares for him who could help him, and that’s Félicité, his new mistress, but he’s so blinded by his obsession with marriage, and that prevents him from being the man he could be.
C&J: Did you have any conversations about this storyline and where it will go?
OL: I didn’t have any big conversations with the directors. It was more like on set finding the right vibe and the right version of the scene. I felt that I knew him so well from season 1 that it was kind of like I felt at home, basically. The directors trusted me with that, so it was quite smooth in the end.
C&J: Where do we find him as we start Marie Antoinette season 2?
OL: So, he’s now relocated to the Palais-Royal, which is in Paris. The entirety of France thinks he’s a traitor and a coward. He’s really locked up at home, sulking and hating everyone. That’s where we meet Félicité as his new mistress.
His only ally basically is Provence, because he hates Louis as much as Chartres does. That’s his only friend, which is kind of sad to be honest.
C&J: Also, there’s a bit of “the enemy of my enemy is my friend” situation.
OL: Absolutely, because they were not friends to start off with. The minute it’s not interesting to be friends…well, I’m not gonna spoil it or anything, but you can tell where it’s going.
C&J: I was going to ask if you could tease the dynamic between them, because of the way things developed in season 1.
OL: Yeah, absolutely. They understand that both of them have a shot at being a king, and the minute they realize that, their friendship is gonna crumble pretty fast.
C&J: It’s easy to forget that Chartres is in the line of succession.
OL: It’s interesting because there’s two Royal lines. There’s the Bourbon line, so that’s Louis and Provence, and then there’s the Orleans line, which is Chartres’s line. To this day, even though we don’t have a king anymore, the French people still debate on who the true heir really is. I guess we’ll never get the answer.
C&J: The English are just the same. What is it like to bring history alive with the fictionalized elements?
OL: It’s lots of fun, especially as a French person. I’m half-French, and in school, we talk about the French Revolution and how the Republic is better for our country. So, to revisit that period of time that was so defining for France and being on these sets and in Versailles with no tourists, it’s just crazy. It’s really exciting, because everyone’s so nice and dedicated to the storytelling.
C&J: I grew up with English history and we touched on the French Revolution. Marie Antoinette was always viewed as the villain of the story. This series has turned that on its head, and you’re the villain. How has that been for you to tell a story where it seems like you shouldn’t be on the right side of history?
OL: I don’t think we should view her as a saint either, but what’s interesting is seeing how people like Chartres manipulated everyone because they were hungry. The people were starving and the country was going to s**t, and you’re always going to get populists who are going to seize the opportunity and sway the people the way they want.
So, we understand that the problem wasn’t Louis and Marie Antoinette buying a necklace — that she didn’t even buy! — but it’s not as black and white as history books tend to tell us.
C&J: Let’s talk the costumes, because they are amazing and they look authentic.
OL: They’re super authentic. I don’t know how they did it. It’s so uncomfortable, I think for the women more than the men. At the end of the day, when I can put my jeans back on, I’m like “Omh my God, it feels so much better.”
You’ve got to give it to them. The costume department did an amazing job. The amount of detail? It’s crazy.
C&J: I think people forget how much work goes into period dramas.
OL: Yeah, absolutely. I think, especially today with the streaming world, people watch these shows and they’re scrolling on their phones at the same time. They’re not realizing there’s a crew of hundreds of people who have worked on the show, and you’re watching on your tiny little screen.
C&J: Did the costumes help with getting into the characters?
OL: Definitely! It gives you this sort of physical posture that helps quite a lot. A lot of actors feel, and I agree, that sometimes you find the character when you find the shoes. I do think that it’s a bit like that on Marie Antoinette. It’s the shoes and the wigs. At the wrap party, a lot of crew members didn’t know who we were because of the wigs. They transform us.
Marie Antoinette season 2 premieres on Sunday, March 23 at 10/9c on PBS.
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