Now playing in theaters is director Lasse Hallström’s (Chocolat) adaptation of the Richard C. Morais novel, The Hundred-Foot Journey. The story centers on the Kadam family, who set up an Indian restaurant in a small village in the south of France, unknowingly beginning a rivalry with the nearby classical French restaurant run by Madame Mallory (Helen Mirren). However, this rivalry eventually turns into friendship as the two establishments begin to learn and appreciate the other’s cuisine. Produced by Oprah and Steven Spielberg, the film also stars Manish Dayal, Om Puri, and Charlotte Le Bon. For more on the film, watch the trailer or our exclusive video interviews with Lasse Hallström and Charlotte Le Bon.
At the Los Angeles press day for the film, I landed an extended video interview with producer Juliet Blake. She talked about producing her first feature, how she acquired the rights from author Richard C. Morais, getting Steven Knight to adapt the book, deleted scenes, changes during production, how Spielberg considered directing the project, her history with Sean Connery and how he recently watched the film, putting Connery’s granddaughter in the film, being part of Ted and Farscape, and a lot more. Hit the jump to watch.
- 00:00 – Putting the project together.
- 02:25 – How she acquired the rights from author Richard C. Morais.
- 05:15 – On getting Steven Knight to adapt the book.
- 05:55 – How has the script changed during development and production?
- 08:28 – Are there deleted scenes?
- 08:40 – On working with Sean Connery.
- 09:28 – Putting Connery’s granddaughter in the film.
- 10:00 – When Steven Spielberg considered directing this film.
- 10:44 – Her future plans as a film producer.
- 11:38 – On working on Farscape.
- 13:04 – On being part of TED.
