It doesn’t look like a Neil Jordan series or feel like a Neil Jordan series. And it hasn’t been praised in the way one might expect of a Neil Jordan series. That’s because, according to the director himself, it isn’t.
Riviera, a big-budget drama series that stars Julia Stiles and has set viewing records for Sky Atlantic this month, has Jordan's name emblazoned all over the credits, but the Irish film-maker behind hits such as Interview with the Vampire and The Crying Game now says the glossy finished product has almost nothing to do with him.
“All I can say is, good luck to them,” Jordan said from Spain, where he is working on a new film. “I can’t claim it’s mine. If I had been in control of the thing it would have been quite different.”
Riviera is billed by Sky as "an intoxicating thriller set in the sun-drenched south of France, the opulent playground of the world's filthy rich", and its publicity promises "morally ambiguous characters" and "audacious excess", helping it to become the biggest drama premiere on the channel this year. The box set, released this month, has already been downloaded by 5.3 million viewers.
Jordan is listed as the show’s creator and co-writer alongside the Irish novelist John Banville, with executive producer credits going to the former U2 manager Paul McGuinness who initially had the idea for a glitzy drama set on the Côte d’Azur.
But he believes people have been misled about his involvement. "Critics have said, 'Is this the same Neil Jordan that wrote The Crying Game? Is this the same John Banville who won the Booker prize?'
“The two episodes we wrote together were reworked by others, after I pulled out,” the director said.“I emailed John, wondering whether his doppleganger Benjamin Black had been up to some strange double tricks. His response was that even that scoundrel wouldn’t have written some of that dialogue.”
Jordan has no idea who rewrote the episodes. “They were changed, to my huge surprise and considerable upset. There were various sexual scenes introduced into the story and a lot of very expository dialogue. I objected in the strongest terms possible.”
According to Jordan, the project has moved closer to the slick glamour associated with a 1980s soap and away from his plan for a darker drama, exploring how the art market can be used to manipulate high finance. "It's being described as Dynasty sur mer," he added. "It was quite distressing for John and for myself, the way it proceeded."
When he told Sky Atlantic about his concerns, there was an attempt to address them, but Jordan took “a back seat” from then on.
In Riviera Stiles plays the second wife of a billionaire banker who dies in a yacht explosion. The series, available on Sky Atlantic and Now TV, has set a record for new box set downloads.
But the reviews have been damning, frequently singling out Jordan and Banville for particular condemnation. "It is awful," said Sam Wollaston, television critic for the Guardian. "What happened to these great writers?"
Jordan co-wrote the two-hour pilot for the series with Banville after McGuinness, who has a home in the south of France, approached him with an idea. It was this pilot which grabbed the attention of Sky Atlantic.
“The first two episodes that myself and John wrote were very dark and complex, and that’s what got everybody attracted to the project in the first place,” Jordan said. “Sky Atlantic got involved because of these scripts. But then the producers decided to go in a different direction.”
McGuinness collaborated with Liza Marshall and Kris Thykier of Archery Pictures to produce the series.
“Am I annoyed with Paul McGuinness? I’m surprised, let me put it that way,” Jordan said.
McGuinness's representatives responded with a statement: "Making a show of the scale of Riviera is inevitably a team effort. Neil co-wrote the first two episodes with John Banville. The show is the most successful premiere on Sky Atlantic this year. I couldn't be more proud of what we have achieved."
Jordan is working on a film starring Isabelle Huppert called The Widow, which will begin shooting in September. He's looking forward to starting work on the project.
“It’s a tremendous relief to know you’ll be in control of every aspect, and you’ll be proud to have your name attached to it,” Jordan said. “In my mind, there’s no reason why things can’t be both very popular and very good.”
– Guardian Service/Sunday Business Post
