Who would've believed that ?
Canadian actor Jason Priestley, well known to fans of the “Beverly Hills 90210” series – in which he played the character of Brandon – is filming for France 3!
The international star has agreed to shoot in a unitary fiction intended for public service.
He plays alongside Olivier Marchal and Éléonore Bernheim (
The Art of Crime
).
Read alsoJason Priestley: "My children watch Beverly Hills to make fun of me"
The TV movie, called
Mort sur la piste
, takes place during the centenary of the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
A pilot is discovered dead on the famous French circuit.
Captain Sabrina Nedjard (Éléonore Bernheim), in charge of the investigation, is exceptionally accompanied by Ryan Martin (Jason Priestley), member of the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) as part of an exchange between the services.
Both are led to investigate the Palestro family, at the head of a well-known amateur team in the city of Le Mans, and in particular on father Antoine Palestro (Olivier Marchal), a character as charismatic as he is authoritarian.
Nobody knows but Ryan Martin is a former driver of the 24 hours of Le Mans and is not present by chance…
Jason Priestley is not present in this fiction either by chance.
The actor is passionate about car racing and leads, in parallel with his life as an actor, a career as a driver.
He started in the 90s by participating in the Gumball 3000 rally in 1999 before being the victim of an accident in 2002 in the Indy Pro Series on the Kentucky circuit.
He was then at the head of a team in the IndyCar Series.
“Jason Priestley was at the top of our list”
Jean-Baptiste Neyrac, fiction producer
Jason Priestley not only has experience in the automotive field, but he also speaks a little French, an essential asset to get the role.
“The film takes place during the centenary of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, which takes place this year.
You should know that this race is very well known in the United States, almost more than in France.
It was therefore an opportunity to give a more international dimension to the film
, explains Jean-Baptiste Neyrac, the producer.
For the character's credibility and authenticity, we needed someone who was at least from across the Channel, or even across the Atlantic.
We were also looking for someone who speaks French.
We contacted an English casting director and we listed potential actors.
Jason Priestley topped our list.
He was very receptive since we got a response from him extremely quickly, in less than 48 hours.
The casting director couldn't believe her eyes!
»
To read also “Secrets of history”: d’Artagnan, a life at the height of his legend on France 3
The producer then made a quick round trip in 24 hours to Nashville, where the comedian lives, to present the project to him.
“We met someone extremely motivated.
He loved the script and the story of this former pilot who returns to France 25 years later.
He also speaks French… perfectly American with a charming accent”
, continues the producer.
The filming of this unit began on April 12 and will continue until May 12 in the Le Mans region and, of course, on the famous racing circuit.
The atmosphere is fine:
"Everything is going wonderfully well
," says Jean-Baptiste Neyrac.
Jason Priestley is very pleasant and motivated.
He is adorable.
»
By turning on the circuit of the 24 hours of Le Mans, the actor walks in the footsteps of Steve McQueen who had filmed in this same place, the film
Le Mans
in 1971. Other American actors have competed on the famous track including Paul Newman in 1969, Patrick Dempsey in 2009, 2014 and 2015 (he even has his own Dempsey/Proton-Competition team) and Irish actor Michael Fassbender (X-Men) in 2022.
