Yahoo Movies The Real-Life Sophie From 'The Staircase' Didn't Want To Be In The HBO Show
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The HBO Max true crime mini-series The Staircase tells the bizarre, unsettling story of North Carolina author Michael Peterson, who was accused of murdering his wife, Kathleen. She was found dead at the bottom of the staircase in the couple’s home in 2001.
Michael was accused of murdering his wife, put on trial, and spent time in jail. He was eventually released from prison after accepting an Alford plea—a plea that acknowledged there was sufficient evidence to convict him of the murder, but where he was still able to maintain his innocence, according to The News & Observer.
In the first few episodes of the HBO show, viewers see Michael kissing a woman ahead of his trial, and she is clearly not his dead wife. Turns out, that woman, played by actress Juliette Binoche, is Sophie Brunet, an editor on the original 2004 documentary about the case. But this romantic relationship wasn't mentioned in the famous documentary.
Wait, what?
How in the world did that happen and who is Sophie? In episode 4 of the HBO mini-series, which dropped last week, viewers learn more about the years-long relationship between Peterson and Brunet.
And episode 5, which came out today, goes deeper into the acclaimed editor's family life and how her romance with Peterson started. In the episode titled “The Beating Heart,” Brunet is shown editing footage of the original eight episodes of the documentary while writing flirty letters and sending books to Peterson.
She's since spoken out about her depiction in the HBO show. Here’s what you need to know about the real Sophie Brunet.
Who is Sophie Brunet?
Backing up a sec: The original documentary series about Michael, which is also called The Staircase, was directed by Jean-Xavier de Lestrade. It aired in 2004. And one of the editors on the documentary was...Sophie Brunet. You can find the Parisian's name listed on the IMDB site as having worked on the film.
Sophie has worked on a slew of other projects, according to her IMDB page. Those include the drama Blue Is the Warmest Color, and French shows Call My Agent! and Jeux d’influence. Worth noting: She’s only listed as working on two episodes of The Staircase documentary: “The Verdict” and “Crime or Accident?”
How did Sophie meet Michael?
Sophie and Michael started a relationship while she was working on the documentary, which was crafted over 15 years, Lestrade revealed to the French publication L’Express. “This is one of the incredible things that happened during those 15 years,” he said. “Life is really full of surprises…But she never let her own feelings affect the course of editing.”
Lestrade said that Sophie kept her work and private life separate.
In an interview with The News & Observer, Michael said he received a letter from Sophie while in prison. From that point, she started sending him books (Proust, apparently). "It developed from that," Michael said.
How long did their relationship last?
It’s hard to put an exact number on it, but it seems like they were an item for about 12 years. Lestrade told L’Express that the two were a couple until May 2017.
In 2019, Michael told The News & Observer that the plan was to move to Paris to be with Sophie, but after visiting, he realized it wasn't going to work out: he was too old, didn't speak French, and wanted to be near his family.
"It was a great blow to both of us," Michael said.
She never wanted to be a part of the HBO adaptation.
The real-life Brunet never wanted to be a character in the HBO show, she told Vanity Fair. And she said as much to the show's creator in an email.
Despite her protestations, she learned that the project was full steam ahead and that Binoche would play her. “I was upset when I heard that I was going to be a character in the series," she wrote to VF. "I felt betrayed and I was angry with myself... I did not feel that there was anything I could do to avoid being a character."
What does she make of the whole "staircase murder" scenario?
Apparently, she didn't buy it. Michael told The News & Observer that Sophie reached out to him in that first letter telling him she thought he was innocent. According to him, she had seen hours and hours of footage, and came to the conclusion that his time in prison was a “great injustice.”
However, there's no word from the woman herself on the whole situation.
Where is Sophie now?
As far as people can tell, Sophie is still working in film editing. Her IMDB page lists her as being an editor on things like the TV mini-series The Inside Game, the documentary Dark Secrets of a Trillion Dollar Island: Garenne, and the French TV series Laetitia over the past few years.
What is her net worth?
There’s no reliable information on this one. Film editors make an average of $77,749 a year, according to Glassdoor, so it’s possible Sophie falls somewhere in that range.
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