Amalie Næsby Fick on Toronto-Bound ‘What Lies Between Us’ and Challenging Viewers: Would You Defend Your Child, No Matter What? (EXCLUSIVE)

Variety has been given exclusive access “What Lies Between Us” (“Dobbeltfejl”), selected for Toronto’s Discovery section and one of three short-listed Danish pics to become Denmark’s Oscar entry.

The feature (formerly known as “Good Mothers”) reunites some of Denmark’s finest talents on both sides of the camera: the stars of the cult series “Borgen” — Sidse Babette Knudsen and “The Killing”— Sofie Gråbøl, in their first joint screen appearance; Asta Kamma August, currently playing in Hans Petter Moland’s San Sebastian main competition entry “Growth of the Soil;” Zentropa producer Louise Vesth, s long-time collaborator of Lars von Trier; and Nikolaj Arcel (“A Royal Affair,” “The Promised Land”) who co-penned the script with Sara Isabella Jønsson (“Copenhagen Cowboy,” “Unruly”).

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Making her live action feature debut is Amalie Næsby Fick, behind the Berlinale Generation animation pic “The Incredible Story of a Giant Pear,” and the Netflix series “Baby Fever.”

Set in a small community, the story takes a deep dive into the complex world of modern parenthood, asking the uncomfortable question: How far would you go to protect your child in a crisis situation? Would you lie, break the law, betray your friends and family?

The storyline turns on a scandal that shakes a small Danish suburban town when a teen boy accuses two of his peers of sexual assault. When Anne Sofie (Sidse Babette Knudsen) the successful real estate agent and tennis fanatic discovers that her son Frederik (Viktor Garrison) might be more involved than she thought, her moral compass wavers and she takes a drastic decision to save her family and reputation. At the same time, her long-time friendship with Sarah (Sofie Gråbøl) mother of Oskar (August Mejlva-Aaen) takes a hit, while Ulrikke (Asta August), the third embroiled mother tries to navigate the crisis as wel as being single mum of the troubled NC (Julian Brix).

In the clip shared by Zentropa and sales rep TrustNordisk, Anne Sofie’s family tries to get on with life as usual, while a police car is patrolling in front of their home.

When producer Louise Vesth first approached Fick with a possible adaptation of the yet-to-be published book “Dobbelfejl” by author Anne Mette Kirk in 2023, she jumped on the offer. As a mother of a young boy, she immediately related to the core of the story – would you defend your child-no matter what?

“I read the book which was a true page-turner, and told Louise I’d love to do a screen adaptation and use the interesting premise as a thriller engine in the film,” Fick tells Variety.

Eager to make the material hers, the helmer had the idea of focusing on Anne Sofie, the mother with the most questionable behaviour, morally and ethically. 

“I felt Anne Sofie has the most interesting journey,” says Fick who was keen to explore how her determination to protect her son, no matter what, affects her judgment and her own behaviour. “In all my films and series, I’m interested in characters doing the wrong things, yet we still root for them.”

References for the pic ranged from Ang Lee’s “The Ice Storm,” “for the drama with a thriller engine,” to HBO’s “Big Little Lies, “for the family drama and smalltown community feeling”, although the helmer was adamant not to set the story in an affluent environment. “The crisis situation could happen to anyone, it had to be about ‘normal’ middle class families” Fick says.

Reese Witherspoon’s fierce character [Madeline Martha Mckenzie] in “Big Little Lies,” her pulling power in the community and in the school was another inspiration for the character of Anne Sofie, says Fick who knew from a very early stage that she wanted Knudsen for the part, next to Gråbøl as Sarah.

“Sidse is warm, witty and humorous; She has the ability to portray nuanced characters. She can do the most dreadful things, yet you still root for her. As for Sofie, she is as talented and extremely funny in real life. She has a pulling power and gets you fully engrossed in any character,” says Fick who was also thrilled to bring together the two heavyweight Danish actors for the first time. “Both played earlier in Susanne Bier’s comedy “The One and Only” [1999], but they had no scenes together. This is their very first time!” Fick beams.

Sidse Babette Knudsen On Her Role

Discussing her character with Variety, Knudsen says about Anne Sofie: “She´s a fighter. She used to be a tennis champion in her youth, and it has created a need in her to be a winner. She regards conflicts as fights, where she intimidates and overpowers the opposing part. Her life is great until it isn’t, and she believes that she is fighting for her son.”

“When she finds herself out of bounds, having forced and manipulated and lied, there is no way back for her than to take her cover story all the way.

“Tennis is an important arena in the film,” adds Knudsen. “Her relationship with her son is seen on the tennis court, how she helps, loves, coaches, punishes and ultimately sees her son.”

A novice in kids casting, Fick said she relied on the seasoned Anja Philip (“Borgen,” “Margrete-Queen of the North”) who helped her cast the young Garrison, Mejlva-Aaen and Brix, selected picked among 200 boys.

“We were extremely careful in our approach to the sensitive subject [of sexual assault] with the young actors, letting them know the full story and our intention,” Fick underscores. “We had lots of rehearsals, helping them map out their character, then Anja who’s worked on almost everything I’ve made, was on set for the most difficult scenes.”

On her first experience of directing a live feature, Fick said having “a trustful and creative collaboration” with Vesth, Arcel, Jønsson and the entire crew was quintessential. “I felt safe and in very good hands.”

So how would she – as a parent – react if her kid was suddenly accused of a crime or misdemeanour? “I would probably go all the way – lie, cheat, do anything to protect my child!” says Fick with a grin.

Ultimately, she hopes that audiences will be engaged in the story, reflect and openly discuss challenging topics such as sexual assault, bullying at school, and the difficulty of parenting.

The film will hit Danish theaters Sept. 24 via Nordisk Film Distribution.