Versailles Gives ‘Marie Antoinette’ (and Sofia Coppola) the Royal Treatment 20 Years Later

When Sofia Coppola was granted access to the Château de Versailles’ hallowed halls for her 2006 film, Marie Antoinette, their collaboration was unprecedented. Though the film initially received criticism for its unconventional portrayal of the young French queen (intentionally opting for an anachronistically stylish over stuffily period-appropriate approach), 20 years later, its legacy is undeniable. This fall the anniversary is being fêted with a new documentary on the movie’s making (directed by Coppola’s late mother, Eleanor), a book featuring behind-the-scenes photographs by Andrew Durham, who also produced her first short movie, Lick the Star (1998), as well as a theatrical re-release in the United States. Now the palace itself is joining in on the fun, too.

Conceived in collaboration with Coppola and sponsored by Cartier, the Château de Versailles is staging an exhibition about the film’s fascinating origin, painstaking production and cultural impact. On view through January 24, 2027, the show is situated in the Petit Trianon, where Marie Antoinette would seek refuge from the demands of court life and spend time with her closest friends in and among its surrounding gardens. “The strength of the film is how it remains so modern; it seems as if it has been shot yesterday,” Laurent Salomé, Director of the National Museum of the Châteaux de Versailles and Trianon, told The Hollywood Reporter at the exhibition’s press preview last month. Salomé, who co-curated the exhibition with Hélène Delalex, Chief Heritage Curator in Charge of Marie Antoinette’s Apartments, believes much of the film’s timelessness and relatability stems from Coppola’s unique point of view: “Her style is to focus on facial expression and silent moments. It’s about being, suffering, and hoping.”

Delalex also praised Coppola’s interpretation of the tragic figure, who was just 14 when she arrived at Versailles and 18 when crowned queen: “As a specialist, I think Sofia Coppola’s intimate portrait of the queen is very accurate in many aspects, for example, her youthful spirit, grace, sincerity, and légèreté, meaning frivolity.” In one of the exhibition’s introductory wall texts, Coppola explains how much of her coming-of-age portrayal of the young dauphine and later queen can be owed to Antonia Fraser’s 2001 biography, Marie Antoinette: The Journey, which offered a more human, sympathetic perspective on its often misunderstood, villainized protagonist. However, the film’s candy-colored palette (derived from a box of macarons), New Romantic–heavy soundtrack, and countless contemporary winks (eagle-eyed fans will spot those lilac Converse sneakers in the exhibition) are singlehandedly Sofia.

“I didn’t think it was so far out to put modern music in that period, and [it’s] cool to see that’s totally accepted by an audience today, and also that a female point of view is accepted as something not unusual,” Coppola told THR. The director added it’s been “fun and gratifying” to see how the film’s legacy endures (even garnering a new generation of fans, including her daughters’ friends). It was also “moving” for her to return to Versailles with leads Kirsten Dunst and Jason Schwartzman on the occasion of this exhibition. “People had been hard on Kirsten when the film came out, and she felt bad that she had let me down. I always loved her performance, so it’s nice to hear people expressing that too.”

Coppola had a strong hand in realizing the Versailles exhibition. “At the beginning we had imagined a more classical scenography, but Sofia and [production designer] Scott Dougan wanted it to feel like a teenager took over,” said Delalex, calling Coppola’s working style “delicate, natural, and intuitive.” At the same time, the collaborators sought to reveal the great lengths Coppola’s team went to make the movie possible. The nearly six months of negotiating with Versailles resulted in a major logistical operation. From January to April 2005, the film was shot over 57 days, including 20 days at Versailles. As filming was only allowed on Mondays under strict restrictions, Coppola’s team reconstructed some of the château’s key interiors, such as the Queen’s Grand Chamber and the Royal Opera, in nearby châteaux, such as Millemont.

“I hope [the exhibition] gives an impression a little of what it was like on set and the work that went into it from all the departments,” said Coppola, who provided the curators with original references, mood boards, scene sketches, annotated scripts, casting sheets, hair and makeup test photos, and more. “The curators really wanted to show the film making process, which I thought was so unusual to do at Versailles.”

The curators additionally tapped the vast collections of Marie Antoinette’s production designer, K. K. Barrett, and Supervising Art Director, Anne Seibel. “We discovered hundreds and hundreds of boxes full of memories, papers, and objects [from research binders and sketches to scale models and fabric samples] that are testimonials of the way that almost everything in this film was crafted by hand,” recalled Delalex. Even if it was only featured “for a second and a half,” no detail was overlooked in order to maintain continuity between the real and reconstructed châteaux. The exhibition also introduces audiences to the French artisans and consultants, from cabinetmakers to food historians, that brought Coppola’s decadent vision to life.

Of course, the exhibition would be incomplete without Milena Canonero’s Oscar-winning costumes and Manolo Blahnik’s dazzling heels, brought together from all corners of the world. These frothy confections, worn on mannequins bearing Dunst’s and Schwartzman’s uncanny visages, are complemented by Durham’s amusing candid film snaps, often picturing the cast’s behind-the-scenes antics, whether listening to music with headphones or taking a cigarette break.

Ultimately Delalex believes no one at Versailles could have predicted that Coppola’s film “would have such a remarkable life.”

“Its visual language continues to inspire interior design, photography, fashion, and even pastry,” said the curator, noting, perhaps, the movie’s greatest influence has been on Versailles itself. “For many people today, the Marie-Antoinette style has become synonymous with Sofia Coppola’s style — many visitors come here hoping to see the Versailles of the film. Her aesthetic is so strong, it’s like a work of art.”