I’ve said many times here on Miscelana how much I love the book and the film Dangerous Liaisons. After the ill-fated Starz series in 2022, a new production set out to revisit the original story, and the series Merteuil has now gained a new international title: The Seduction, premiering on HBO Max in November 2025.

Pierre Choderlos de Laclos’ original work is nearly 245 years old and shook the foundations of French society before the Revolution. Written as a series of letters exchanged by nobles, it shamelessly exposed the intrigues, revenge plots, and erotic games of the aristocracy. Legend has it that it was Marie Antoinette’s favorite book, telling the story of the Vicomte de Valmont and the Marquise de Merteuil — two masters of manipulation who turned seduction into a weapon, both for pleasure and for destruction. This combination of eroticism, cruelty, and intelligence has fascinated generations — and still does to this day.

Of all the many adaptations, the 1988 version remains the definitive one, with Glenn Close and John Malkovich delivering iconic performances. Hollywood created its own teen version with Cruel Intentions, transforming the intrigue into a coming-of-age melodrama. And in 2022, as I mentioned, Starz took the risk of telling a story we had never seen: how it all began. It didn’t work out and was canceled before it could conclude.

That is why HBO’s announcement of a new adaptation initially met with skepticism. And yet, piece by piece, The Seduction has become one of the most anticipated releases of the year. Premiering November 14, 2025, with six episodes airing weekly until December 19, this new series is entirely French, filmed in Normandy and in Île-de-France castles, immediately anchoring it closer to the world of Laclos’ novel. Most importantly, it is shaped by the singular vision of writer-director Jessica Palud. “I’m a huge fan of Frears’ film,” Palud said in an interview, “but I knew we had to do something different. We couldn’t try to recreate Malkovich. I wanted a Valmont with humor, with panache, capable of being as dark as he is funny. A modern Valmont who keeps his cool.”

Palud views the series as both a prequel and a sequel. This spiritual continuation reveals not only how Merteuil evolved into the woman we know from the novel, but also what happened after her downfall. This makes The Seduction a story of metamorphosis and survival. “Merteuil is an extremely intelligent woman who is duped by Valmont. Through her intelligence, she surpasses him — and through a kind of proto-feminism, she decides she will never let herself be deceived by men again.” For Palud, Merteuil’s journey is almost a #MeToo story of the 18th century, a woman who transforms trauma into power and refuses to remain a victim.

The casting reflects this vision. Anamaria Vartolomei, who worked with Palud on Being Maria, was chosen instantly for the role. “She has the intelligence, the wit, the cynicism — and the depth to understand Merteuil,” Palud said. Diane Kruger plays Madame de Rosemonde, a character who in Frears’ film was an elderly woman relegated to the background but here becomes an active presence, a woman who still belongs to the old world but serves as a foil and a witness to Merteuil’s rebellion. The relationship between the two women was created specifically for the series. “Rosemonde thinks it’s impossible to go too far, that women cannot surpass men,” Palud explained. “And Merteuil is the one who says: screw everyone, I will go beyond all that, even if it means burning my wings.”

Vincent Lacoste plays Valmont, reinvented not as a shadow of Malkovich’s performance but as a man with charm and wit who can be both magnetic and terrifying. Lucas Bravo, far from his cheerful Emily in Paris persona, plays the Comte de Gercourt as a dark, violent figure — a former lover of Merteuil and a libertine whose presence in the story seems set to catalyze her most dangerous choices. Noée Abita plays the virtuous Madame de Tourvel, Fantine Harduin is Cécile de Volanges, Samuel Kircher is the romantic Chevalier Danceny, and Sandrine Blancke is Madame de Volanges. Together, they form the web of passion, manipulation, and revenge that is at the heart of this story.

The title itself, The Seduction, carries weight. It is not simply about physical attraction; it is about the mechanics of control. Seduction here is strategy, survival, the very currency of power in a society where women had few options. The show’s logline sets the tone: “To be the hero of your own story, you sometimes have to be the villain in others.” That is Merteuil in a single sentence — hero and villain, victim and architect, a woman playing the men’s game but determined to win.

Visually, Palud aimed for something elegant and timeless, working with costume designer Pascaline Chauvelle and production designer Florian Sanson to create a world that feels painterly but alive. “We wanted something cinematic, colorful, and attractive,” Palud said, rejecting both the overdone opulence of typical period dramas and the pop style of recent Marie Antoinette adaptations. This is a series of looks, glances, and verbal sparring, not of frantic action.

The result promises to be not just a feast for the eyes but a profound character study. Merteuil is no longer merely the villain of a cautionary tale — she is the protagonist of her own revolution. By centering her story, The Seduction repositions Valmont as the antagonist, allowing us to see this world from the perspective of the woman who has always been its most fascinating player.

If it delivers on its ambition, The Seduction may become the definitive screen version of the Marquise de Merteuil for the 21st century — darker, sharper, more human, and more dangerous. A series that does not simply retell Laclos’ classic, but dares to ask the questions that still haunt us: what are we willing to risk for freedom, and what is the true cost of victory in a world that expects us to lose?