Boris Van Severen shines in new thriller ‘Moresnet’: ‘Win or lose?’
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8 Nov 2024 •
Reading time: 4 minutes From today you can watch ‘Moresnet’ on Streamz, an exciting mystery thriller starring Boris Van Severen. The story is about Ben, who returns to his native village after his father’s death and digs up a time capsule with his friends. What they find there turns their lives upside down.
The series was created by Frank Van Passel, Jef Hoogmartens and Jonas Van Geel, and combines history with suspense and personal dramas. And starts with an exciting scene in PepperMill Casino.
The intense start in the casino
It starts with an intense scene in which Ben is sitting at the roulette table in the casino. The buzz stops for a moment and then it sounds: “Rien ne va plus.” What happens next immediately grabs you and sets the tone for the entire series. You immediately feel the themes: grief, loss, loneliness and dealing with pain. “Ben tries to forget his past and doesn’t think about his future,” says Jef Hoogmartens, the writer of the series.
“For me, that scene in the casino symbolizes the ultimate now: winning or losing.” – Jef Hoogmartens
Filming took place on location at PepperMill Genk and in the historic establishment in the former discotheque ‘PepperMill’ in Heerlen, which was converted into a casino a few years ago.
The background of Moresnet
Moresnet itself has a special history. This village, which now belongs to Plombières in Belgium, is located exactly where Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany meet. From 1816 to 1919 it was a neutral area with its own rules, stamps and even coins. It was a lively place with mines, houses and dozens of cafés and gambling houses. The series uses this historical background to create a fascinating story that connects the past and the present.
A project that was years in the making
The idea for ‘Moresnet’ came up years ago. The makers, Frank Van Passel, Jef Hoogmartens and Jonas Van Geel, initially wanted to make a historical series about Neutral Moresnet. But it soon became clear that this would be far too expensive. “We decided to use the history of Moresnet as an invisible layer under a modern story,” Hoogmartens explains. Thanks to support from the Flemish Audiovisual Fund, they were able to realize their plans.
Boris Van Severen on his first leading role
For Boris Van Severen, this is his first time as the main character. He knew a year and a half in advance that he would play Ben. “I had all the time to prepare, but that sometimes also gave me a lot of pressure,” he says. The first two weeks of recording were particularly exciting. “I felt that I had to do everything right, but after a while I was able to let go of that tension and just play. Then it became a great experience.”
What immediately attracted Van Severen to this project were the director, the strong script and the complicated nature of his role. “Frank Van Passel is the best director in Flanders. And a character with a dark or vulnerable side, that’s what I like.”
A cast with a lot of talent
In addition to Van Severen, ‘Moresnet’ has an impressive cast. Think of Pierre Bokma and Jade Olieberg from the Netherlands and the German actress Leonie Benesch. Benesch plays Eva Rolin, a CEO of a German company that researches the human brain. Their secret project plays a major role in the story. Ben and his girlfriend Zoë’s search for answers leads them to this company and reveals even more mysteries.
The story of human struggles
Although the series is full of tension and mystery, it also revolves around personal struggles. “Everyone in the series struggles with their own past and problems,” says Van Severen. “It’s about people who try to deal with their traumas and discover whether they are in control of their own lives or whether everything is already determined.” He calls the story “an ode to the failing human.” The series makes you wonder whether we really have influence on our fate or whether we just go with the flow.
Director Van Passel made sure that everything felt real and human. “It had to be more than an exciting story; it also had to be about real people,” says Hoogmartens. That gives the series extra depth and makes it more than just a thriller.