A new film, Moss & Freud, offers a semi-fictionalised account of the unlikely friendship between supermodel Kate Moss and artist Lucian Freud. The Oscar-winning director James Lucas explores the nine-month period in 2002 when Moss sat for Freud, a time that she has rarely discussed publicly.
The film stars Ellie Bamber as Moss and Derek Jacobi as Freud, depicting their intimate sessions from 19:00 to 02:00 each night. Lucas suggests that the collaboration helped Moss re-evaluate her life and career amid burnout from the celebrity spotlight. Notably, Moss approved the project and served as an executive producer, even helping to cast Bamber.
Lucas first approached Moss with a letter, and she responded quickly, granting unprecedented access. The director says he was drawn to the '00s London setting, a time of creativity and hedonism. The film includes scenes of Moss's 30th birthday party, themed 'The Beautiful and the Damned', and a visit to an S&M club in Berlin that triggers distressing memories of exploitation.
While Moss has long adhered to a 'never complain, never explain' mantra, the film provides a rare glimpse into her private life. It focuses on the period when she sat for Freud, during which she also discovered she was pregnant, offering an intimate snapshot of a transformative year.
