The stars arrive in Cannes for the high-concept series “The Miniature Wife”

Matthew Macfadyen and Elizabeth Banks are Les and Lindy, a couple trying to keep their marriage together in the upcoming Peacock drama The miniature woman. Problem is, he accidentally shrunk her to a height of six inches, adding a touch of concept to the relationship drama.

“That’s part of the attraction and because it’s so heightened, you can really play it for life and death,” Macfadyen told Deadline of the show, which had a preview at MIPCOM here in Cannes last night (Monday). Even though she was playing opposite Banks, the fact that she was a miniature meant that they rarely faced each other on set. “Elizabeth and I weren’t together for most of the show, because she’s in front of a green screen, looking at dots on the ceiling and at the top of the wall, and I’m on set, looking at marks on a mat because she’s six inches tall. It’s a technical exercise, and you use your imagination.”

Les is a biotechnology genius seeking funding for his revolutionary technology – the same technology that accidentally shrinks his wife’s waistline. “When we find him he’s very nervous; he’s a very bright man and he’s become a bit panicked about not getting the recognition, he really wants an award,” the star said.

OT Fagbenle is also starring and was on stage in Cannes after the screening. His character is in love with Lindy, but it’s usually not reciprocated. It’s a larger-than-life performance from The Handmaid’s Tale actor. “He’s a guy who loves on epic, Shakespearean levels, he’s a fan of the classics and totally obsessed with Lindy. She doesn’t feel the same way, but that’s not going to stop him from loving as hard as he can.”

Fagbenle also had green paper to negotiate. “Because we were filming asynchronously, if I was doing a scene with Matthew, I could watch the scene and see what he was doing, so I could react appropriately to his performance. Every week I would go and watch takes of Matthew shining and doing genius work, and then I would feel, ‘Oh, Jesus, I have to live up to the other side of this equation.’

Flea bag Star Sian Clifford was also in Cannes for the screening. She plays Terri, Lindy’s friend and high-flying publishing executive. “In fact, there is a lot of passive aggression, frustration and lost love within our relationship,” she says. “The whole series is, in terms of her and Lindy, an exploration of that relationship and the times it went wrong, and the role that Les played in it. My character is not a fan of Les in any form, and so Matthew and I had a lot of fun playing with that.”

Media Res produced and Jennifer Ames (Empire of the promenade) and Steve Turner (Goliath), are showrunners and executive producers. Sony Pictures Television has international sales, the show is on its MIPCOM list as it returns with a bang to the Cannes market for the first time in several years.