“Tatort” from Switzerland
This is how the two commissioners have developed so far
The actresses Anna Pieri Zuercher (left) and Carol Schuler slip back into their commissioner roles Isabelle Grandjean and Tessa Ott in “Tatort: Risks with Side Effects”.
© SRF/Sava Hlavacek
The “crime scene: risks with side effects” is the fourth case from Zurich. Grandjean and Ott have also evolved in the cases.
Only for the fourth time do Swiss detectives Isabelle Grandjean (Anna Pieri Zuercher, born 1979) and Tessa Ott (Carol Schuler, 35) solve a murder in “Tatort: Risks with Side Effects” (September 11, the first). The two solved their first case in October 2020, since then they have been hunting criminals very irregularly in the first case. But how have the characters developed since their first crime novel?
“Isabelle’s character matures and grows with the cases”
Anna Pieri Zuercher describes it in an interview with the broadcaster as follows: “Isabelle’s character matures and grows with the cases she solves.” That’s definitely true – in every thriller she reveals a little more of herself. However, the rather distant, analytical commissioner is still a bit of a mystery to this day. The relationship with her colleague Tessa Ott “is becoming more and more interesting,” Zuercher agrees. Grandjean would accept more and more to open up, according to the actress. Because the relationship between the two investigators is rather tense from the start.
The character Tessa Ott has also changed over time. “Tessa is becoming more and more self-confident in her job as a commissioner, but still remains true to herself,” describes Carol Schuler. So she still doesn’t mince her words or “consistently drives to every (crime) location by bicycle”. In “Tatort: Risks with Side Effects” she also rejects her colleague’s offer to drive her home.
Not an easy twist
Which doesn’t make it easy for the two actresses: two films are always shot in parallel for the Swiss “Tatort”. There are always very different stories and cases, emphasizes Zuercher. “Because we’re not shooting in chronological order and the two cases are sometimes mixed up, you have to be very focused and always extremely well prepared in order not to lose the thread.”
For Schuler, shooting “Tatort” was “a real blessing after a long period of social isolation”. She was surrounded by a “great crew and dear colleagues” and was allowed to do “what I love to do most: play”.