The documentary The Mysterious Mr. Lagerfeld, which reveals an unknown side of life of Karl Lagerfeld, creative director of Chanel and Fendi, will premiere on April 26. The film centres on the late designer’s career and financial problems through the eyes of his friends. After Karl’s death in 2019, his $187 million fortune is still awaiting its owners. It is known that the designer had no direct heirs. At the moment, his Paris flat is sealed and lawyers from Monaco and France have been negotiating the division of the estate for several years.
It is reported that the main beneficiary of the inheritance will be the 33-year-old mannequinist and close friend of Karl during the last years of his life, Batiste Giacomini. At one point, the designer even wanted to adopt his favourite model, but faced with a number of bureaucratic problems, he declined to do so. Batiste believes he is at the ‘top of the heir list’:
“The adoption plan, which both seemed to want, was an odd one, not least because Batiste already has a father. But he told us he loved Lagerfeld. In the end, a picture emerges of Lagerfeld’s almost monastic existence,” says film-maker Michael Waldman.
The documentary will feature many people from Karl’s entourage who were in the shadows until his death. In addition to Baptiste Giacconi, Lagerfeld had another close friend, Brad Kroenig. He spoke for the first time about the great influence the designer had on the lives of his family, including his sons, Lagerfeld’s godchildren. Kroenig met Karl when he was 23 and over the next three years became the highest paid international male model. Lagerfeld invited Brad’s entire family to vacation in the south of France every summer.
The creators of the tape note that Karl was a very generous man, often presented his friends with expensive gifts, cars, paid for flights and even bought them a house. Carl once designed a wedding dress for free for his American niece, whom he hardly knew, and arranged for the item to be delivered for the big day.
