Editing The Big Blue (section)

==Production==
Besson was initially unsure of whom to cast in the main role of Mayol. He initially offered the role to [[Christopher Lambert]] and [[Mickey Rourke]] and even considered himself for the role until someone suggested Jean-Marc Barr. Besson has a [[cameo appearance]] as one of the divers in the film. ''The Big Blue'' was the most financially successful French film of the 1980s, selling 9,193,873 tickets in France alone, and played in French theaters for a year.

With its extensive underwater scenes and languid score (as with nearly all of Besson's films, the [[soundtrack]] was composed by [[Éric Serra]]), the film has been both praised as beautiful and serene, and in equal measure criticized as being too drawn out, overly reflective and introspective. While popular in [[Europe]], the film was a commercial failure in [[North America]]. The American version was recut to include a simplified "happy" ending, and Serra's score was replaced with a soundtrack composed by [[Bill Conti]]. This version was only available on [[VHS]] and [[LaserDisc]] in the United States (both with 4×3 pan-and-scan transfers) and is currently [[out of print]]. The director later released a longer [[director's cut]] on [[DVD-Video|DVD]], featuring the original ending and an extended version of the Serra score.

Much of the film was shot on the Greek island of [[Amorgos]], where Agia Anna and the monastery of Panagia Hozoviotissa can be seen. The film was dedicated to his daughter Juliette Besson, who required surgery after becoming ill during filming.

===Filming locations===
*Maisons-Laffitte (France), piscine municipale (opening scene in swimming pool)
*[[Chattanooga, Tennessee]], United States
*Manganari, [[Ios Island|Ios]], [[Cyclades]], Greece<ref name=locations>{{cite web|url=https://movie-locations.com/movies/g/Grand-Bleu.php|title=The Big Blue|access-date=2 February 2021}}</ref> {{Coord|36|38|51|N|25|22|17|E|type:waterbody|display=inline}}
*Agia Anna, [[Amorgos]], Cyclades, Greece<ref name=locations/>
*Kalotaritissa bay, Amorgos, Cyclades, Greece
*[[Marineland (Antibes)]], [[Antibes]], [[Alpes-Maritimes]], France<ref name=locations/>
*[[Peru]]<ref name=locations/>
*[[St. Croix]], [[U.S. Virgin Islands]]<ref name=locations/>
*[[Taormina]], [[Messina]], [[Sicily]], Italy<ref name=locations/>
*Lac du Chardonnet, [[Tignes]], [[Savoie]], [[Rhône-Alpes]], France (lake diving under the ice in Peru)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.lci.fr/loisirs/a-tignes-savoie-plongee-dans-le-lac-du-le-grand-bleu-de-luc-besson-2080088.html|title=A Tignes, plongée dans le lac du Le Grand bleu de Luc Besson|work=LCI|language=fr|date=28 February 2018|access-date=2 February 2021}}</ref>
*[[Cádiz]], Spain
*[[Deutsche Bank Building]], [[New York City]], United States
*[[Giens]], Hyeres France