Striking while the Emmanuelle iron was hot, Jaeckin sought to up his game with another adaptation of a hot-button 1950s novel (by Anne Desclos), again tracking the turbulent sexual trajectory of a young woman and casting an actress in a career-sparking role; Corinne Cléry (later of Moonraker) stars as O, whose lover Udo Kier puts her through S&M training—and promises her to an older man—played by former Rank Organisation studio contract player Anthony Steel.