Celia spends three weeks filming in Big Bear, and Evelyn decides it is too risky to visit her, fearing speculation about what a “single girl” goes home to. Seizing the moment, Evelyn travels to Paris to rebuild her career. With Harry’s discreet connections, she meets several filmmakers, including Max Girard, who is captivated by her and intrigued despite not knowing her work. Evelyn maintains leverage by projecting scarcity, then returns to her hotel, where she writes a tender love letter to Celia, signing it “Edward.”

Late that night, Max calls to offer Evelyn a role in his film, Boute-en-Train, shooting near Lac d’Annecy in less than two weeks. He explains the part—a magnetic American woman who upends the plans of two petty thieves—and presses for topless scenes. Evelyn, recognizing both the indignity and the opportunity, delays agreeing to nudity while signaling interest to secure the job.

Two weeks later, Evelyn is on set, liberated from Sunset’s “innocent girl” image and fully intent on controlling how she is seen. Max’s desire for her bleeds into his direction, and he proposes a topless lake exit. Drawing on her deepening love and desire for Celia, Evelyn proposes a bolder idea: shoot to heighten anticipation without full exposure, making the moment unforgettable.

In the edit, Max slows Evelyn’s emergence from the lake to a crawl and cuts to black a breath before her breasts are fully visible, creating a lingering, unresolvable tease. The near-reveal becomes the film’s signature sensation, playing on universal desire and making the audience return to chase what they never quite see.

Six months after filming, the strategy works: Boute-en-Train turns Evelyn into an international sensation. By harnessing suggestion over explicitness, she successfully reinvents her screen persona and reclaims momentum at a critical low point in her career.