The film is inspired by the true story of former cop Christophe Gavat and the Neyret Affair, although character names have been changed. Willy Blain is based on Gavat while Philippe Jansen is based on Michel Neyret.
The driving force behind the film was actor Bruno Wolkowitch, a friend of Christophe Gavat's who upon hearing his story became convinced it had to be told on screen, and brought it to the attention of producer Dominique Antoine. Antoine asked Wolkowitch to make his directorial debut with the film, but after considering it he backed out and asked his and Gavat's mutual friend Olivier Marchal to step in.
Despite being a French production, the film premiered on Swiss television, and only aired in France a year later, almost to the day.