Joaquin Phoenix is a treasure, with a number of prolific films under his belt. Much of his success can be attributed to his fierce commitment as an actor, including his devotion to working with talented, visionary directors. Throughout his career, he has worked with auteurs like Paul Thomas Anderson, Spike Jonze and Ari Aster. Now, he is reteaming with Ridley Scott for his latest film, Napoleon. So, with the film coming out soon, the Oscar winner opened up about why he decided to work with Ridley Scott again, 23 years after their partnership on Gladiator.
The Joker actor recently talked to Empire about his latest historical venture, Napoleon. The film is already generating Oscar buzz from early footage, which showcased Scott’s stunning direction and ability to stage a battle scene. It has been two decades since the two have worked on a project together, and now the timing is finally right. The character actor talked about wanting to work with the Alien filmmaker once again, and how his positive experience on Gladiator had a lot to do with it. He said:
The truth is, there was just a very nostalgic idea of working with Ridley again. I had such an incredible experience working with Ridley on Gladiator, and I was so young. It was my first big production. I really yearned for that experience again, or something similar. He’s approached me about other things in the past, but nothing that felt like it would be as demanding for both of us. And so I really liked the idea of jumping into something with Ridley that was going to be that.
Like Phoenix, many actors have worked with Ridley Scott again after positive first experiences. Matt Damon enjoyed working with the Blade Runner director so much on The Martian, that he collaborated with him again on The Last Duel. Adam Driver did back-to-back films with the filmmaker (The Last Duel and House of Gucci), and Russell Crowe also starred in two of his movies (Gladiator and Robin Hood). Many directors have their favorite actors to work with repeatedly, and Scott is lucky enough to have a slew of them coming back again and again.
While Phoenix and Scott already have an established history, it took the actor’s performance in Joker for the auteur to commit to casting him in the titular role. Napoleon Bonaparte is a complicated figure with a complex relationship to his place in society, just like the Joker. The Inherent Vice star won an Oscar for his portrayal of the Batman villain, and astounding clips from the trailer suggest Phoenix may be in contention once more. He received his first Academy Award nomination for Gladiator, so Scott has a track record for pulling an awards-level performance out of the actor.
The 48-year-old performer has had such immense success, but he still clearly remembers great experiences from the early days of his career. Now, as a much more seasoned actor, he probably has a lot more to bring to the collaboration. Even after trying to work together a handful of times, there was something about Napoleon that made this time the charm, acting as a great omen for what's in store for the epic biopic.
Napoleon is set to hit theaters on November 22, and will subsequently be available for those with an AppleTV+ subscription. In the meantime, you can check out the previous Ridley Scott/Joaquin Phoenix project, Gladiator, with an Amazon Prime subscription.
