Asif Kapadia says Harvey Weinstein “killed” ‘The Warrior’
Oscar-winning director Asif Kapadia, the man behind the documentaries Senna, Amy and Diego Maradona, recently told a room of CPH:DOX attendees that convicted sex offender Harvey Weinstein “killed” his debut narrative feature, 2001’s The Warrior.
The Warrior stars the late Irrfan Khan and tells of a mercenary tasked with devastating a rural Rajasthani village by forcing them to pay taxes before going on a spiritual journey and renouncing his evil past. Despite gaining a warm critical response, Kapadia claims his movie gained no attention outside of the UK due to Weinstein buying the worldwide rights.
“I was flown out to New York to meet Weinstein, and everyone was saying how great it was that the film had sold to Miramax,” Kapadia said. “I remember saying why I did not feel good about (the deal).” After Weinstein entered the room, the director then recalled it going silent with people not able to look the Miramax boss in the eye.
He continued: “Weinstein pushed this pile of scripts towards me and said, ‘Pick a movie (because) your next film has to be with me, or I don’t release The Warrior. And not only that, he says, ‘Your next three movies have to be with me.'” Kapadia refused Weinstein, not wanting to be tied to a contract, so he “killed the film” as a result.
“Even now The Warrior cannot be shown around the world,” Kapadia explained. “Even Irrfan Khan tried to get that film shown. Now nobody even knows who owns it. I can look at the experience now and go: ‘That was a big opportunity for (my drama career), and it died before it began on my first film.’ So, I had to find another way.”
This was Kapadia’s route into documentary filmmaking. “I had a bit more control (on a doc),” he clarified. “I was running it, and I was in charge of the edit. Also, the less money you have, the more power you have.”
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