Ridley Scott turned down a blockbuster “wizard film”
2021 was a wild year for Ridley Scott who had multiple outbursts during interviews when journalists asked about the poor reception that his latest projects – The Last Duel and House of Gucci – had been subjected to. The director of masterpieces such as Alien is clearly struggling to be relevant in the modern era, with Scott setting his sights on new projects.
It has been reported that Scott is currently thinking of making a sequel to his popular historical film Gladiator. However, he has decided to embark on an intermediate project first by taking on the immense task of directing a biopic about Napoleon. This was something that Stanley Kubrick had always dreamed of doing but it looks like it will be Scott to rise to the occasion.
According to the latest reports, Joaquin Phoenix has apparently been cast in the lead role of Napoleon but the casting details are completely ambiguous as Jodie Comer recently dropped out of the project. Titled Kitbag, the film is currently set to come out sometime in 2023 and will reportedly revolve around the relationship between Napoleon and Josephine.
In a recent interview, Scott opened up about some of the projects that he had been offered to direct over the years. He revealed that he had been approached with a pitch for a film about a world of wizards but it didn’t feel right to him so he turned it down. According to Scott, the projects he is currently looking for should be impactful.
“They wanted me to do a wizard film, and I don’t do wizard films,” Scott recalled. “It wasn’t a good idea… I feel like I’m a child in a playpen with lots of toys, and I’ll go, ‘Oh, that looks nice and red and shiny. I’ll go for that.’ The older I get, the more I look for things which are about something, aren’t just entertainment. It must have an effect on somebody.”
Watch the new trailer for The Last Duel below.
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