Whether he’s playing Johnny Cash in Walk the Line, Arthur Fleck in Joker, or Napoleon Bonaparte in Napoleon, actor Joaquin Phoenix has a type. “He is the best player of damaged goods,” director Ridley Scott praised him in an interview with Empire. The pair, who worked together on Best Picture winner Gladiator, have reunited for the historical drama about the emperor of French.
They had other opportunities to collaborate in the 20-plus years between projects, but nothing felt right.
“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,” Phoenix said. “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.”
Here’s more on Napoleon:
Napoleon is a spectacle-filled action epic that details the checkered rise and fall of the iconic French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte, played by Oscar-winner Joaquin Phoenix. Against a stunning backdrop of large-scale filmmaking orchestrated by legendary director Ridley Scott, the film captures Bonaparte’s relentless journey to power through the prism of his addictive, volatile relationship with his one true love, Josephine, showcasing his visionary military and political tactics against some of the most dynamic practical battle sequences ever filmed.
Napoleon comes to theaters on November 22.
(Via Empire)