Filmmaker Ridley Scott’s new war-time epic “Napoleon” won’t hit cinemas until November, but it turns out he’s already making plans for a director’s cut of the film.
Speaking to Empire Magazine (via World of Reel), Scott revealed the film’s theatrical cut still clocks in at 157 minutes. However, he says he also has a “fantastic” near four-and-a-half-hour cut of the film.
That over-an-hour longer edition reportedly further fills out more of Vanessa Kirby’s performance as Josephine and shows off more of her life before she meets Napoleon. According to the outlet, he’d love the film’s financiers Apple to eventually screen it.
The theatrical cut of “Napoleon” will be released during awards season on November 22nd.
The news brings back obvious comparisons to Scott’s 2005 historical warfare epic “Kingdom of Heaven,” which had a theatrical cut of 144 minutes and a director’s cut of 194 minutes.
That film’s director’s cut similarly saw a major expansion of the female lead character’s role played by Eva Green. In fact, it was such an expansion that it changed the entire nature of her character and others.
That film went from a mixed reaction to its theatrical cut to overwhelming praise for its director’s cut, which is widely seen as the definitive version of the film.
Source: World of Reel
