The coronavirus pandemic has shut down most film production around the globe, one of the most high-profile films right in the middle of its shoot being Ridley Scott’s period drama “The Last Duel”.
That 14th century France-set tale starring Adam Driver, Matt Damon and Ben Affleck is expected to resume production once things return to a more normal state.
This week the 82-year-old director spoke with Variety about the stoppage, confirming they had finished in France after shooting for a month and decided “it was sensible to close down for the time being”. The production had been scheduled to head to Ireland for the next leg of the shoot and so they decided to stop before heading there.
Scott doesn’t have kind words for the politicians handling the crisis, calling Trump an “orange-headed fellow” and “nutcase,” and adding that “half the time being run by idiots and the other time by despots… No one wants to go into politics. If anyone has half a brain they wouldn’t want to go into politics anyway, right?”
So what do he think needs to be done to stop the spread? “If we stay indoors for the given amount of time, they get a handle on it to understand what’s going on. The irony is that for the most part, it’ll be an experience of mild to severe flu for most people and old geezers like me have gotta watch my back. And I am. I’m being very cautious, I want to return and finish off the film with Matt Damon.”
“The Last Duel” is still set for a late 2020 release but due to the stoppage will almost certainly re-schedule for sometime in 2021.
