Napoleon - Ridley Scott's film with Joaquin Phoenix

[𝔗𝔥𝔢 𝔈𝔦𝔤𝔥𝔱𝔥 𝔓𝔞𝔰𝔰𝔢𝔫𝔤𝔢𝔯]

https://twitter.com/LEmperorgb/status/1636091449459589121

[𝔗𝔥𝔢 𝔈𝔦𝔤𝔥𝔱𝔥 𝔓𝔞𝔰𝔰𝔢𝔫𝔤𝔢𝔯]

Looks like Napoleon will get a theatrical release:

https://twitter.com/Lucas_Shaw/status/1638909480590245888

https://twitter.com/DiscussingFilm/status/1638901022696325123

@Nightmare Asylum

[Nightmare Asylum]

Phenomenal.

[Nightmare Asylum]

https://twitter.com/DEADLINE/status/1642950777118539776

[𝔗𝔥𝔢 𝔈𝔦𝔤𝔥𝔱𝔥 𝔓𝔞𝔰𝔰𝔢𝔫𝔤𝔢𝔯]

Finally, about time. Still a long wait 'till November though.

Apple Original Films has partnered with Sony Pictures Entertainment and set a November 22 worldwide theatrical release launch for Napoleon, the historical action epic directed by Ridley Scott that stars Joaquin Phoenix as French conqueror Napoleon Bonaparte and Vanessa Kirby as Empress Josephine. After the theatrical run, the film will stream globally on Apple TV+.

This becomes the second awards-season film from Apple set for an ambitious theatrical run, after the Cannes-bound Martin Scorsese-directed Killers of the Flower Moon was set for a late October release through Paramount Pictures. Paramount had some Killers rights and always was part of the Apple deal, but this is the first time Apple went out and aligned in a one-off distribution deal. Sony's Tom Rothman worked often with Scott when the filmmaker's Scott Free was based at Fox, and he will be primed to help maximize the awards chances of the director, who hasn't yet won an Oscar but has been nominated three times for Best Director, for Thelma & Louise, Gladiator and Black Hawk Down.

Napoleon had been in the Cannes Film Festival conversation at one point, but it became clear that wouldn't happen because of its fall release plans. It is still early, but expect Telluride, Venice and Toronto to chase this pic, as well as New York, whose September 29-October 15 date falls closest on the calendar to Thanksgiving. Deadline revealed last week that the Denis Villenueve-directed Dune sequel was unlikely to bow at Venice as did the original, because of the gap between Venice an the film's November 3 release date. A NYFF bow seems most likely for that film.

Directed by Scott from a screenplay by David Scarpa, Napoleon tells the story of the French emperor and military leader's origins and swift, ruthless climb to emperor. That is viewed through the prism of his addictive and often volatile relationship with his wife and one true love, Josephine. The film captures Napoleon's famous battles, relentless ambition and astounding strategic mind as an extraordinary military leader and war visionary. An Apple Studios production in conjunction with Scott Free Productions, Napoleon is produced by Scott, Kevin Walsh, Mark Huffam and Phoenix, with Michael Pruss and Aidan Elliott serving as executive producers.
Napoleon and Killers of the Flower Moon give the three-year-old Apple Original Films two prime entries in the awards race, after it became the first streamer to win the Best Picture Oscar two years ago with CODA.

[Andrea90]

Is that the first official image of the film?

[Ingwar]

Yes.

[𝔗𝔥𝔢 𝔈𝔦𝔤𝔥𝔱𝔥 𝔓𝔞𝔰𝔰𝔢𝔫𝔤𝔢𝔯]

Yeah, the photo is credited to "Apple Original Films".

[nanison]

Does this mean that after it leaves cinemas it will forever be only watchable on apple+ ?
What a bloody shame. I'm not going to subscribe for apple+ to watch one film...

[Nightmare Asylum]

Unless Apple ends up doing physical releases (please Apple, start doing physical releases), yep.

I'm still waiting on them to physically put out The Tragedy of Macbeth, and with Napoleon and Killers of the Flower Moon coming this year I'm hoping even more so that they do eventually make that call.

[nanison]

This is such a shit era for movie fans. I'm one of those people who look forward to catching a film debut on tv years after release. It used to be such a thing to look forward too in my day!

[Nightmare Asylum]

I'll always be bitter about the streamers being super reluctant about releasing their films on physical media, but this rate, I'm just thankful for a proper theatrical release and not some joke of a one-week-only release stunt as a "commercial for the streaming service" like Netflix pulled with Glass Onion last year.

At least Netflix (through their partnership with Criterion) has been loosening their grip a tad and letting some of their movies get physical releases, though... Very happy to have The Irishman, Marriage Story, and El Camino on my shelf (though El Camino getting a release was more due to Sony's end of the deal than it was Netflix's). I still need to grab Okja and Power of the Dog as well... and scream into the void until they allow me to buy Glass Onion and Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio.

[𝔗𝔥𝔢 𝔈𝔦𝔤𝔥𝔱𝔥 𝔓𝔞𝔰𝔰𝔢𝔫𝔤𝔢𝔯]

Unless Apple ends up doing physical releases (please Apple, start doing physical releases), yep.

They have already announced the release of several of their Apple TV+ shows on Blu Ray:

Sharper. 2023.
Emancipation. 2022.
Spirited. 2022.
Causeway. 2022.
The Greatest Beer Run Ever. 2022.
Sidney. 2022.
The Sky Is Everywhere. 2022.
The Tragedy of Macbeth.

Expensive films like Napoleon will need a theatrical release, can't imagine it ever breaking even on a limited niche streaming platform like Apple TV+. Don't know what their deal with Sony was, but I suspect Sony might also do the Blu Ray distribution worldwide after the theatrical run.

[𝔗𝔥𝔢 𝔈𝔦𝔤𝔥𝔱𝔥 𝔓𝔞𝔰𝔰𝔢𝔫𝔤𝔢𝔯]

Official announcement from Apple:

https://twitter.com/AppleTV/status/1642957372518703107

[𝔗𝔥𝔢 𝔈𝔦𝔤𝔥𝔱𝔥 𝔓𝔞𝔰𝔰𝔢𝔫𝔤𝔢𝔯]

@Ingwar

ALISON BOSHOFF: Vegan activist  Joaquin Phoenix gets back in the saddle for Napoleon - five years after sharing his 'regret' at riding horses for movie roles.

Ardent vegan activist Joaquin Phoenix finds himself uncomfortably on horseback in the new Napoleon film by British director Ridley Scott.

Indeed, you can see in Phoenix's face just how much he enjoys it.. the answer being, not a lot.

Phoenix will have found himself horribly conflicted when forced to get back in the saddle.

He has been vegan since the age of three and believes that using any animal products — or using animals full stop — is a 'gross abuse of power'.

In 2018 he talked about having to ride horses in The Sisters Brothers — and how he regretted it.

'I didn't really think about it until I was there and realised: "Oh, it's a western and we're on horses a lot."

'I felt bad about riding them. I had the feeling that they were like, "I don't really want you on my back."

When somebody suggested the experience might be mutually enjoyable for rider and mount, Phoenix said: 'Yeah, but the horses tell you something different.'

The Apple TV+ movie will get a cinema release in November. British actress Vanessa Kirby co-stars as 'not tonight' Josephine.

In 2020 Phoenix took to the streets of London in a bid to urge Londoners to embrace a vegan lifestyle as he protested on behalf of animal rights.

The screen star, who just hours later would scooped the coveted Leading Actor trophy at the EE British Academy Film Awards, also tied himself to the city landmark Tower Bridge as he joined forces with activist group Animal Equality.

Showing his commitment to the cause, the Hollywood actor joined fellow protesters as they unfurled a huge 390 square-foot banner over the bridge, which read: 'Factory farming is destroying our planet. Go vegan.'

Further sharing his views on the matter, he said: 'I think we have a personal responsibility to take action right now and one way that we can mitigate climate change is by adjusting our consumption and by going plant-based.'

He added: 'I feel sometimes like it s not being talked about enough. So I'm just encouraging people to learn more about eating plant-based and to make a difference to make whatever personal impact they can on the climate emergency.'

To further drive the message home, Joaquin joined the activists in holding placards, which showed the impacts of animal agriculture on the environment and climate.

Days later Phoenix won the coveted Oscar award for Best Actor for his performance in the film Joker and launched a passionate speech animal rights and Speciesism, the idea that human superiority leads to the exploitation of animals.

He added: 'I feel sometimes like it s not being talked about enough. So I'm just encouraging people to learn more about eating plant-based and to make a difference to make whatever personal impact they can on the climate emergency.'