The new trailer for Ridley Scott’s Napoleon is out now. The latest clip is more bombastic and hard-hitting than the first trailer, released nearly three months ago. It shows the extremely talented Joaquin Phoenix as the ambitious tyrant Napoleon Bonaparte. Alongside him, we see Vanessa Kirby portraying Empress Josephine, Napoleon’s wife, with sheer perfection. In fact, her scenes stand out the most in the latest trailer.
Phoenix’s Napoleon compares himself to the likes of Caeser and Alexander the Great in the new trailer. But we also see him vulnerable around Josephine, who says to his husband, “You want to be great, but you are nothing without me.”
Napoleon marks Phoenix’s second collaboration with Scott after the critically acclaimed Gladiator (2000), in which the actor played the power-hungry, amoral, and psychopathic son of Marcus Aurelius, Commodus. His bone-chilling performance in Gladiator earned him an Oscar nomination (Best Supporting Actor) at the 73rd Academy Awards.
Ridley Scott’s upcoming epic historical drama revolves around Napoleon’s rise to power and tyranny. The film will also explore the protagonist’s volatile relationship with his wife, Josephine.
This is what Scott said about Josephine’s character in Napoleon in an interview with Total Film:
“She [Josephine] realized she had no other choice than to accept this mediocre lieutenant, who actually was on the verge of becoming a general because he had taken Toulon […] By the time he started to grow in stature and rank, she started to pay attention. He became the Emperor of France, and she became the Empress. She’s now clearly impressed. Does she love him? I don’t know. Does she need him? Certainly. So, already, I think this story is more interesting than lots of battles.'”
Made on a budget of $130 million, Ridley Scott’s Napoleon will arrive in theatres on November 22. After its theatrical release, it will come out on the Apple TV+ streaming platform. Stay tuned for more updates.