Months after its theatrical run, complete with full IMAX glory, Apple TV+ has set a streaming release date for Ridley Scottโs Napoleon: March 1st, 2024.
Previously titled Kitbag, this critically acclaimed historical epic starring the Academy Award-winning Joaquin Phoenix and Vanessa Kirby (obviously) depicts the exploits of the titular military genius, political figure, and Emperor of France.
It opens with Napoleon Bonaparteโs rise to power during the French Revolution (featuring such pivotal moments as the Siege of Toulon) before navigating to his infamous downfall at the Battle of Waterloo โ boots, ballistics, blood, and all.
Phoenix and Kirby are joined by Tahar Rahim as Paul Barras, Ben Miles as Caulaincourt, Ludivine Sagnier as Theresa Cabarrus, Matthew Needham as Lucien Bonaparte, Youssef Kerkour as Marshal Davout, Phil Cornwell as Sanson โThe Bourreay,โ and Edouard Philipponnat as Tsar Alexander.
For those of you who simply couldnโt get enough of the two-and-a-half-hour biopic, thereโs even more good news.
โIโm working on it. It was four [hours] 10 [minutes] this morning,โ he said at the time.
โAnd so what will happen is, weโll screen [the theatrical cut] first with Sony, and then it has its run, and then the perfect thing is that [the directorโs cut] goes to streaming, and we have four hours 10 minutes.โ
According to Empire, this โfantastic near four-and-a-half-hour cutโ features more of Josรฉphine de Beauharnaisโ (Kirby) life before she meets Napoleon (Phoenix).
Anybody intimately familiar with Ridley Scottโs oeuvre will know the Gladiatorfilmmaker has famously been burned by studio-mandated theatrical cuts on two major occasions. So you can understand why heโs bullish on a heftier runtime for Napoleon.
The first, of course, is the original Blade Runner, which included a half-assed and entirely unnecessary voiceover from Harrison Ford as Deckard Cain.
The second was the criminally underrated Kingdom of Heaven featuring an all-star cast of Orlando Bloom, Liam Neeson, Ed Norton, Eva Green, and more.
Scottโs preferred iterations of both films have been universally acknowledged as not just the superior cuts by fans and critics alike, but the definitive versions.
Keep an eye out for Ridley Scottโs Napoleon on Apple TV+ come March 1st, 2024 โ and check out the trailer above.
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