Malta set for Ridley Scott’s Napoleon epic ‘Kitbag’ with Joaquin Phoenix

Hollywood giant who filmed Gladiator in Malta back in 2000 set to return in early 2022 for Napoleon flick

Ridley Scott will direct Joaquin Phoenix in Malta once again for his Napoleon movie Kitbag
Ridley Scott will direct Joaquin Phoenix in Malta once again for his Napoleon movie Kitbag

Ridley Scott, the filmmaker behind classics like Alien, Gladiator and Blade Runner, is working on a Napoleon Bonaparte epic, set to be filmed in Malta sometime in early 2022.

Oscar-winning actor Joaquin Phoenix is expected to star in the movie, having already teamed up with Scott in Malta in 2000, when they worked on the historical epic Gladiator, winner of five Academy Awards including Best Picture.

The movie, Kitbag, has been acquired by Apple Studios and is set to star Phoenix as the French emperor and military leader.

The production is set to begin in early 2022 and the film is taking the title from the saying, “There is a general’s staff hidden in every soldier’s kitbag”.

Polish cinematographer Dariusz Adam Wolski, known for his work on the Pirates of the Caribbean film series, had posted on Instagram that he was on his way to Malta to start work on location scouting.

A Napoleon war feature film has been the dream of many filmmakers like Stanley Kubrick, who famously failed to make it happen. Ridley Scott is keen to take over the baton.

“Napoleon is a man I’ve always been fascinated by. He came out of nowhere to rule everything — but all the while he was waging a romantic war with his adulterous wife Josephine. He conquered the world to try to win her love, and when he couldn’t, he conquered it to destroy her, and destroyed himself in the process.”

The film will take a personal look at the origins of this history giant and his climb to power, through the view of his love, Josephine. It will be also portraying Napoleon’s most famous battle, as well as his relentless ambition and astounding strategic mind.