Horses carry 'Napoleon' to glory

Acclaimed more for its epic battle scenes than an accurate historical portrayal, Ridley Scott’s Napoleon elevates the horses to heroic effect and equal stardom alongside the reluctant lead, Joaquin Phoenix.

Joaquin Phoenix had been a vegan since he was three, even before his family changed its surname from Bottom to Phoenix, and he wasn’t happy about riding horses. They weren’t meant to be sat on and made to do things – “it’s a gross abuse of power”.

Offered $20 million to play the Corsican who became Emperor of France, Joaquin put his beliefs to one side – as he begrudgingly had done in 2018’s The Sisters Brothers. “I regretted having to ride in that picture,” he said. “I was clueless ’cause I didn’t think about it much until I arrived and realised, ‘oh it’s a western and we’re on horses a lot’. I felt bad about riding them. I felt they really didn’t want me on their backs.”

And he refused to wear woollen hats in Ridley Scott’s Napoleon. (2023, Columbia Pictures and Apple TV+) David Crossman, costume designer on this $200 million movie, needed to produce a variety of headgear which didn’t contain animal products such as wool...

Read the full article FREE in the April 2024 issue of Equestrian Life magazine here.