Joaquin Phoenix as an actor has evolved into a fine-tuned cinematic giant. The actor has, on several occasions, gone into almost impossible places in his dedication to the roles he plays. Most of his efforts pay off, as he has gained numerous accolades under his sleeves.
Phoenix has retained the stylistic preparation for his role in Ridley Scott’s highly anticipated historical epic Napoleon. But this time he has a partner, his co-star Vanessa Kirby joined in to extend the depth of their roles walking together into a pretty dark place.
Joaquin Phoenix Slapped Vanessa Kirby
It was unscripted, Joaquin Phoenix and Vanessa Kirby candidly confessed about the slap. Certainly, Napoleon is not a movie based on the pure essence of romance between Phoenix’ Napoleon Bonaparte and Kirby’s Empress Joséphine. The movie buzz already hints at a darker tone of the historical narrative. But the darker tone is not limited to the war scenes either, rather it will be reflected in the relationship between the duo. For their roles, Kirby and Phoenix have made a pact that they were allowed to come with intense surprises to complement the depth of their roles. But forgoing that, and with surprising spontaneity, Phoenix slapped Joséphine in the divorce scene.
“We were using the real words from their divorce in the church. When that happens, you can faithfully go through an archival re-enactment of it and read out the lines, and then go home. But we always wanted to surprise each other,” Kirby told Empire.
It was consensual indeed, but it is definitely dark and remarkable for the fact that the actors have gone to such dark places for their dedication to the roles they had. “It’s the greatest thing when you have a creative partner and you say, ‘Right, everything’s safe. I’m with you,” Kirby explained further. “And we’re gonna go to the dark places together,’” the Mission Impossible star added. Perhaps, it all made the perfect sense for Ridley Scott as well and the slap was fitting to the narrative and emotions of the scene.
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Joaquin Phoenix’s Reaction to The Slap
The duo consensually planned the extension of their personal boundaries. Kirby allowed the Joker actor to come at her with almost anything. “She said, ‘Look, whatever you feel, you can do.’ I said, ‘Same thing with you,’” Phoenix told Empire recalling the incident.
“She said, ‘You can slap me, you can grab me, you can pull me, you can kiss me, whatever it is.’ So we had this agreement that we were going to surprise each other and try and create moments that weren’t there, because both of us wanted to avoid the cliché of the period drama. And by that I mean moments that are well-orchestrated and designed,” he added.
It was all about adding gravity to their roles encompassing the chaos and volatility of the relationship. “I don’t know if you can call it love. I don’t know what it was,” the 48-year-old explained. But “we encouraged each other, demanded of each other, to challenge ourselves to shock each other in moments. And that’s what came out of that, that moment,” he added.
Certainly, Phoenix and Kirby will deliver the best of their performances. Napoleon is scheduled to hit the theaters on 22 November 2023.
Source: Empire
