Why Ridley Scott’s Napoleon Is More Interested In Joséphine Than “Battlefields” Or “Sex Scenes”

Napoleon director Ridley Scott explains why he found Empress Joséphine (Vanessa Kirby) more interesting than “battlefields” or “sex scenes.” Scott’s epic historical drama captures the life of Napoleon Bonaparte (Joaquin Phoenix), specifically focusing on his relationship with his first wife, Joséphine. Bonaparte was considered a military genius who went from serving in the French military to crowning himself the Emperor of France. His strategic skills and dramatic rise and fall from power are well-known, but Napoleon focuses on another interesting aspect of his life that doesn’t get much attention: Bonaparte’s marriage to Joséphine.

In an interview with Rolling Stone, Scott explained why he was interested in Joséphine’s story while working on Napoleon. Although this is a historical drama, Scott found the usual battle and period sex scenes boring. What interested him was the idea of Joséphine and Bonaparte being in a fairly unconventional relationship and trying to understand what attracted them to each other. He also found Bonaparte’s respect for her after their divorce intriguing. Check out Scott’s statement below:

I only started thinking about doing this film three or four years ago, and I thought: Battlefields get boring, sex scenes in film get boring, and the sexual characterization of the relationship between two people is the most interesting thing that almost always drives the narrative. It’s so interesting that he was such a powerful man but was so vulnerable with a woman in his life, Joséphine.

Joséphine was regarded as a high-class courtesan — a high-class “free woman” or even a prostitute — and these courtesans were typically kept by French aristocrats. That became the target of: What was it about her that engaged him? And what was it about him that engaged her? She began to see that he was a rare bird due to his drive, ambition, and above all his courage to carry out what he said he was going to do. She came to admire him before feeling affection. She respected him. He was generous in the way he defended her rights as his ex-wife, paying her debts and looking after her late into her life. One of the best parts of the movie, for me, is that he has a child with the Princess of Austria and then takes the child, unattended except with a nanny, and allows Joséphine to hold the child as if it might have been hers.

And he deeply, deeply regretted losing her. Even in her exile, he would visit her. And I don’t think there was any hanky-panky. I think he was concerned about her health.

What Is The True Story Of Empress Joséphine?

In Napoleon, Joséphine and Bonaparte have an unusual relationship, and there are moments of awkwardness and insinuations of BDSM. Hence, there are questions about Joséphine’s true story. Joséphine was born in 1763 and was a member of the aristocracy to a wealthy French family. However, her life was quite turbulent before she met Bonaparte. In 1779, she married Alexandre de Beauharnais, and the couple had two children. Her marriage was unhappy, as de Beauharnais had multiple affairs, causing her to seek a court-ordered separation.

De Beauharnais would ultimately be sentenced to death during the Reign of Terror. Joséphine’s aristocrat status and connection to de Beauharnais also landed her in prison. She may have only escaped a death sentence due to the Reign of Terror ending during her imprisonment. After being freed, Joséphine went to Paris and was known for having affairs with politicians and men of power, including Bonaparte. Despite being several years older than Bonaparte, widowed, and with two children, Bonaparte was infatuated with her, and they soon married. Based on Bonaparte’s many love letters to Joséphine, many experts believe she was his true love.

Joséphine became Empress of the French after Napoleon was named Emperor, but their marriage wasn’t without problems. It is believed both participated in extramarital affairs, and Joséphine couldn’t provide Bonaparte with an heir. Ultimately, Bonaparte had their marriage annulled and married another woman who could bear him an heir. However, Joséphine and Bonaparte remained on good terms, with Bonaparte even letting her meet his heir — a moment depicted in the movie — and retain her title as Empress. As shown at the end of Napoleon, she lived a relatively quiet life in Château de Malmaison until she died in 1814. Therefore, Napoleon‘s focus on Joséphine demonstrates the long-lasting allure of the story of one woman’s power and alleged hold on Bonaparte.