Brian Cox is giving his take on Joaquin Phoenix‘s performance in Ridley Scott‘s Napoleon and pondering on leaving the U.S. if Donald Trump wins the presidential election.
In a new interview, Cox blasted Phoenix for his interpretation of the French emperor Napoleon Bonaparte, calling it a “terrible performance.”
“Terrible. It’s terrible. A truly terrible performance by Joaquin Phoenix,” Cox said at the HistFest in London, according to the Evening Standard. “It really is appalling. I don’t know what he was thinking. I think it’s totally his fault and I don’t think Ridley Scott helps him. I would have played it a lot better than Joaquin Phoenix, I tell you that. You can say it’s good drama. No – it’s lies.”
The Succession star then went on to joke about Phoenix’s name, adding, “I think he’s well named. Joaquin…whackeen… whacky. It’s a sort of whacky performance.”
Cox would also critique Braveheart, calling it “a load of nonsense but giving its star some grace, explaining the historical inaccuracies in the film, noting, “Mel Gibson was wonderful, but it’s a load of lies. He never impregnated the French princess. It is a bollocks [sic] that film.”
The actor currently resides in the U.S. but doesn’t think he’ll stay for too long, as politics may influence his decision to leave.
“I think my relationship with America will be coming to a very short sharp end quite soon because of that very thing,” he said.
Cox continued, “It’s very hard to govern America, and you certainly don’t need idiots like Trump doing that. I do think that Biden is a good man, but he’s too old.”
When asked if he would leave the U.S. if Trump is re-elected, he said, “I probably will.”
