Brian Cox throws epic shade at Joaquin Phoenix's 'truly terrible' Napoleon portrayal and declares 'I would have played it better!' in scathing comments

Brian Cox has branded Joaquin Phoenix's portrayal of Napoleon Bonaparte 'truly terrible' in scathing new comments.

The Succession actor, 77, said Oscar-winner Phoenix's performance in the 2023 Ridley Scott epic was 'wacky' and 'appalling' and declared he would have played the role 'a lot better'.

In a barbed speech at HisFest this week per The Standard, Cox said of the Oscar-nominated historical film: 'It’s terrible. A truly terrible performance by Joaquin Phoenix. 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.'

He then bizarrely added: 'I think he’s well named. Joaquin … wackeen … wacky. It’s a sort of wacky performance.'

Brian Cox has branded Joaquin Phoenix's portrayal of Napoleon Bonaparte 'truly terrible' in a scathing new interview

The Succession actor, 77, said Oscar-winner Phoenix's performance in the 2023 Ridley Scott epic was 'wacky' and 'appalling' and declared he would have played the role 'a lot better'

Taking aim at the lack of historical accuracy in biopics - Cox then slammed Mel Gibson's 1995 epic Braveheart as a 'load of nonsense' and a 'load of lies.'

Cox also branded method acting 'all b*****ks' and said research for a role was far more important than playing a character nonstop. 

The star added that he will 'probably' leave the US if Donald Trump is reelected to the presidency in the wide-ranging interview.

Last year Scott hit back at criticism of his long-awaited Napoleon biopic from France - claiming 'the French don't even like themselves'. 

French critics slammed the biopic as 'deeply clumsy' and 'boring' as the film premiered in Paris last week. 

But Sir Ridley has insisted: 'The audience that I showed it to in Paris, they loved it.' 

Despite garnering glowing reviews in Britain and the US, the epic starring Joaquin Phoenix as the marauding French emperor riled critics on the continent.

Historian Patrice Gueniffey, writing in Le Point, slammed the film as 'the film of an Englishman... very anti-French' and criticised the director for having 'wokist biases'. 

But asked by the BBC what he thought of historians who say his film is inaccurate, Sir Ridley said: 'You really want me to answer that?... It will have a bleep in it.'

He said: 'I don’t know what he was thinking. I think it’s totally his fault and I don’t think Ridley Scott helps him (Phoenix and Scott pictured November 2023)

Phoenix plays Napoleon in the film which focuses on his tainted and complex relationships amid a stunning rise to power against the backdrop of the French Revolution

Taking aim at the lack of historical accuracy in biopics - Cox then slammed Mel Gibson 's 1995 epic Braveheart as a 'load of nonsense' and a 'load of lies'

A reviewer for GQ said the film left them 'bored', adding there was something 'clumsy' but 'unintentionally funny' about seeing French soldiers shout 'Vive la France' with American accents.

Le Figaro said the film should be renamed 'Barbie and Ken under the Empire' and added that Napoleon is portrayed as a 'sentimental brute with a gun in hand and quick to shed a tear'.

Canadian French-language newspaper Le Devoir led with the headline 'Not Waterloo, but not Austerlitz either,' referencing Napoleon's futile last stand in Belgium and his tactical 'masterpiece' against the Russians in today's Czechia.

The article described Phoenix's Napoleon as a 'petulant man-child who doesn't really seem to know what he's doing'. 

Criticism of the film's direction builds on growing claims of inaccuracies from historians including Dan Snow.

Snow also took issue with the film's tagline, 'He came from nothing, he conquered everything,' because Napoleon never conquered Britain.

'I love historical epics. I love Ridley Scott. But if you're watching this movie, it ain't a documentary,' he said.