There’s a joke to be made here but I’ll back off just a bit and refrain since Ridley Scott is already making himself look slightly ridiculous all on his own. It’s easy to think that a lot of people are going to be making excuses for the famous director when it comes to snapping at a journalist that was trying to offer Scott a compliment regarding The Last Duel, telling him to f off a few times in a short span of time apparently, as other sources have put it. It’s true that he’s brought the audience several great stories over the course of his career, and that it only takes one moment for anyone to look bad to tarnish their reputation. But this isn’t the only incident regarding Scott when it comes to The Last Duel since he’s already made it clear that he blames Millennials and their cell phones for the movie’s lackluster showing. It would appear that he’s not taking any criticisms, constructive or otherwise, all that well when it comes to his movie.
It’s fair to say that a lot of creators tend to be a bit temperamental at times when it comes to what people think of their creations since that’s their livelihood and something that they worked hard on that people are either trashing or not paying attention to. But Scott’s reaction at this point is drawing attention since not only are people hypersensitive to just about any and every newscast these days but they’re also bound to notice when a respected director flies off the hook for something that many would shrug off on their way to another project. It’s not about simply dumping a bad movie and running to keep up one’s reputation, it’s how a loss is taken that defines an individual, and to this date, Ridley Scott has usually been seen as a visionary. People have made excuses for anything and everything this man has done, much as they have for many other celebrities and big names in Hollywood.
This might be part of the problem, but it only feels like it might be a part, not the whole issue. Factoring in everything that Scott has done, what he’s brought to the entertainment industry, and how great the majority of his works have been, it feels fair to say that The Last Duel could have passed by without too much difficulty. But he had to speak out on why he believes the movie tanked, and that made a huge difference. Scott has the right to talk, of course, he made the movie, he’s responsible in a big part for why it was given the treatment it received. But where other directors might have shrugged, made excuses that the public might have accepted, and even stated that they thought that things would go differently, Scott decided to cast blame where it didn’t really belong. Millennials don’t know anything but what they see on their phones, right? It sounds as though Ridley forgot that as a director it’s his responsibility and his job to cater to the people he’s showing the movie to, and barring that, it’s up to him to present the material he wants to show in a way that creates a positive response from the people.
Insulting a part of one’s fanbase isn’t the smartest thing in the world to do, nor is it the most responsible. Could it be that job is getting to Scott more than he’s willing to admit? It might be time for the famed director to consider slowing down or perhaps retiring if he’s starting to snap at people in this manner. Whether or not this has been an issue in the past is kind of irrelevant since it’s become noticeable at this time and is being commented on by quite a few people throughout the community of websites that notice just about everything that’s put up for display. It’s a thought that maybe he made such an outburst to generate greater interest in the movie, since it’s not a bad strategy, despite being shameless if that’s what it amounts to. But unless he’s trying something this risky and possibly ruinous to his career it’s easy to think that age is not agreeing with him at this time.
If not, then there’s something else going on since believing that it’s the simple tantrum of an adult that can’t stand people saying anything negative about his work would be so much worse, especially since it would reinforce the idea that there are celebrities that believe that they can get away with such diva-like behavior and not be called out for it. There’s no reason to take away from Scott’s reputation, but the unfortunate fact is that this second outburst is making it clear that he’s not taking well to criticism, and that it might be time to take up a hobby and leave the entertainment industry behind. The critics aren’t going to get any nicer.
cater to the people
Follow Us
