You know you’re in for at treat when you sit down to watch a Ridley Scott movie. The 87-year-old British director has directed 30 films: his first, The Duellists with Tom Conti and Harvey Keitel, came out in 1977, and his newest, The Dog Stars, starring Guy Pearce and Josh Brolin, is due in 2026.
What’s perhaps as impressive as his epic vision as a director, has been his important – and frequently unorthodox – choices. For 1979’s Alien, he cast Sigourney Weaver over the more traditional male hero. He only agreed to direct 1982’s Blade Runner after becoming inpatient and leaving what became 1994’s Dune. Scott bought the rights to 1991’s Thelma & Louise for $500,000 after chancing upon the script. He was convinced to direct 2000’s Gladiator when he was shown a 19th century painting by French artist Jean-Léon Gérôme of the crowd giving a thumbs down (as in: kill him) to a winning gladiator, standing over his defeated opponent.
Had Scott chosen different projects, would cinematic history have been altered? What if he hadn’t turned down Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines to do 2001’s Black Hawk Down? For every Kingdom of Heaven, Matchstick Men and Robin Hood, there lies an unmade Ridley Scott epic. His recent years have seen him trap Matt Damon on Mars in The Martian, turn Joaquin Phoenix into Napoleon, and reboot Gladiator. He’s also returned to the Alien franchise with Prometheus and Alien Covenant, and was apparently so convinced when shown around the set of the new Alien: Earth TV prequel series, the first thing he said was: “Fuck me, that’s my set.”
For lucky Londoners, the BFI Southbank is staging a celebratory Ridley Scott season this September and October, including an in-person Q&A on 5 October. But you can get in there first as the great man has agreed to sit for the Guardian Readers Interview. There’s plenty to ask. What’s the best perk of being a Sir? Does he have a special hotline to Russell Crowe, who’s starred in five Ridley Scott movies? Does he regret leaving his 1960s job as a set designer on Doctor Who?
Please get in your questions by 6pm on Tuesday 19 August and we’ll print his answers on 22 August in Film & Music and online.
