‘I wouldn’t advise going to Malta on holiday,’ Ridley Scott said after his movie got €47 million from Maltese taxpayers

https://timesofmalta.com/article/gladiator-director-ridley-scott-tells-fans-dont-visit-malta-holiday.1102950

25 comments

  1. The Malta Film Commission/ Malta Tourism Authority edited out this statement in videos they posted and only kept the part where he praised Malta: ‘Malta is a treasure trove of architecture…’ 🙂

    People who have firsthand seen Malta change over the past 25 years know Ridley is right. Gladiator, Napoleon and White Squall also had scenes shot in Malta.

  2. I’ve been advised by a few people not to watch Gladiator 2.

  4. I’ve been to Malta twice and would happily go again. What the heck is Ridley Scott talking about?!

  5. Scott is a miserable, old pommy git and doesn’t give a shit about his movies anymore. He gets paid biggly and laughs at the morons who bankroll his new films.

  8. I couldn’t get over just how cheap everything looked in this film.

    Those Maltese taxpayers got mugged

  10. I can’t help feeling that any tax incentives like this should, going forward, have a clause in which the shakers and movers or the film are obliged to promote the country in which the movie is filmed. Or at the very least, not disparage it.

    I haven’t seen his movie yet, and based on his comments, even less likely to pay to see it than I was before.

  12. My wife and I went to Malta for 2 weeks I wanted to move there afterwards. It’s awesome!

  13. Malta is nice place for a long weekend and has been at the centre of history more than a 1000 years (I guess) …it’s small though.  For the Templars alone it’s a trip going there.

    Maybe the wealthy film director in his 80s isn’t who people should be looking to for holiday advice?

  14. That’s so weird. Malta is a beautiful (albeit very dry) island. The natural wonders are incredible and the history is astounding. It’s small so I wouldn’t spend weeks there but we added it to our Sicily trip where we were spending weeks and I’m glad we did.

  15. The year was 2000 after not wining an Oscar for best Director in Gladiator:

    “I just don’t understand how a film could win best picture but it not then win best director…I just don’t get it”

    Well Scott, it takes more than making a good film, it’s “whom” makes it and if they are a respectable and mature person. Just as your films main message says “Strength and HONOR” and not “Ass and Complain”

  16. Not sure why all the comments are getting so mad on behalf of MALTA of all fucking things. It’s not that serious.

  17. Ridley Scott is an A-hole. It’s publicly known at this point.

    I’ll tell you a story I heard, as someone who works in film and someone who’s close friends have worked on a few of Ridleys more recent films (Gladiator 2, The Martian) etc.

    On in of these more recent ones there was an on set PA who’s first ever job in the industry was this shoot – on his first day no less, he was asked to get Ridley a drink, tea I think I was told. This PA was very nervous, terrified even. Got the tea and handed it to Ridley and blurted out ‘Here’s your tea *Wriggley*’ – IMO a hilarious blunder caused by nerves, who hasn’t tripped over their words once when nervous? Laugh and move on right? The human thing to do.

    The set PA was fired on the spot by Ridley. What a prick. PAs are some of the most abused, underpaid and overworked people out there… But to be dismissed so inhumanely after one interaction too by such a high profile person… I’d be surprised if the PA is still in the industry because that kind of knock in your confidence right from the get go isn’t the easiest to get over.

  18. If you’re gonna do a sequel look no further than T2 as an example of how to do it. For lessons on how NOT to do it watch Gladiator 2. A truly shite movie.

  19. I was in Malta a few months ago. A lovely place to vacation and the people were wonderful. And it was such an easy place to navigate and had so much amazing history.

  20. It’s a tongue in check statement to discourage over tourism. Which will of course backfire. If you tell people not to visit Malta. They will of course do the opposite.

  22. Ridley Scott has always been an grumpy old asshole, if he says not to go somewhere, it’s probably a nice place.

  23. I kinda feel like this is on Malta for paying him taxpayer money with no commitment to anything in return.

  24. Absolute bollocks title, which is repeated half a dozen times throughout the equally bollocks article (my 11 year old dog could have written a better one) without offering any reason.

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