O'Toole Slams Troy (again) in Radio Times interview
Troy Movie Was Like A Hovis Ad, Says O'Toole
By Anita Singh, PA Showbusiness Editor(the Scotsman)
"Veteran actor Peter O’Toole has revealed what he really thinks of movie epic Troy.
The Lawrence of Arabia star said the big-budget film reminded him of a Hovis advert.
It was panned by critics – and O’Toole, who appeared opposite Brad Pitt, said he can see why.
In an interview with the Radio Times, the 72-year-old said: “I call it ‘Trovis’ – after watching 50 minutes I found myself in quiet despair, and suddenly that Hovis advert came into my mind over Brad Pitt’s face.
“I got the chuckles and had to leave.”
O’Toole played King Priam and Pitt played Achilles in the £111 million movie which was poorly received by the world’s critics.
It was dubbed “Homer-lite” while one critic described it as “utterly preposterous”.
Elsewhere in the interview, O’Toole raged against the state of British theatre.
The Irish-born actor, who has enjoyed an acclaimed stage career and received an honorary Oscar, said: “There are always promising young actors, and today the sensible ones f*** off from what calls itself ‘the theatre’ as soon as they can because it’s such badly-done s***.
“Do you feel you can hop on a bus to the West End and see the likes of Paul Scofield, Richard Burton, Laurence Olivier?
“The Old Vic and Stratford were places where the best actors in the English-speaking world did their greatest work. That was their remit – not whether a third-rate, biddable a***hole could do 39 productions of As You Like It upside down with red noses. The bulbous, state-run theatre provides a healthy living for smart-alec t****.”
The father of three added: “I tell my children to avoid theatre and go into cinema and TV.”O’Toole’s latest role is in the BBC3 drama Casanova, in which he plays the ageing Lothario looking back on his life."
More links to the story: itv.com, keralanext.com, The SunUK.