He has been making the favorite films of millions for 50 years, but nobody knows his name. That is how Peter Weir’s career appears to some. The director of the adventure epic Master & Commander: The Far Side of the World and numerous other cult films has completely withdrawn for 14 years. And supposedly Russell Crowe and Johnny Depp are to blame.
Who is adventure film master Peter Weir? He gave Harrison Ford his favorite role
Peter Weir is considered one of Australia’s greatest directors. In addition to the films mentioned above, he directed the war film masterpiece Gallipoli, Witness and Mosquito Coast, which Harrison Ford the favorite of all films he has ever acted in.”I would make a sequel in a blink of an eye” the actor revealed to the LA Times.
Watch the English trailer for Mosquito Coast here:
The Mosuito Coast – Trailer (English)
Critics and audiences responded enthusiastically to many of Weir’s works, especially films such as The Truman Show and Dead Poets Society. His films were Nominated 29 times (!) for Oscars and won a total of six. So why has there been no sign of life from the master director for over a decade?
Johnny Depp and Russell Crowe are said to have “broken” Peter Weir
Weir’s last film is the survival drama The Way Back, in which a group of ex-prisoners led by Colin Farrell must survive in Soviet Siberia. It was released in cinemas in 2010. When will we finally get a new film?
Never, unfortunately, it seems. Weir seems to have retired. There are different opinions about the reasons: Hollywood star Ethan Hawke (Sinister), who worked with him on Dead Poets Society, offers IndieWire the following explanation:
He has lost interest in films. He still loved it when actors didn’t make his life difficult. Russell Crowe and Johnny Depp broke it. He is a real rarity, an artist in popular cinema. He makes mainstream films that are artistic.
Hawke explains:
To get the budget for The Truman Show or Master & Commander, you need a Jim Carrey or Russell Crowe. I think He preferred Harrison Ford or Gérard Depardieu. They made it easier for the directors and didn’t take themselves so seriously.
Disney
Ethan Hawke in Dead Poets Society
While Crowe played a leading role in Master & Commander, Depp was involved in the film adaptation of the novel Shantaram. Weir left the project amid creative disagreements with the Hollywood star, sources at the Guardian suggest.
Related news:
Peter Weir explains why he ended his career
But blaming Johnny Depp or Russell Crowe for Weir’s career ending is speculation at best. Incidentally, the director himself has now spoken out to explain his departure from filmmaking. According to the French website Télérama, he revealed in 2024: “I am retired. Why did I stop going to the cinema? Because I simply don’t have any energy left.“
Twentieth Century Fox of Germany GmbH
Russell Crowe in Master & Commander
When asked by the Sydney Morning Herald about Hawke’s statement, he expressed surprise as early as 2022:
Someone must have taken Ethan’s words out of context. They are a mystery to me. […] Directors are like volcanoes: they are either active, dormant or extinct. I have reached the third stage. There is a new generation out there shouting ‘Action!’ and ‘Cut!’ And I wish them the best of luck.
It is impossible to say whether Hawke is wrong or Weir is just swallowing his frustration. The fact is that Weir’s cinematic era is over. All the more reason for film fans to put his name on a par with those of Martin Scorsese or Quentin Tarantino.