'Gladiator II' director Ridley Scott says he 'wouldn't advise' vacationing in Malta, angering a government that set aside $48 million for him to film there
Ridley Scott advised against vacationing in Malta, a film location for "Gladiator II."
Politicians in Malta are not happy about it.
Malta budgeted about $50 million in rebates to the "Gladiator II" producers for filming there.
The director Ridley Scott has upset local politicians after advising people to avoid visiting one of the filming locations for his action flick "Gladiator II."
His remark involved the Mediterranean island nation of Malta, which allocated millions of dollars in rebates to the movie's production company.
During a discussion this month with the director Christopher Nolan in front of a live audience, Scott was discussing the appeal of Malta for filming when, as an aside, he commented that he "wouldn't advise going there on holiday." After jokingly asking whether there were any Maltese people in the audience, he quickly added, "I would not go back there on holiday," before continuing to praise the country's architecture.
In August 2023, the Times of Malta reported that the country had budgeted €46.7 million — about $50 million at the time — in rebates for "Gladiator II."
Malta's film commissioner, Johann Grech, originally shared a clip of the interview on Facebook that included Scott's comments praising Malta — he called it "a treasure trove of architecture" that "goes from medieval right through to renaissance," adding that "when it's good, it's spectacular" — but omitted his remarks in the middle advising against visiting for vacation.
Once the full version made the rounds, some members of Malta's Parliament were not happy. Julie Zahra, the opposition party's culture spokesperson, said in a Facebook post Friday that Grech had been "humiliated" by Scott and should step down from his position. She then urged the film industry to also focus on local talent, saying the industry "deserves much better."
Later that day, Adrian Delia, another member of Malta's Parliament, tagged Scott in a separate Facebook post. Delia said Scott had achieved worldwide fame and accolades and "mesmerized millions with tales of historic legend brought to life."
"Sadly however seems you have not managed to learn respect," the post continued. "Towards those who welcomed you warmly, shared and lent their history and culture and showered you with millions to credit to your tax bill. How unfortunate."
Malta is one of several countries, including Croatia and Iceland, that offer rebates meant to entice filmmakers, who often hire local workers and contribute to the economy far beyond the cost of the rebate.
In 2023, Malta's tourism minister at the time, Clayton Bartolo, defended the country's rebate incentive in an interview with The Malta Independent. He said this method of investing in the film industry had provided jobs to local residents.
"These people who are earning money or improving their skills to then be able to work in Malta or abroad, are we going to lose them this work?" he said. "Or are we going to say we will continue investing in this industry to really increase opportunities, improve the skills of our crews."
Representatives for Scott, Grech, Zahra, Delia, Paramount Global, and the Malta Film Commission did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Business Insider.
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