Napoleon is among one of the big releases that have premiered during the last months of 2023. Directed by Ridley Scott and starring Joaquin Phoenix in the titular role, the film will depict Napoleon Bonaparte’s rise to Emperor of France. In Scott’s signature cinematic style, there are also enough combat sequences to keep those who enjoy a good fight entertained.
But despite Phoenix shining in this new role, some folks are questioning this particular casting decision. There’s no denying that Phoenix is a brilliant actor. We’ve certainly seen him give stellar performances enough times to know not to question this, but whether or not he’s fit to play Bonaparte on the big screen is another matter entirely.
The biggest question on everyone’s mind is related to the Joker actor’s height, as some question if he’s short enough to accurately portray the historic French Emperor. Bonaparte was notoriously known for being a short person… right?
Napoleon Bonaparte’s height
There are two things that the world has heard about Napolean Bonaparte. The first is that he was a French military commander and the second is that he was…let’s say, “height-challenged”. What most don’t know, however, is that Bonaparte was actually of average height for men in his time period. It seems the centuries-old rumors about him being short were due to a mix of British propaganda, confusion in metrics, and the fact that he was often surrounded by soldiers much taller than him.
Although we don’t have an exact answer to what Bonaparte’s height was, reports have cited him to be between 5’2″ (1.58 m) and 5’7″ (1.70 m) at the time of his death.
Joaquin Phoenix’s height
In modern times, the average height for men in the U.S. is around 5’9″ (1.75 m), which makes Joaquin Phoenix just a little bit below average. According to the actor’s IMDb page, he stands at 5’8″ (1.73 m), meaning he is indeed taller than Napoleon is believed to have been, but not by that much.
This makes Phoenix’s portrayal of Bonaparte in the current film more accurate than what we expected. Napoleon just might be what it takes for the world to realize that the French political figure was not as short as most folks think.
Ridley Scott’s historical epic, Napoleon is currently in theaters nationwide and will be available to stream on Apple TV Plus.