Peter Weir confirms goodbye to cinema: director of “The Dead Poets Club” says he no longer has the energy – News

Now it’s official: Peter Weir will not make any more films.

Currently 79 years old, the legendary filmmaker’s last work was “Towards Freedom”, from 2010.

Recently, he gave an answer without room for second interpretations when he was asked about the 14-year break.

“I’m withdrawn. Why did I stop making films. Because, simply, I don’t have the energy anymore”, he explained during a recent participation in the Paris Cinematheque Festival, quoted by Télérama (paid access, via IndieWire).

An essential figure of the Australian “new wave” cinematographic movement in the 1970s, nominated six times for the Oscars without ever winning, as a director, screenwriter and producer (he received an honorary statuette in November 2022), the list of iconic films includes “Picnic at Hanging Rock” (1975), “The Last Wave” (1977), “Gallipoli” (1981), “The Year of All Perils” (1982), “The Witness” (1985), “The Mosquito Coast” (1986), “The Dead Poets Club” (1989), “Marriage of Convenience” (1990), “No Fear of Living” (1993), “The Truman Show – A Vida em Directo” (1998) and “Master & Commander – The Far Side of the World” (2003).

In 2022, in statements that went viral, one of its actors, Ethan Hawke, from “The Dead Poets Club”, did not hesitate when asked what happened to contribute to the separation: “Russell Crowe and Johnny Depp gave his cable.”

“I think he lost interest in films. He really enjoyed that work when he didn’t have actors making him have a hard time. Russell Crowe and Johnny Depp ruined him. He’s someone so rare these days, a popular artist. He makes films for the general public that are artistic. To have the budget to make ‘The Truman Show’ or ‘Master and Commander’, you need a Jim Carrey or Russell Crowe”, explained the actor during an interview with IndieWire.

“I think Harrison Ford and Gérard Depardieu were their kind of actors. Partners of the directors and they didn’t see themselves as important”, he concluded on the subject, citing the actors who worked with Weir on “The Witness and” The Coast of Mosquito” (Ford) and “Marriage of Convenience” (Depardieu).

Although Crowe highlighted the film as one of his best, news circulated at the time about some clashes with the director during the filming of “Master and Commander”.

In Depp’s case, there was no film: before “Freedom”, Weir planned to direct “Shantaram” with the actor, but ended up leaving after some time due to “creative differences”.