It has been long said that Alexander the Great was not exactly on the “straight” and narrow when it came to his love life and with the upcoming release of Warner Bros. anticipated epic Alexander it seems tempers are flaring due to the film suggesting Alexander the Great was bisexual.
Reuters is reporting a story that a group of Greek lawyers are threatening to sue Warner Bros. film studios and Oliver Stone for the “suggestion” and have already sent the studio a note demanding they include a reference in the title credits saying his movie is a fictional tale and not based on official documents of the life of the Macedonian ruler.
“We are not saying that we are against gays but we are saying that the production company should make it clear to the audience that this film is pure fiction and not a true depiction of the life of Alexander,” Yannis Varnakos, who spearheads the campaign by 25 lawyers, told Reuters.
Stone was quoted on the MSNBC.com Web Site as telling the upcoming edition of Playboy magazine that the film’s depiction of Alexander could offend some.
“We go into his bisexuality. It may offend some people, but sexuality in those days was a different thing,” he was quoted as saying.
With the film yet to hit theaters Varnakos said he has already gathered enough information regarding the content of the movie to suggest there are “inappropriate references.”
“We have not seen the film but from the information we have already there are references to his alleged homosexuality, a fact that is in no historical document or archive on Alexander,” he said. “Either they make it clear that this is a work of fiction or we will take the case further.”
Sounds like a pretty informed decision to me. Either way I don’t think Varnakos is going to be getting his way and I highly doubt he has much of a case against the studio or Stone.
Alexander hits theaters next Wednesday, November 24th and stars Colin Farrell in the title role along with, Angelina Jolie, Anthony Hopkins and Val Kilmer. To get the rest of the Reuters story click here and for more on Alexander including stills, trailers, cast and more click here.
