Thread by @Defendthewest17

Master and Commander behind the scenes.

This film was intended to be the first entry in a franchise. However, due to low box-office numbers, no sequels were ever made, despite critical acclaim and multiple Oscar nominations.🧵

The movie combines two novels - "Master and Commander" and "The Far Side of the World". Both deal with chasing down a privateer and the movie combines the long chase of the latter with the furious climactic battle of the former.

Paul Bettany was one of the few actors who did not get seasick during filming. He was a member of Sea Cadets as a kid.

To research for his role, Paul Bettany went to the Royal College of Surgeons in London to learn how to use 18th century surgical instruments.

During the film's pre-production, the replica of Captain James Cook's ship, HMS Endeavour, was circumnavigating the globe. The production was able to fly 2 cameramen to the ship as it was about to sail round the bottom of South America; a route the HMS Surprise takes in the film.

Thus, the footage of the stormy seas from that part of the voyage is genuine. The Endeavour sailors were used in costumes kept on board for displays.

To create an authentic sense of camaraderie among the cast they were all housed in special quarters, away from the rest of the crew. Designed like a gentleman's club there was no TV and no crew member was allowed in without being invited. It was nicknamed "The Monkey Bar".

The cast endured a two week boot camp where they literally learned the ropes and what to do on board a frigate, including the loading and firing of cannons. They also all learned basic sword skills.

The first movie to ever film on the Galapagos Islands. Although, the scene where the crew is chasing marine iguanas was filmed in Baja California with regular green iguana which had been dyed black.

12 of the extras comprising the crew were drafted in from Poland as they had a "lived in" look and quite clearly hadn't been enjoying the life of plenty that most Westerners do. Peter Weir was attracted to this as it would emphasize the privations and hardships of serving

After filming, the HMS Surprise was purchased by the San Diego Maritime Museum for an undisclosed sum, and with the proviso that the ship be loaned back to 20th Century Fox for any future film productions.

Two historical advisors were on set at all times.

Russell Crowe spent 3 months learning violin, calling it the hardest thing he'd ever done for a film. He later sold the 130 year old violin used in the movie for £73,528

The miniatures of the Surprise and the Acheron were built by WETA workshops in New Zealand who then spent five weeks filming them in action.

Some filming was done in the same tank that was built for the filming of Titanic (1997), in Rosarito, Mexico.

The sails for the small scale model version of the Surprise were woven in Hong Kong. Their weight was calculated to be proportionately accurate to the real thing (although the real sails probably didn't contain Lycra).

Russell Crowe brought in Akiva Goldsman(A beautiful mind) to polish up the script.

Russell Crowe's attempt at an English accent drew much criticism.

The film was in production for roughly three years - one year for the screenplay, one year shooting,and a final year in post.

The production utilized approximately 2,000 costumes.

At one point, the writers toyed with the idea of adding a love interest for Russell Crowe's character. Although this idea was later rejected, Keira Knightley was the first choice for the part.

Although Russell Crowe had reservations about the first drafts of the script that he had been sent, the chance of working with Peter Weir was what ultimately convinced him to commit to the project.

When talking about Lord Nelson in the main cabin, one of the officer mention that Nelson often said "never mind maneuvers, always go straight at them". This piece of advice was actually given by the real admiral Nelson to Captain Thomas Cochrane.

In contrast to the competitive studio days of the Golden Age of Hollywood, this project had three major companies team up for production (Fox, Universal and Miramax plus a leading indie (Goldwyn)

Russell Crowe had the crew of his ship play rugby together while they were not filming so they could bond and better work as a team.

Nominated for 10 Oscars and won 2. Of the other 8 categories, Lord of the Rings - Return of the King won each of them

The production used two ships. One was the replica Rose, dressed up to be the HMS Surprise, which could be put to sea within 45 minutes. The other was a replica of the replica, built on a gimbal in the giant tank at the Baja Studios, Mexico.

Russell Crowe broke from the production midway through to fly to London for the funeral of his friend and Gladiator (2000) co-star Richard Harris.

Thats it for now, Gladiator up next! ⚔️

@russellcrowe