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Portrait of a Figure

Filmography of Napoleon Bonaparte

Also known as Napoleon I

Known as: MilitaryPolitical

5 titles in the archive · first depicted 1793

Lived1769 – 1821

Corsican artillery officer who rose to prominence during the War of the First Coalition, seized power against the Directory, became Emperor and commanded control over much of continental Europe until his defeat and exile in 1814 and again in 1815.

Shelfmark Vita CXV

5
titles
4 films · 1 series (1 ep)
3.4/5
average rating
across 5 rated titles
10h 53m
on screen
across 5 titles
80%
set in Napoleonic Wars
4 of 5 appearances
80% film
film vs television
4 of 5 appearances · 20% television

Compare their 5 titles in the Canons

12 years of a 52 year life depicted onscreen

Distinct years the archive depicts, against Napoleon Bonaparte’s lifetime (1769 – 1821) — 23.1% of it. 2 further depicted years fall outside it and are not counted.

Depicted in

179317941795179717981799180418051810181218141815

First and Last on Screen

Earliest portrayalDésirée1954
Most recentNapoleon2023

69 years of cinema separate them. A series is sorted here by the first year of its release.

A series counts once, regardless of how many of its episodes feature them.

On Screen, and on the Record

What the record holds of Napoleon Bonaparte, beside every screen depiction the archive holds. Where a series in the archive has multiple comparisons available for this person, every episode with one is here, named under it. See how their depictions have been reinterpreted over time and across adaptations.

Jacques-Louis David - The Emperor Napoleon in His Study at the Tuileries - Google Art ProjectOn the recordJacques-Louis DavidPublic domainSource

Joaquin Phoenix as Napoleon Bonaparte

Napoleon at Waterloo in NapoleonOn screenImage via TMDB
Napoleon

Marlon Brando as Napoleon Bonaparte

Napoleon Bonaparte in 1794On screenImage via TMDB
Désirée

Armand Assante as Napoleon Bonaparte

A young Napoleon in 1794On screenWarner Bros.Fair use
Napoleon and Josephine: A Love StoryEpisode 1

Rod Steiger as Napoleon Bonaparte

Napoleon confronting his army during the Hundred DaysOn screenImage via TMDB
Waterloo

Historical Threads

A thread follows one event or historical theme across the archive, wherever and whenever it appears. Pick a tab to read one; they are in the order they are filed on the timeline. Pulling a thread opens up a narrowed timeline view filtered to every year that thread touches.

Battle of the Pyramidspull it on the timeline

Event

The confrontation fought in the shadow of the Pyramids of Giza between the forces of Napoleon's Egyptian expedition and Murad Bey's Mamluk forces under the banner of the Ottoman Empire. The battle was a total victory for the French, securing the way to Cairo and breaking the power of the Mamluk forces in Lower Egypt, though the French defeat at the Battle of the Nile soon after would damper much of its success.

filed under 1798

Runs throughNapoleonic Wars

Battle of Austerlitzpull it on the timeline

Event

Napoleon's crowning victory over the forces of the Third Coalition in 1805. Through careful selection of the terrain and swift movement of his forces, Napoleon was able to lure coalition forces into a fatal trap. Though the victory and the close of the War of the Third Coalition would not end fighting on the European continent for long, the resulting Peace of Pressburg would have a number of repercussions on the European political landscape, including, ultimately, the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire.

filed under 1805

Runs throughFrench RevolutionNapoleonic Wars

Battle of Waterloopull it on the timeline

Event

The culmination of Napoleon's Hundred Days Campaign to restore himself to power over the French Empire and resoundingly defeat the forces of the Seventh Coalition. Facing off initially against British forces under the command of Arthur Wellesley, Napoleon's army ultimately failed to defeat the British before Prussian reinforcements under the command of Gebhard von Blücher arrived to firmly turn the tide of battle in the coalition's favor.

2 titles of theirs · filed under 1815

Runs throughNapoleonic Wars2 titlesFrench Revolution

The Box Office Ledger

What the films portraying Napoleon Bonaparte cost to make and took at the worldwide box office, as TMDB records them.

$225 million
in budgets
over 3 films with both sums
$300.9 million
at the box office
over 3 films with both sums
1.3×
return on budget
box office ÷ budget
Budget and box office of each film
FilmBudgetBox office
Napoleon$165,000,000$222,435,664
The Count of Monte Cristo$35,000,000$75,395,048
Waterloo$25,000,000$3,052,000

US dollars as TMDB records them, not adjusted for inflation. 3 films of the 4 portraying them carry either sum.