2005's Kingdom of Heaven has grown in reputation to become known as one of legendary director Sir Ridley Scott's most epic and arguably best films–at least, the director’s cut has. The original theatrical cut struggled both critically and commercially upon release, and ultimately led Scott to release his director’s cut in select theaters later the same year. Now, 20 years later, Scott looks back on the film in celebration of its May 27 release on 4K UHD and Blu-ray.

The director’s cut of one of Ridley Scott’s best movies gives the story a context which greatly enriches the journey of its main character, Balian de Ibelin, played by Orlando Bloom. Not only that, but the cut introduces one of Kingdom of Heaven’s primary themes early with the line “There is so much done in Christendom of which Christ would be incapable.” The Roadshow Edition of the director’s cut even features an overture and intermission with music by composer Harry Gregson-Williams, who turned in some of his best work on the movie.

ScreenRant spoke with Sir Ridley Scott about the lessons he learned crafting Kingdom of Heaven based on the script by Wililam Monahan. Scott reveals how the movie tested his patience, what led to the divisive theatrical cut, and what resonates with him today about the film. Plus, the 87-year-old director teased his film The Dog Stars and shared his hopes for the future of the Alien franchise, which he both launched and revitalized.

The Kingdom of Heaven 20th Anniversary edition Steelbook with over 8 hours of bonus extras is out now.

What Happened With Kingdom Of Heaven’s Theatrical Cut, Explained

“I Should Never Have Done That”

Kingdom of Heaven is now often regarded as one of Ridley Scott’s best films, which makes it a shame that the film was a critical and commercial letdown when it first hit theaters. This was due to the movie’s theatrical cut, which is roughly 45 minutes shorter than the director’s cut and which omitted what Scott believes are 17 very key minutes. Scott revealed that test screenings and a desire to appease the studio were the factors that ultimately led him to compromise his original vision.

Every film, you preview, and previewing is a learning curve. It’s also a bloody nuisance.

“You made the movie,” he continued, “you like what you've got, and then somebody says, ‘What about this?’ and ‘What about that?’ … And you can't argue because they paid for it.” Scott added that he is “always respectful of [his] studio and financial partners,” suggesting that he worked to ensure people who invested in the epic film were appeased.

Plus, the director knew the studio was taking a risk on Kingdom of Heaven. “We previewed it quite a few times,” he shared, “Probably because when I’m saying to Fox, ‘Listen, I want you to spend X amount of money on this film. This is about the infidels–us–and the Muslim faith,’ that ain’t exactly Star Wars, right? It ain’t that attractive.”

But Scott dearly wanted to make the film. “I knew I had great material with [writer] Bill Monaghan,” he reflected, adding, “I mean, quite special. The script was fantastic.” He even said he was happy with Kingdom of Heaven as previews began–“I would even call it rock ‘n roll. It’s fantastic”--but then, he shared, “Somebody says, ‘Gee, the film takes too long. Can we remove the story of the princess who euthanized her child?’”

“Reluctantly–really, really reluctantly–I let it go. And I should never have done that.”

“Right there you saved 17 minutes,” Scott said, “but you cut out part of the heart of the matter.”

How The Beginning Of The Director’s Cut Reshapes The Film

“The Film Is About Massive Misunderstanding”

There’s a line at the beginning of the director’s cut said by Bill Paterson, which Scott points as particularly important to the film: “There is so much done in Christendom of which Christ would be incapable.”

“The line circles the truth,” Scott said, “but it also has a beauty in its wisdom.” It also touches on the core themes of the film as put by Scott: “The film is about massive misunderstanding.”

“And guess what?” he added, “it still goes on today.” Although Scott acknowledged that “misunderstanding” is likely an “underused, underwhelming” word when discussing the desire for control of the Holy Land, he then pointed to a moment later in Kingdom of Heaven to make his point: “Saladin was very beautifully portrayed in the film by Ghassan Massoud, and I loved it when Saladin took back the central house of worship in Jerusalem and returned it to being a mosque.”

“If you notice carefully,” Scott continued, “when he sees his symbol being put back up, he walks in the door, and he will not walk on the Christian headstones. He walks around them, then they wash the floor of the building with rose petals to clean it, and then they return to what they believe it should be.”

Scott went on to share a piece of wisdom given to him by Saladin actor Massoud, who said, “‘The Quran says it is in great respect of any icon or symbol of any other faith.’” The director continued, saying,“We can argue that ain’t so today, but that’s why it’s interesting today for people to be so interested [in this film].”

Kingdom Of Heaven Made Ridley Scott A More Patient Filmmaker

“Be Kind If You Can”

Given everything that happened with the theatrical cut, it’s easy to assume Scott would have walked away from Kingdom of Heaven with a new insight on filmmaking. He did–but it’s not what you’d expect. “Be kind if you can,” Scott replied when asked what lesson he learned from the experience. “Sometimes it’s impossible, doing my job, where I’m facing a unit of 1,200 personnel [and] I want to kill 40 of them.”

“But you can’t do that,” the filmmaker added, “so you learn to be very patient, then you can quietly walk in the trailer, kick the door, and then come out smiling. You know what I mean? That’s what I learned.”

“You only get the best out of people by not shouting at them.”

Ridley Scott Explains Why There Aren’t Many Movies Like Kingdom Of Heaven

Plus, He Shared Insights Into His Own FIlmmaking Style

Kingdom of Heaven hit theaters one year after Wolfgang Petersen’s Troy (2004), which aimed to be epic on a similar scale. In the modern era of Hollywood, movies of that ilk seem harder to come by–and Scott agrees. “I still get the opportunity,” he said, “So I must be doing something right, but it is difficult.”

“And not only that,” Scott continued, “It is very much a lean in the direction of visual effects. The idea of visual effects is a marvelous tool. [But] it’s a tool. It should not be a repair bill for a badly-made movie.” Kingdom of Heaven is a strong example of Scott’s case–although the film did implement CG crowds, it was reported in a 2005 piece from The Guardian that it also featured up to 30,000 extras in a single scene.

“That’s where your budget shoots up,” Scott continued, “When you haven’t got it right in camera. Visual effects are an enhancement, and should be [used] where you are saving money rather than spending money to repair a badly planned movie. And the problem is, the tendency of that is happening more often.”

The director also shared his approach to getting what he needs on any given day of shooting. “I learned very early on, I think, from days as a live TV director where I was using six cameras at the BBC to do drama. Right there, I pre-planned every camera move, because you're live, and you can't stop. I just carried that into movies. So, now I work [with] eight to 11 cameras.”

“The film I'm doing now [is] called The Dog Stars,” Scott added, “I'll be finished in 38 days. Napoleon was 52 days. Gladiator II was 48 days. Normally that'd be a hundred days plus, but if you're working [with] eight to 11 cameras, it's eight to 11 cameras faster, providing you know where to put the goddamn machine. If you don't, don't try–you’ll get into deep s***.”

“I couldn't shoot for 90 days. I’d go nuts with boredom.”

How Saltburn Got Jacob Elordi Cast In Ridley Scott’s The Dog Stars

“I Loved The Whole Thing”

Scott mentioned his next film, The Dog Stars, which adapts a post-apocalyptic fiction novel of the same name by Peter Heller. While he didn’t reveal anything about his take on the plot, he did share his reasoning for casting Saltburn star Jacob Elordi in the leading role. “I cast all my films–of course, with a casting director,” Scott shared. “But normally once I read a script, prep a script, or [am] having it written, I’m already thinking about who [it’s for].”

“Usually the above-the-line is fundamentally my suggestion. Then, the casting director is very helpful with the many others who will be in the film.”

“Jacob is a great, interesting character who I noticed, really, in Saltburn,” Scott said. The director hasn’t been shy about expressing his iration for Emerald Fennell’s 2023 drama, and wasn’t during this conversation, either: “I kind of liked the film a lot. I like the whole thing. The whole production was kind of ambitiously intellectual, but it got me. I loved the whole thing. So, Jake was very watchable, and so was [Barry Keoghan]. It was very interesting.”

Scott also took a moment to hype up the rest of the movie’s impressive cast: “[In The Dog Stars,] I've got Guy [Pearce], I've got Margaret Qualley, who is super duper. I think they're all going to be stars, actually. And Josh Brolin–we’ve finished already. He did about a month with me. It's a very interesting premise.”

Don’t Expect Another Ridley Scott Alien Movie

“I Think I’ve Done Enough”

Ridley Scott has contributed an impressive number of zeitgeist-dominating films to pop culture; Blade Runner, Gladiator, Black Hawk Down, Thelma & Louise, and The Martian are just a few. But out of all of Scott’s movies, 1979’s Alien spawned the most sequels, spinoffs, comics, video games, and other franchise explorations by far, and it's still going strong. In Scott’s words, “It is spreading like wildfire.”

But that wasn’t always the case. “I think I felt it was deadened after 4,” he shared, talking about 1997’s Alien: Resurrection. “I think mine was pretty damn good, and I think Jim’s was good, and I have to say the rest were not very good.”

“And I thought, ‘F***. That’s the end of a franchise which should be as important as Star Trek or Star Wars,’ which I think is phenomenal."

“At least,” he continued, “I think the first [Star Wars] by George [Lucas] is seminal–it was as seminal as 2001[: A Space Odyssey]. To me, it was that important in of film language and where you go next.” For example, he said, “From George’s [Star Wars], I was then offered–almost a year after–Alien.”

Reflecting on his first steps with the franchise, Scott revealed how he drew some inspiration from Alien in part thanks to the serendipitous timing of a phone call. “I’m fascinated [by] very good comics, and the best in the world was probably Jean Giraud Moebius. Moebius was a French comics man who was just genius. I was staring at these, and suddenly I was offered Alien out of the blue,” he said, “And because designer is in my blood and DNA, I just knew what to do with it.”

Scott wasn’t the first choice for Alien. Nor was he the second. “I was the fifth f***ing choice,” he said, continuing, “Why you offered Robert Altman Alien, God only knows. Altman said, ‘Are you kidding? I’m not going to do this,’ and I went, ‘Are you kidding? I have to do this,’ because it borders and verges on heavy metal.”

So, Scott made his film, James Cameron made the sequel, two more entries were made, “and then it died.” Luckily for science fiction fans, the director wasn’t done with it. “A number of years after,” Scott shared, “I said, ‘I'm going to resurrect this,’ [and wrote] Prometheus from scratch–a blank sheet of paper. Damon Lindelof and I sat and hammered out Prometheus. It was very present and very welcome. The audience really wanted more.”

Unfortunately, Scott said, “No one was coming for it, [and] I went once again [and made] Alien Covenant, and it worked too.” With 2024’s Alien: Romulus proving to be a hit and leading to more films in the franchise, Scott believes his job is done. When asked if he had more directorial ambitions for the franchise, he replied with a simple “not really.”

“Where it’s going now, I think I've done enough, and I just hope it goes further.”

Scott Explains One Key Alien: Covenant Song Choice

“It Was So, So Beautiful, It Was Nearly Spooky”

Scott’s last Alien franchise film, Alien: Covenant, was marketed rather effectively with the help of a very specific song: “Take Me Home, Country Roads” performed by John Denver. “He had a voice like a Swiss alpine yodel,” Scott said about Denver. “What a voice.”

In addition to suiting the trailer, the song is part of a key plot point in the film. Scott revealed how the choice to include that particular piece of music was made, saying, “I felt it was so, so beautiful, it was nearly spooky. And if you are way out there in some impossible part of nowhere, you’re going to play things that are going to remind you of home. Quite randomly, I just thought about that, and that was it.”

Kingdom of Heaven is available for purchase on 4K UHD and Blu-ray now.