It appears that not even Chris Pines penis could get Outlaw King the reviews that director David Mackenzie wanted. Although a brief moment in which the films star committed to full-frontal nudity made headlines after the movies Toronto International Film Festival debut, the rest of the film received generally middling reviews. And so, the film took a trip back to the cutting room for a 20-minute trim. Just rest assured: all the, erm, important bits have remained completely uncut.
The period epic stars Pine as King Robert the Bruce on his epic journey to reclaim the Scottish throne. Pines willingness to do full frontal in a chilly Scottish stream is just one example of how he committed to the role and its dramatic weight. As one might imagine, Pines branch garnered more attention than just about anything else in the film out of Toronto. According to Deadline, Mackenzie rushed to get the film ready for festival season, and its 137-minute running time was not well received by some critics. As Mackenzie told Deadline, “I could feel what the audience was like in the theater. Im sensitive to the way they felt.” Three days after TIFF, Mackenzie and his team returned to editing—a decision the director noted was his, and not the result of pressure from Netflix.
And yes, to confirm one more time: all 12 frames of Chris Pine bathing nude will remain intact. But Mackenzie also has a bit of criticism for anyone who found themselves in a fuss over it: “I cant understand why people get worked about that. I made 10 films, and most of them had male frontal nudity; its a bathing scene, and people do tend to get out of the bath without clothes.” Perhaps he wasnt aware of the stiff competition Pine faces in the War of the Hollywood Chrises, or the role such a scene could play in helping the actor rise to the top of the heap.
Either way, the films running time is now a trim 117 minutes—and Mackenzie hopes critics who thought the first dragged might consider giving it a second chance. “Its worth another look, and I encourage critics who saw it and didnt connect with it to see it again,” the director said. “It has a different sense since its under two hours, but its still very much an epic.”
Get Vanity Fairs HWD NewsletterSign up for essential industry and award news from Hollywood.Laura BradleyLaura Bradley is a Hollywood writer for VanityFair.com.
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