The director stands by his actors for their portrayals of Paolo and Guccio Gucci in the Lady GaGa-fronted new movie following outrage by the famed family.

• Dec 1, 2021

AceShowbiz - Director Ridley Scott has defended Al Pacino and Jared Leto's performances in his new film "House of Gucci" after Patrizia Gucci slammed both actors.

Last week (ends26Nov21), Patrizia, who is played in the film by Lady Gaga, took issue with the biopic, claiming her family is portrayed as "thugs" and the film is an "insult to the legacy on which the brand is built today."

Earlier, the great-grandchild of house founder Guccio Gucci responded to leaked on-set photos by criticizing both stars' appearance in the film.

The woman, who was convicted of plotting to have her husband Mauricio Gucci killed and served 18 years behind bars, took issue with Leto's "unkempt hair and a lilac corduroy suit," telling the Associated Press she felt "offended." She added that Pacino, who plays Aldo Gucci, is "fat, short... (and) really ugly," not like the "tall, elegant" grandfather she knew.

Scott was quick to dismiss the criticism.

"The people that were writing from the family to us at the onset were alarmingly insulting, saying that Al Pacino did not represent physically Aldo Gucci in any shape or form," Ridley told Total Film.

"And yet, frankly, how could they be better represented than by Al Pacino? Excuse me! You probably have the best actors in the world, you should be so f**king lucky."

Ridley admitted much of Jared's depiction of Paolo Gucci had to be "imagined," but the filmmaker stands by the Oscar winner's portrayal.

"There's not a lot of information about Paolo, but there are pictures of Paolo and that's exactly what Paolo looks like. We found the pictures and Jared did what he did and dressed the way Paolo dressed. There's not a lot of Paolo on camera talking. And so that had to be, to a certain extent, imagined, but clearly Paolo was a very colourful and flamboyant man."

He added, "The flamboyance of Paolo was quite nicely captured. And how could that be offensive? We paid attention to not getting too overt if we can avoid it."

Patrizia also previously accused Scott and the film's producers of trying to profit off her family's drama, to which the "Gladiator" filmmaker replied, "You have to remember that one Gucci was murdered and another went to jail for tax evasion so you can't be talking to me about making a profit. As soon as you do that you become part of the public domain."