Lars von Trier Keeps His Nicolas Winding Refn Feud Alive, Calls Him ‘An Opportunist In An Unpleasant Way’
Zack Sharf
Another day, another new development in the feud between Danish auteurs Lars von Trier and Nicolas Winding Refn. The two filmmakers used to be friends, but a wedge was driven between them when von Trier’s controversial “Melancholia” press conference at Cannes led Refn to tell the press that the former was “getting old and his comedy routine is a bit tiresome.” The two have been trading jabs ever since, with Refn even claiming at Cannes last year that von Trier tried to sleep with his wife.
READ MORE: Nicolas Winding Refn Says Lars Von Trier Tried To Sleep With His Wife
During an interview with Danish magazine Soundvenue, von Trier couldn’t resist making a Refn diss. In between talking about his new film “The House That Jack Built” and his opinion on directors like David Lynch and the Coen Brothers, von Trier makes it known that he finds Refn to be an “opportunist in an unpleasant way.”
“He could have saved me from eternal suffering,” he says about Refn, alluding to how the “Drive” director didn’t come to his rescue when Cannes and the press turned against him after his infamous Hitler comment. “He did a press conference the day after my press conference in Cannes, that year with Hitler. And he could have said, ‘Lars is an idiot, and he makes bad films but he is not a Nazi, we’ve known each other I don’t know how long.’ It took me three years to escape the French police.”
It should come as no surprise that von Trier isn’t keeping up with Refn’s career. “I haven’t seen his films,” he says bluntly. “Yeah, the first ‘Pusher’ I liked. Of course, he is talented.”
Von Trier calling Refn “talented” might be the nicest thing he’s ever said about the director. We’re not expecting more compliments, but it should only be a matter of time before Refn responds. The “Nymphomaniac” director is currently halfway done with shooting “The House That Jack Built,” which is expected to bring von Trier back to Cannes in 2018.
Stay on top of the latest breaking film and TV news! Sign up for our Festivals newsletter here.
