"He was being a little bit of a b***h": Jane Campion shuts down Sam Elliott over comments on The Power of the Dog

Amidst the Oscars race for Best Director, The Power of the Dog filmmaker Jane Campion recently responded to Sam Elliott’s controversial statements about the movie during Marc Maron’s WTF podcast.

Elliott, who has acted in numerous westerns and played a plethora of cowboy-esque characters throughout his career, said that Campion’s film had “allusions of homosexuality.” He even compared the male characters in the film to the Chippendale boys.

The Tombstone (1993) star labeled Campion’s Oscar-nominated movie as “a piece of sh*t.” Questioning the director’s authority over the story while stressing on her nationality as a New Zealander. Elliott said:

“What the f*ck does this woman from down there know about the American West?”

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Jane Campion’s response to Sam Elliott’s “misogynistic, homophobic and xenophobic” comments

Unlike the film’s lead, Benedict Cumberbatch, the director did not cop out from responding to Sam Elliott’s comments lightly. While Cumberbatch labeled Sam Elliott’s comments as “very odd,” Jane Campion called out the actor publicly.

The 67-year-old New Zealander told Deadline at the DGA awards that the situation was “unfortunate and sad for him (Elliott).” She further added:

“He’s really hit the trifecta of misogyny and xenophobia and homophobia. I don’t like that. I think he was being a little bit of a b-*-t-c-h. Plus he’s not a cowboy; he’s an actor.”

Campion also said:

“Look, the West is a mythic space and there’s plenty of room on the range.”

Despite Elliott’s severe criticism of the film, The Power of the Dog has been nominated for 12 Oscar nominations. The movie has received nods from the Academy in almost all crucial categories, including Best Director, Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay, and three of the Best Actor/Actress categories.

Furthermore, the movie has won multiple BAFTA and SAG Awards, among others. At January's Golden Globe Awards, Jane Campion won the Best Director award, while the film won Best Picture.

Like Campion, The Power of the Dog star Jesse Plemons also expressed his opinion about Elliott’s comments to The Hollywood Reporter. As per Plemons’s statement, Elliott’s criticism "made him laugh."