Trivia / Master and Commander

• Ability over Appearance: In the books, Stephen Maturin is 5'6" and repeatedly described as odd-looking, small, and "distorted", while Paul Bettany is 6'3", handsome, and taller than Russell Crowe. Despite this, you'd be hard-pressed to find an Aubrey-Maturin fan out there who doesn't think the guy absolutely nails the little surgeon, spy, and naturalist in mannerisms and feel.
• Awesome, Dear Boy: Although Russell Crowe had reservations about the first drafts of the script that he had been sent, the chance of working with Peter Weir was what ultimately convinced him to commit to the project.
• Dyeing for Your Art: Jack Aubrey is supposed to be quite stout, and Russell Crowe attempted to gain the necessary weight but found that he couldn't, so the film had to settle for a captain who was only slightly overweight. Crowe and Paul Bettany also learned to play the viola and cello, respectively, so that they could be filmed performing the proper bow and finger techniques. Bettany also spent pre-production learning to use period-accurate medical equipment, so it would seem fully natural in the film.
• Enforced Method Acting: Much of the filming was done onboard the Rose, a modern replica of the 18th century frigate HMS Rose, which was a semi-contemporary of the real HMS Surprise. All actors were given a crash course on 18th century sea-faring. Also during rehearsals, all actors were given tags based on whether they were officers or sailors. This enhanced the sense of camaraderie within each group, and made sure the actors felt that officers and sailors should not mix. Officers' actors were also given a nice clubhouse to rest in throughout the filming. Notably, Paul Bettany was the only one out of both cast and crew to never get seasick (he had quite a bit of boating and diving experience already).
• Executive Meddling: As said above, Russell Crowe and Paul Bettany learned how to play violin and cello for their respective roles, but were dubbed over in the final cut with professional recordings.
• Fake Brit: Jack is an Englishman played by an New Zealander.
• Fake Nationality: Maturin is half-Irish, half-Spanish. His actor, Paul Bettany, is neither.
• Stillborn Franchise: The film adaptation had nearly the entire cast signed on for multiple sequels, and they bought the actual boat they used to make sure it was going to be available. Accordingly, it was well-received critically and made enough money to be deemed a financial success, but not enough to make the sequel a sure thing, and in the end it never happened. Both Weir and the principal cast have all said over and over that they'd love to do more, but this has never entered planning stage. Weir tends to take a long time in between his projects, and he has also said that shooting a film on water is the hardest thing a director can do, so he'd really need to be sure that it'd be worth it. There's also the matter that the sequel rights are in a game of musical chairs consisting of rival studios 20th Century Studios/Disney, Miramax Films (now owned by Paramount), Samuel Goldwyn Films, and Universal. (the first one is exploring another way to return to the series, a prequel based on the first book)
• What Could Have Been:
  • At one point, the writers toyed with the idea of adding a love interest for Jack. Although this idea was later rejected, Keira Knightley was first choice for the part.
  • Heath Ledger was in talks to join the film, presumably as Doctor Maturin. Ralph Fiennes was also considered for the role.

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