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Everything you need to know about Gladiator II

Updated / Saturday, 9 Nov 2024 06:00
Gladiator II is out in cinemas on 15 November
Gladiator II is out in cinemas on 15 November

Gladiator II, the long-awaited follow-up to Ridley Scott's Oscar-winning 2000 blockbuster, will soon be released in cinemas.

The original film starred Russell Crowe as Maximus Decimus Meridius, a Roman general who is betrayed, sold into slavery and forced to become a gladiator by the corrupt emperor Commodus (Joaquin Phoenix).

It was a huge hit, grossing over €432 million worldwide and winning five Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Actor for Crowe.

It's clear expectations are running high for Gladiator II - find out everything you need to know about the highly-anticipated sequel here.

Who is starring in it?

Beloved Irish star Paul Mescal, Oscar-nominated for his turn in Aftersun, is playing the lead role of Lucius, who was played by a young Spencer Treat Clark in the original film. This is the 28-year-old Maynooth native's first major Hollywood role and it is generating significant anticipation among his fans.

Two actors reprise their roles from the original film. Connie Nielsen is back as Lucilla, the mother of Lucius, while Derek Jacobi plays Senator Gracchus, a member of the Roman Senate who opposes the growing corruption of the Imperial Court.

The always brilliant Pedro Pascal, best known for The Last Of Us, Game of Thrones and Narcos, will play the Roman general Marcus Acacius, while double Oscar-winner Denzel Washington is taking on the role of wealthy powerbroker Macrinus.

Pedro Pascal as Marcus Acacius

Stranger Things and A Quiet Place: Day One star Joseph Quinn and The White Lotus actor Fred Hechinger play co-emperors Caracalla and Geta.

Who is directing?

Ridley Scott, who received a Best Director Oscar nod for the original film, has returned to direct the sequel, which has been in various stages of development for two decades.

He previously told Empire magazine about the story for Gladiator II: "The plot, frankly, was right under our noses. I think it was so close under our noses that we thought it was too simple."

Scott is also producing with Michael Pruss through his production company, Scott Free.

Ridley Scott and Paul Mescal on the set of Gladiator II

What is it about?

In the original Gladiator, Lucilla's (Connie Nielsen) Lucius is saved by Maximus (Russell Crowe) after the final battle. Gladiator II picks up around 20 years after the events of the first film and follows the now-grown-up Lucius and his fight for survival under the rule of tyrannical general Marcus Acacius (Pedro Pascal).

Rome is led by twin emperors, Caracalla (Fred Hechinger) and Geta (Joseph Quinn), who have a strong lust for both blood and power.

A synopsis of the film reads: "Years after witnessing the death of the revered hero Maximus at the hands of his uncle, Lucius (Paul Mescal) is forced to enter the Colosseum after his home is conquered by the tyrannical Emperors who now lead Rome with an iron fist.

"With rage in his heart and the future of the Empire at stake, Lucius must look to his past to find strength and honour to return the glory of Rome to its people."

How did Paul Mescal land the leading role?

Director Ridley Scott revealed that he discovered Paul Mescal when he saw the actor in his breakout role as Connell Waldron in the hit TV series Normal People, which was adapted from Sally Rooney's bestselling novel and became a runaway cultural phenomenon when it was released during the first Covid lockdown in April 2020.

Scott told Variety: "When I watch anything, I tend to be clocking who's interesting. It's just in my DNA. And so, watching a TV show that's not really my kind of TV show almost four years ago, I said, 'Who’s this guy?’"

Ridley Scott discovered Paul Mescal in Normal People

The legendary director arranged a Zoom with Mescal while the actor was performing the play A Streetcar Named Desire in London.

"I met with him and he said, 'Of course, I'd love to do it'. And that was it," Scott said. "We were away and running with the ball. He was a special find. He was absolutely perfect."

Meanwhile, speaking to Entertainment Weekly, Mescal said of that first chat with the director: "I spoke to Ridley for about five minutes about what Gladiator II was going to be about and then we spoke for the next 25 minutes about Gaelic football and dogs.

"And then I thought we'd do camera tests, but no, I found out about two weeks later [I got the part]."

How did he prepare for the part?

Mescal said training for his role in Gladiator II was "fun" but that he refused to give up drinking alcohol while preparing for the blockbuster.

On The Graham Norton Show he said of the preparations: "I ate a lot of chicken and lifted heavy things.

"I was working with a trainer who circled me like a shark and said: 'There is a canvas to work with.'

"He went to town, and I saw him every day. It was fun."

The actor previously said the training was focused on making him look "big and strong" rather than "an underwear model".

In an interview with Variety, Mescal said that his preparation for the demanding role centred around fight choreography rather than workouts designed to sculpt muscle.

"I just wanted to be big and strong and look like somebody who can cause a bit of damage when s*** hits the fan," he said. "I think also, sometimes, one could, in striving for that perfect look, end up looking more like an underwear model than a warrior."

He continued: "Muscles start to grow, and that can be deemed aesthetic in certain capacities, but there is something about feeling strong in your body that elicits just a different feeling.

"You carry yourself differently. It has an impact on you psychologically in a way that is useful for the film."

Meanwhile, his co-star Pedro Pascal said he referred to Mescal as "Brick Wall Paul" due to his physical transformation for the part.

Where was it filmed?

Filming for Gladiator II began in June 2023, primarily in Morocco, with additional filming taking place in Malta and the United Kingdom.

Paul Mescal said filming fight scenes in the heat was "brutal"

Mescal has previously spoken about the challenges of filming in hot climates, telling Entertainment Weekly: "We shot that [Colosseum sequence] for about two or three days, but the heat was just… My Irish blood does not function with Ridley's shooting schedule, which is like sunup to sundown, the hottest parts of the day. It was brutal, the fight."

He added: "I grew up playing sports, so I would consider myself pretty robust and happy to throw myself around, but it was just the [arena] itself became like a radiator. I was borderline throwing up, irritable, just hardcore. Between takes I was firing ice straight down my back."

How much did it cost to make?

Ridley Scott is said to have been allocated an initial budget of $165 million for Gladiator II. Since the film wrapped shooting, there have been reports that the budget has ballooned from between $250 million to an eye-watering $310 million.

Whatever the correct number is, they will need to sell a lot of cinema tickets to get out of the red on this project.

Connie Nielsen reprises her role as Lucilla

What does Russell Crowe think of the sequel?

Ridley Scott didn't consult Russell Crowe about the sequel, telling Empire: "I think [Crowe is] still one of the best actors in the world and I think we have a good relationship. I hope we do. As long as he doesn't start bitching about how he wasn't consulted. Why would I? He’s dead!"

Crowe was honest about his feelings about the follow-up, telling the Kyle Meredith With… podcast: "I'm slightly uncomfortable with the fact they’re making another one — because, of course, I’m dead and I have no say in what gets done.

"But a couple of the things I’ve heard I’m like — no, no, no, that’s not in the moral journey of that particular character. But I can’t say anything, it’s not my place, I’m six foot under. So we’ll see what that is like."

Russell Crowe in a scene from Gladiator, 2000. Photo by Universal/Getty Images.

He added: "The age I was when I made that film and all the things that came after it, the doors that particular movie opened for me. This is just me being purely honest: there’s definitely a tinge of melancholy, a tinge of jealousy."

What are the critics saying?

The critical response to Gladiator II has been widely positive so far, with critics praising the thrilling action and strong performances.

Lou Thomas said it was a "properly satisfying OTT historical epic full of ferocious sword fights, angry baboons and righteous vengeance."

Marc Chacksfield praised it as a "big, bloodthirsty brawl of a movie."

Simon Thompson singled out the "epic action set pieces and deliciously ribald treachery" while commending Paul Mescal for leading the "stellar cast with aplomb".

Other reviewers have been more measured in their feedback.

Scott J. Davis criticised the "clunky dialogue, uneven script and horrid CGI" but added it was "very solid if not the enthralling epic we hoped."

Matt Rodgers said the long-awaited sequel wasn't "fit to lace the sandals of the first film" and that it lacks "the emotional heft" of the original.

However, he singled out Denzel Washington's "towering" performance for praise and said the battles are "bloody, brutal and built for the biggest screen".

Elliot Lines said it is "a grand epic with great action scenes" but that the "emotional stakes leaned heavily on its predecessor".

When is it out in cinemas?

Gladiator II is set for release in Ireland on 15 November 2024. In the United States it will share a release date with the feature film adaptation of Wicked starring Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo when they both land in cinemas on 22 November.

This has led to some speculation about another Barbenheimer situation, but a clever portmanteau has yet to be devised.

Wikiator perhaps...?

Read more: Profile - Can Paul Mescal carry a Hollywood blockbuster?

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