Gladiator II
Gladiator II is a 2024 epic historical film directed and produced by Ridley Scott. The sequel to Gladiator, it was written by David Scarpa based on a story he wrote with Peter Craig. The film was produced by Scott Free Productions and distributed by Paramount Pictures. It stars Paul Mescal, Pedro Pascal, Joseph Quinn, Fred Hechinger, Connie Nielsen, and Denzel Washington. Derek Jacobi and Nielsen reprise their roles from the first film, with Mescal replacing Spencer Treat Clark. Mescal portrays Lucius Verus Aurelius, the exiled Prince of Rome, who becomes a prisoner of war and fights as a gladiator for Macrinus, a former slave who plots to overthrow the twin emperors Caracalla and Geta.
A sequel to Gladiator was discussed as early as June 2001, with David Franzoni and John Logan set to return as screenwriters. Over the next few years, Scott offered occasional updates, including the possible involvement of the original film's lead actor, Russell Crowe, along with plot ideas about the Roman afterlife and different historical time periods. Development was halted when DreamWorks Pictures was sold to Paramount in 2006. The film was finally announced in 2018, and Mescal was cast in the lead role in January 2023, with a script by David Scarpa. Filming took place between June 2023 and January 2024, with a five-month delay due to the 2023 Hollywood labor disputes.
Gladiator II premiered in Sydney, Australia, on October 30, 2024, and was released in the United Kingdom on November 15 and in the United States on November 22. The film received generally positive reviews from critics, although it was considered inferior to its predecessor, and grossed worldwide. It received two nominations at the 82nd Golden Globe Awards: Cinematic and Box Office Achievement and Best Supporting Actor for Washington, and was nominated for Best Costume Design at the 97th Academy Awards.
Plot
Sixteen years after Marcus Aurelius's death, Rome is ruled by the corrupt twin emperors Caracalla and Geta. In the North African kingdom of Numidia, Hanno lives with his wife, Arishat. The Roman army led by General Justus Acacius invades and conquers the kingdom, killing Arishat and enslaving Hanno and the other survivors. The enslaved people are taken to Ostia, where the Romans pit them against baboons to advertise them as potential gladiators. Hanno savagely kills one, impressing the stable master Macrinus, who promises Hanno an opportunity to kill Acacius if he wins enough fights in Rome.Acacius returns to Rome as a war hero. Caracalla and Geta prepare gladiatorial games in the Colosseum to celebrate. Acacius asks for a break from war with his wife Lucilla, Aurelius' daughter, but the emperors refuse and plot to conquer Persia and India. Senator Thraex hosts a party for the emperors, featuring a gladiatorial duel. After Hanno wins, he recites a verse from Virgil's Aeneid, revealing his Roman education and raising Macrinus' suspicion. Acacius and Lucilla conspire with Thraex and Senator Gracchus to overthrow the emperors and restore the Republic.
Hanno emulates the late legendary gladiator Maximus in the Colosseum to win fights. Lucilla realizes that Hanno is her son, Lucius Verus, whom she sent away as a child to protect him from rivals for the throne after her brother's death. Lucilla visits Lucius and tries reconnecting with him, but he angrily rebuffs her, believing she had abandoned him. Lucilla reveals to Lucius that he is Maximus' son and tells him to use his father's strength to survive. During a naval battle in the Colosseum, Lucius leads the gladiators to victory and fires a crossbow at the spectating Acacius but fails to kill him.
Ravi, the gladiators' physician, befriends Lucius and shows him the shrine to Maximus, which includes Maximus' sword and armor. Lucilla and Acacius conspire to free Lucius as part of their plot to dethrone the emperors. Thraex, who owes Macrinus money, informs him of the conspiracy; Lucilla and Acacius are arrested for treason. Macrinus advises the emperors to have Acacius killed in the Colosseum and arranges for Lucius to fight him. After a brief fight, Acacius surrenders to Lucius and professes his love for Lucilla and Maximus. Lucius refuses to execute Acacius, but the Praetorian Guard does so at the emperors' command, prompting the people to riot. When Macrinus questions Lucius' refusal to kill Acacius, Lucius argues that Rome can be a better place.
Macrinus tricks Caracalla into believing that Geta will blame him for the riot; Caracalla kills Geta with Macrinus' help. Lucilla and Lucius reconcile; she gives him her father's ring, which also belonged to Maximus and Acacius. Increasingly delusional, Caracalla names his monkey, Dondus, as a consul alongside Macrinus. Macrinus persuades the Senate that he can restore order and assumes control of the Praetorians. He reveals to Lucilla that he was a slave under Aurelius' rule and vows to avenge himself by becoming emperor. Macrinus convinces Caracalla to have Lucilla executed in the Colosseum with only Lucius to defend her, hoping their deaths will trigger another riot that the Senate will defuse by executing Caracalla.
Lucius sends Ravi with the ring to request military aid from Acacius' legions outside Rome. Lucilla is brought into the Colosseum, accompanied by the senators with whom she conspired, while Lucius rallies the gladiators to revolt against their enslavers. Armed with Maximus' sword and armor, he leads the gladiators to defend Lucilla from execution. Gracchus is killed in the onslaught, while Macrinus kills Caracalla before fatally shooting Lucilla with an arrow. Macrinus flees the rioting city with Lucius in pursuit.
Acacius' legions and Macrinus' Praetorians confront each other outside Rome. To prevent a battle, Lucius duels Macrinus. Lucius ultimately kills Macrinus and reveals his identity as the imperial heir, persuading both armies to unite with him for a stronger Rome. Later, Lucius mourns his parents in the Colosseum.
Cast
- Paul Mescal as Lucius Verus Aurelius / "Hanno": The grandson of the former emperor Marcus Aurelius and son of Maximus Decimus Meridius, the protagonist of the first film. Following his father's death, Lucius was sent away from Rome as a child by his mother, Lucilla, to protect him from assassins. They have not met in around 15 years. Lucius lives with his wife in Numidia but is taken prisoner by the Roman army after they invade his home and kill his wife. He is sold into slavery to become a gladiator in the Colosseum. He seeks revenge against the Romans and their general, Acacius. Alfie Tempest portrays a young Lucius.
- Pedro Pascal as General Acacius: A general of the Roman army who trained under Maximus, and Lucilla's husband. Although he lives a luxurious lifestyle in Rome, he spends most of his time away on military campaigns for the emperors. He leads an army to take over Numidia and invades Lucius' home, but is disillusioned by war and does not want to lead more men to die for the emperors. Acacius conspires with Lucilla to overthrow the emperors but is arrested and reduced to fighting as a gladiator in the Colosseum. According to Pascal, he is "a very, very good general, which can mean a very good killer", serving as a symbol to Lucius of everything he hates.
- Connie Nielsen as Lucilla: Lucius' mother, Maximus' former lover, and Aurelius' daughter. She sent Lucius away from Rome after Maximus' death to protect him from rivals for the imperial throne. Following Maximus' death, she marries Acacius. She watches Lucius fight in the Colosseum but initially does not recognize him as her son. Due to her popularity among the people of Rome, she is feared and exploited by those in power, such as the emperors. Nielsen reprises her role from the first film.
- Denzel Washington as Macrinus : A former Aethiope slave who plans to control Rome. He keeps a stable of gladiators and mentors Lucius. He also works as an arms dealer, providing weapons, food, and oil to the Roman armies in Europe. Director Ridley Scott described him as "pretty fucking cruel" to the arena fighters, with Washington adding that he "wants to be Emperor and he's willing to do anything to get there". Scott also noted that Macrinus has a "twinkle" of bisexuality, describing him as a gangster who started as a prisoner of war, became a gladiator, and earned his freedom.
- Joseph Quinn as Emperor Geta: The co-emperor of Rome alongside his brother, Caracalla. Scott described the pair as "damaged goods from birth" who are "almost a replay of Romulus and Remus", with another inspiration being Beavis and Butt-Head from the MTV adult cartoon of the same name. Quinn took inspiration from Philip Seymour Hoffman's Owen Davian from Mission: Impossible III and Gary Oldman's Jean-Baptiste Emanuel Zorg from The Fifth Element for playing his character, not wanting to copy Joaquin Phoenix's performance as Commodus from the previous film. One inspiration for Geta's look was John Lydon.
- Fred Hechinger as Emperor Caracalla: The co-emperor of Rome alongside his brother, Geta. He has a pet monkey named Dondus, and is less stable than his brother due to cognitive erosion in his brain. Hechinger discussed with Scott about finding inspirations to build Caracalla's look from Sid Vicious, with Caracalla's pet monkey serving as another inspiration for the character's "crazed behavior".
- Lior Raz as Viggo: The trainer of gladiators for Macrinus. A former gladiator, Viggo is a "tough guy" who escorts the gladiators to their fights.
- Derek Jacobi as Senator Gracchus: A member of the Roman Senate who opposes the growing corruption of the Imperial Court. Jacobi reprises his role from the first film.
- Peter Mensah as Jugurtha: A Numidian chieftain who mentored Lucius after the latter was exiled from Rome, with whom he is later enslaved and forced to become a gladiator.
- Matt Lucas as the Master of Ceremonies: The Colosseum's public address announcer.
- Alexander Karim as Ravi: A former gladiator from Varanasi, India who earned his freedom and then chose to serve as a doctor to wounded combatants.
- Tim McInnerny as Senator Thraex: A gambling-addicted, corrupt member of the Roman Senate who owes Macrinus a tremendous amount of money.
- Richard McCabe as Quaestor.
- Rory McCann as Tegula: The leader of the Praetorian Guard.
- Yuval Gonen as Arishat: Lucius' wife, a skilled archer who is killed during the Roman invasion of their home.
- Alec Utgoff as Darius: Acacius' second-in-command, whom Acacius recruits to mount a coup against the corrupt emperors.
- Yann Gael as Bostar.
Although Macrinus displays his bisexuality in the film, Washington said that a scene involving Macrinus kissing another man was deleted from the film. However, this was later disputed by Scott.