Summary
Gladiator 2director Ridley Scott teases the film’s opening action sequence and how it compares to those inNapoleon. Serving as a sequel to 2000’sGladiator, Scott’s upcoming movie continues the story of Lucius, with Paul Mescal taking over the role from Spencer Treat Clark.Gladiator 2’s trailerhas already provided a first look at what’s to come in the anticipated sequel, including lots of action.
In a recent interview withEmpire, Scott hypes the opening battle sequence inGladiator 2, teasing its immense scale. Though he doesn’t reveal any specifics about the sequence in question, he does claim that it’s “probably” grander than any of the epic battles featured in 2023’sNapoleon. Check out his comment below:
“We begin the film with probably the biggest action sequence I’ve ever done. Probably bigger than anything in Napoleon.”
Napoleon, which stars Joaquin Phoenix, earned mixed reviews from critics and was a disappointment at the box office.
How Will Gladiator 2’s Action Compare To The Original?
Ridley Scott’s First Gladiator Movie Didn’t Succeed Due To Massive Action Sequences
The originalGladiatoressentially has only one large battle sequence, with the film’s opening moments showing Maximus (Russell Crowe) and his army defeating Germanic tribes. The rest of the action in the film mostly takes place inside the gladiatorial arena as Maximus fights as a slave, with the biggest of these sequences featuring Crowe’s character organizing his fellow gladiators to fight against chariot-riding enemies.Gladiator’s endingisn’t a large-scale battle, but instead a sword fight between two men.
Gladiator 2 Timeline: When The Sequel Is Set & How Long After The First Movie
Gladiator II is set to continue the original’s story years after it was released, and the sequel will also take place years after Maximus' death.
From what has been revealed in theGladiator 2trailer,the sequel will be upping the ante when it comes to action. One sequence features an epic naval assault on a city, while another takes place in a grassy field with a massive army. Even the action inside the Colosseum seems bigger and bolder, with one fight involving two ships battling it out after the iconic structure is filled with water.
Part of the reason whyGladiator’s action is so memorable is that it feels personal, in many ways, andMaximus remains a core focus in these steadily-escalating sequences. The sequel could potentially lose some of this feeling by going all in on more bombastic action. There will be at least one one-on-one fight, however, with Mescal shown facing off against fellowGladiator 2castmember Pedro Pascal. It remains to be seen whetherGladiator 2’s action will live up to its predecessor’s, but audiences should evidently expect at least one truly epic sequence.
Gladiator II
Cast
Gladiator 2 is the follow-up to Ridley Scott’s award-winning film Gladiator from 2000. Scott returns to direct the sequel, with Paul Mescal staring as Lucius, alongside Denzel Washington and Joseph Quinn as the villain Emperor Geta. Gladiator 2 had been stuck in development hell for years before a script written by David Scarpa finally moved forward.
