Gladiator II hasn’t been released yet, but director Ridley Scott may have already confirmed the long-awaited sequel’s biggest change to Russell Crowe’s original. Despite being a sequel to the 2000s Gladiatormost of the original film’s cast will not appear in Gladiator IIwith the sequel featuring the likes of Paul Mescal, Denzel Washington and Pedro Pascal instead of Russell Crowe and Joaquin Phoenix. Gladiator II will take place decades after the events of the original film, and while some of the gladiator fights may be the same, the fate of Paul Mescal’s character will undoubtedly be very different.
It’s been 24 years since Ridley Scott’s original Gladiator was releasedand after years of waiting, the director will finally release a sequel in 2024. Audiences will finally be able to return to the world of Gladiator when Gladiator II arrives in theaters, this time with the film exploring the story of Lúcio as an adult, Cômodus’ nephew from the original film. Before the release of Gladiator IIdirector Ridley Scott has already confirmed that he is working on Gladiator IIIwhich means the exciting Gladiator saga will continue in the future.
The development of Gladiator III means that Lucius cannot die at the end (unlike Maximus)
He could be the protagonist of a two-part saga
From the looks of it, the wait between Gladiator II and Gladiator III will be much shorter than the wait between the original Gladiator and its sequel, with Ridley Scott having already begun work on the third film. When making the original GladiatorRidley Scott and the other creatives obviously didn’t have a sequel in mind, leading to the death of Russell Crowe’s Maximus at the end of the film. Now that Ridley Scott already has Gladiator III in mind, the film may bring back the sequel’s cast, meaning Paul Mescal’s Lucius may not die.
Different Gladiatorit seems like Gladiator II and Gladiator III could be a two-part saga following the characters that will be introduced in Gladiator II. Gladiator II was able to make Lucius the protagonist due to him being introduced decades ago in Gladiator. Since Gladiator III will probably be out soonr, there is no way to naturally age a character without a huge time jump. It would be strange to make a third film so soon after Gladiator II only to introduce an entirely new cast of characters, meaning keeping Lucius alive is the most likely option.
Ridley Scott’s Gladiator III Confirmation Suggests Lucius Could Become a Leader in Rome in Gladiator II
Parallel to the comparisons of Ridley Scott’s The Godfather
When discussing the case of Ridley Scott Gladiator III story, the director made an interesting comparison, highlighting the similarities between Gladiator and The godfather series. When discussing his films, Scott explains that they will parallel the first two The godfather films, saying that Gladiator IIIThe protagonist will be reminiscent of Michael Corleone. Very similar to Michael Corleone The godfather history, Gladiator II will end with a character finding himself in a job he doesn’t want to do, with the sequel following him as he decides what to do next. Here is Ridley Scott’s full quote:
I’m already toying with the idea of ​​Gladiator 3. No, seriously! I lit the fuse… The ending of Gladiator II is reminiscent of The Godfather, with Michael Corleone finding himself with a job he didn’t want and asking himself: “Now, Father, what do I do?” [film] it will be about a man who doesn’t want to be where he is.
Although Scott is being intentionally vague here, the most obvious interpretation of this quote is that he is talking about Lucius. The trailers for Gladiator II made it clear that Lucius wants to overthrow Romewith him keeping an eye on the character of Pedro Pascal. Based on Scott The godfather By comparison, it may be that Lucius’ conquest of Rome leads him to become a powerful Roman political leader, with Gladiator III exploring Lucius’ time in power.
The return of Paul Mescal’s Gladiator III could set up an even more exciting return for the Gladiator villain
Denzel Washington’s Macrinus May Also Return
Gladiator II and Gladiator III we’re really going to tell a two-part epic about Lucius, so Gladiator III could contain an exciting returning villain. Denzel Washington’s role in Gladiator II It’s a little unclear based on the trailers. Although he appears to have villainous tendencieshe’s clearly on Lúcio’s side, with the pair teaming up to take down Roma and Pedro Pascal’s character. However, this would make sense if Gladiator II is just setting him up to be the main antagonist of Gladiator IIImaking him Lucius’ main antagonist.
Based on this theory, Gladiator II will follow Denzel Washington’s character as he operates in the shadows, manipulating Lucius and pulling strings in Rome. So when Lucius becomes a powerful Roman figure at the end of the Gladiator IIDenzel Washington’s character Macrinus could become a full-on villain. Having two films to develop the relationship between Lucius and Macrinus is incredibly exciting, making the story of Gladiator II and Gladiator III much more epic.