Long before Gladiator 2Upon release in 2024, a script was written that provided an entirely different direction for the sequel. Same as the original Gladiator The ending ends with the death of the protagonist, Maximus Decimus Meridius (Russell Crowe), who takes revenge and restores Rome as Marcus Aurelius (Richard Harris) intended, there was still interest in a sequel. Part of this interest came from the financial success of the project, which proved to be a box office success and It was the second highest-grossing film worldwide in 2000 (through Mojo Box Office).
Interest in the sequel went beyond financial incentives, as director Ridley Scott and Crowe had ideas about seeing the story continue with Gladiator 2. Of course, one of the most significant challenges for a sequel was how to incorporate Maximus into the center of its story, considering his fate in the first film. This led to a script written at Crowe’s request by his good friend and famous musician Nick Cavewhich took the story of Maximus in surprising new directions.
Nick Cave’s Original Gladiator 2 Script Explained
Maximus was resurrected
Nick Cave Gladiator 2 script featured Maximus in purgatory after his death in the original Gladiator film. However, Maximus’ destiny was not to spend eternity in the afterlife, as he was resurrected by the gods in Roman mythology. The Roman gods were concerned about the rise of Christianity and the effect it was having on their power, so they sent Maximus back to Earth with the mission to kill Jesus and his disciplesand thus prevent Christianity from spreading throughout the world.
Along the way, Maximus is driven to kill his son and his resurrection is permanent as he is cursed to live forever. The ending would have seen Maximus fighting in the war for centuries to comeincluding the Crusades, World War II, the Vietnam War and even working at the Pentagon in the present day. Cave’s script found a way to bring Maximus back and still have him at the center of the story, but it was not well received and did not advance development.
The original Gladiator 2 script wasn’t rooted in the real story
It was a mythological fantasy
Rather than being rooted in the actual history of Ancient Rome, Cave Gladiator 2 the script was more of a mythological and fantastic story. The premise depended on mythological deities resurrecting Maximus from the afterlife to protect their own omnipotence. Although Maximus is still the protagonist, he is ultimately a pawn in the Roman gods’ war against Christianity, and his resurrection is made even more fantastical with him being cursed to live forever.
Gladiator is available to watch on Paramount+.
Gladiator and the final version Gladiator 2 take significant liberties with the real story. However, they are still largely based on real historical figures and events, including the gladiators who fought in the Colosseum and the importance of individuals such as Marcus Aurelius and Gladiator 2Emperor Caracalla and Emperor Geta (Fred Hechinger and Joseph Quinn). Cave Gladiator 2 was not a historical epic like its predecessor and was instead a mythological fantasy story, as the genre of the sequel completely changes from what came before.
Why Nick Cave’s Original Gladiator 2 Script Was Never Made
Not a worthy successor
Even though Cave wrote the script at Crowe’s request, the actor wasn’t happy with the direction the sequel’s story took. Even if Crowe had approved the script, it would still have been difficult to get Scott and the studio behind the radical story. Icontained few of the elements that made the first Gladiator a success and it was fundamentally a totally different and even disconnected story. The focus on the murder of Jesus and stopping the spread of Christianity would also inevitably have faced significant backlash.
Instead of dying a free man who accomplished everything he set out to do, Maximus would have become a puppet of the Roman gods by losing the agency he regained in Gladiator.
Cave’s script also undermines Maximus’ original arc and the emotional impact GladiatorIt’s a perfect ending. Instead of dying a free man who accomplished everything he set out to do, Maximus would have become a puppet of the Roman gods by losing the agency he regained in Gladiator. The Knife would have been further twisted with Maximus being tricked into killing his son after managing to save his loved ones and Rome at the end of the previous film.
Continuing the story with Maximus’ son Lucius Verus (Paul Mescal) is a more viable direction for the sequel, as it doesn’t retroactively cheapen Maximus’ arc. The 2024 version of Gladiator 2 It’s still a historical epic and feels more consistent with the first filmalthough it still has important differences, including with regard to the new character, Macrinus (Denzel Washington). Cave Gladiator 2 the story is extremely fun, but it contained too many problems for it to have worked.
Source: Mojo Box Office