We don’t talk about Russell Crowe‘s late 1990s, early 2000s run enough. In a seven-year span, the actor starred in L.A. Confidential, The Insider, Gladiator, A Beautiful Mind (maybe not his finest film, but a Best Picture-winning hit nonetheless), and Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World. He was nominated for Best Actor three years in a row! The South Park parody was the icing on the Australian cake (so, Lamingtons?). But while the world waits for more adventures on the oceans, which are now battlefields, another of Crowe’s films from this era is getting a sequel, albeit without his involvement.
Paramount Pictures has released the first trailer for Gladiator II, which sounds pretty great. Directed by Ridley Scott, the sequel stars Paul Mescal as Luicus, the son of Lucilla, played by returning cast member Connie Nielsen. He’s “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 honor to return the glory of Rome to its people,” according to the synopsis.
The cast also includes Pedro Pascal as Roman general Marcus Acacius and Denzel Washington as “pretty fucking cruel” powerbroker Macrinus. You will be entertained.
When asked by Vanity Fair what Gladiator II is really about, Mescal replied, “What human beings will do to survive, but also what human beings will do to win. We see that in the arena, but also in the political struggle that’s going on outside of my character’s storyline, where you see there’s other characters striving and pulling for power. Where’s the space for humanity? Where’s the space for love, familial connection? And ultimately, will those things overcome this kind of greed and power? Those things are oftentimes directly in conflict with each other.”
Gladiator II, which also stars Joseph Quinn, Fred Hechinger, Lior Raz, and Derek Jacobi, opens in theaters on November 22.