The idea of, and rough plans for, a sequel to 2000's Ridley Scott epic Gladiator have been floating around for so long that we talked to the director about it back in 2003 and more recently in 2021. With pre-production proceeding apace now that the prolific Scott has finished shooting his Napoleon film, word arrives that Normal People and Aftersun's Paul Mescal is locking down a deal to star.
Yes, as if his star wasn't rising enough, becoming the latest leading man for Ridley Scott would likely strap it to a rocket and send it soaring, and according to Deadline, Mescal impressed Scott enough that despite being one of the first actors to discuss the role with the director, he stuck in the filmmaker's mind enough that he's now the choice to star.
So what will the new movie, which All The Money In The World's David Scarpa is writing, be about? Here's your basic concept: Mescal will be playing Lucius, the son of Lucilla (Connie Nielsen), who now is a grown man as the story takes place years after the first film ended. Lucius was also the nephew of Commodus (Joaquin Phoenix), the son of Roman leader Marcus Aurelius who murdered his father seized the throne and wound up in the gladiator ring with Maximus — who, though mortally wounded, skewered the emperor before fading into the great beyond to reunite with his slain wife and son. Maximus saved the boy and his mother while avenging his own family, and left a strong impression on the young Lucius.
With Paramount backing the new movie, we could conceivably see the sequel finally shooting this year.
