Gladiator sequel to recommence filming on 4 December

Gladiator 2 will recommence filming on 4 December now that the actor and writer strikes are over.

Gladiator, released in 2000 and directed by Sir Ridley Scott, is recognised as one of the best movies of the noughties well as a hit commercially. It won five Academy Awards including Best Picture and Best Actor for Russell Crowe.

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It told the story of Maximus Decimus Meridius, a Roman general betrayed by Emperor Commodus following the death of previous Emperor, Marcus Aurelius. Maximus survives an assassination attempt and is eventually sold into slavery before becoming a Gladiator inside the Roman Colosseum.

A sequel was confirmed in 2022 with Paul Mescal in the lead role alongside Denzel Washington, Connie Nielsen and Pedro Pascal.

A portion of the movie has been filmed already but production was halted due to the aforementioned strikes.

Deadline reports that filming will start again this week.

Who is Paul Mescal playing in Gladiator 2?

Mescal is in the lead role as Lucius. The son of Lucilla and nephew of Commodus, he struck a bond with Maximus, who may or may not be his father.

Plot details on Gladiator 2 are thin, but Ridley Scott has provided some more background on where Lucius is at in his life.

“Paul is playing Lucius... That’s someone who was 12, and this is about 12, 15 years later," he told Rotten Tomatoes.

"He’s been out in the wilderness having lost touch with his mother. Mother lost touch with him, doesn’t know where he is. She thinks he might be dead.”