Gladiator 2 has continued to expand its star-studded cast with several new actors. Directed by Ridley Scott, the film will star Paul Mescal as Lucius, the young boy played originally by Spencer Treat Clark, and will be set about 30 years after the original Gladiator. While Crowe is not expected to return since his character died in the last movie, it has already been confirmed that Connie Nielsen will be reprising her role as Lucilla, Lucius’ mother.
Deadline reports that May Calamawy, who played Layla El-Faouly in Marvel’s Moon Knight, has been cast in Gladiator 2. Fred Hechinger (The White Lotus) is in negotiations to play Emperor Geta. Barry Keoghan was originally in talks for the role, but the actor ultimately dropped out of the project due to scheduling conflicts. Lior Raz, Peter Mensah, and Matt Lucas have also been cast in undisclosed roles, with Derek Jacobi set to return from the original Gladiator as Gracchus.
Everything We Know About Gladiator 2
As mentioned above, Gladiator 2 will follow Mescal’s Lucius, though the finer details of the story aren’t currently known. One could expect Mescal to go toe-to-toe with Hechinger in the movie, and Crowe previously stated that he believes Lucius will become Emperor in the sequel. Unlike the first film, which was written by David Franzoni, John Logan, and William Nicholson, Napoleon’s David Scarpa, who also collaborated with Scott on All the Money in the World, wrote the screenplay for Gladiator 2.
The supporting cast is also very exciting, with Pedro Pascal, Joseph Quinn, and Denzel Washington all confirmed to star in the project. Washington has previously worked with Scott on American Gangster. He is expected to have a significant part in Gladiator 2, though his and Pascal’s roles are currently undisclosed, while Quinn plays Emperor Caracalla. Cinematographer John Mathieson, production designer Arthur Max, and costume designer Janty Yates, who received Oscar nominations for their work on the first Gladiator, are returning for the sequel.
Mescal is becoming a huge breakout star, having recently been nominated for an Academy Award for his performance in Aftersun. Calamawy has also quickly risen to stardom after starring in Hulu’s critically-acclaimed comedy series Ramy and playing the MCU’s first Egyptian superhero in Moon Knight. Gladiator was a huge critical and commercial success, and was nominated for twelve Oscars, winning five, including Best Picture and Best Actor for Crowe. One should expect Gladiator 2 to be as big, if not bigger, than the original when it releases in 2024.
Source: Deadline
