Actor Russell Crowe recently recalled wild reactions from the audience to Gladiator‘s climactic fight scene. Directed by Blade Runner‘s Ridley Scott, the blockbuster sword-and-sandal epic followed Hispano-Roman General Maximus Decimus Meridius (Crowe) in 180 AD after he was betrayed by newly-ascended Emperor Commodus (Joaquin Phoenix). Left dying at his home after burying his wife and son, he is sold into slavery, only to fight his way back to Rome to confront Commodus as a gladiator.
Speaking with Vanity Fair, Crowe remembers wild audience reactions to his fight with Commodus in Gladiator.
“Blown away” by the theatrical experience, Crowe recalls the emotional connection people had with the movie, reminding him of going to the cinema as a child. As the film reached the climactic fight between Maximus and Commodus with the former general nearly killed, the actor admits he was floored by the crowd’s visceral response. Read what Crowe said below:
When I first saw it, I was blown away by it. When I first saw it with a crowd, that’s when it really freaked me out because it was like going to a movie when I was a kid. People were so connected to the film, and they were voicing that connection.
The Emperor puts that knife under Maximus’ arm towards the end. People were angry, they were standing in their seats and going [points at screen] and calling him a motherf–ker and all that. And I was like, “Whoa! This is big.”
Gladiator Left Behind An Indelible Legacy
Although Gladiator played fairly loose with historical accuracies, its strong narrative and compelling characters wowed critics and audiences alike, allowing them to look past any deviations from history to enjoy a passionate story about revenge, greed, and love. As a result, Gladiator went on to become the second highest-grossing film of 2000, earning over $503 million worldwide. Its critical popularity led to 12 Academy Award nominations, winning five including Best Actor for Crowe and Best Picture.
Gladiator‘s success sparked a resurgence in historical epics, a genre thought dead decades earlier. However, with Dances With Wolves and Braveheart setting the stage in the 1990s, Gladiator cemented the genre’s return to Hollywood. The following decade saw a relative boom in sword-and-sandal adventure films including Troy, King Arthur (2004), Alexander, Scott’s Crusade epic Kingdom of Heaven, and Zack Snyder’s brutal retelling of the Battle of Thermopylae in 300.
Scott is set to return to the director’s chair for the upcoming Gladiator sequel. Set decades after the events of the preceding film, Gladiator 2 will follow Lucius Verus (Paul Mescal) during his reign as Emperor as he discovers the true identity of his father. With filming for the sequel taking place this summer, the next chapter of the epic tale will be arriving soon.
Source: Vanity Fair
