Gladiator 2 Cast Its Russell Crowe Successor Thanks To This Hidden TV Gem

In the climactic third act of «Gladiator,» Russell Crowe’s Maximus faces off in a one-on-one battle against Emperor Commodus (Joaquin Phoenix) in the Roman Colosseum. Maximus kills Commodus during the battle but succumbs to dagger wounds inflicted by the evil emperor prior to the match.

Since Maximus perishes at the end of «Gladiator,» Ridley Scott and his team had to get creative in constructing a story that would justify a sequel — and it took a while. «Why now? It didn’t have a script [before],» Scott explained to Total Film regarding the long-delayed sequel’s timing. «We tried, actually, four years ago, and I chose a very good writer who couldn’t get his head around it. He wrestled. He was terribly upset that he didn’t deliver. He’s a friend of mine. I said, ‘You’re not getting there?’ He said, ‘No.’ That took 10 months. So it went dead.»

Scott told the publication that things came together when he and his collaborators raised the question of what became of Commodus’ nephew Lucius — played by Mescal — who as it turns out, is the illegitimate son of his sister, Lucilla (Connie Nielsen), and Maximus. «When we circled the wagons again, coming back with a very obvious idea, and why not? There’s a survivor,» Scott told Total Film. «The survivor is the son of the union between Lucilla and Maximus.»

Nielsen will reprise Lucilla in «Gladiator 2,» joining Djimon Hounsou, who will once again play Maximus’ ally Juba. In addition, Denzel Washington and Pedro Pascal will also suit up for Scott’s «Gladiator» sequel.