Russell Crowe became an international star as Maximus, the gladiator, but plans for a Gladiator 2 movie with Ridley Scott will apparently no longer include him.
Of course, Crowe’s character met his maker at the end of the blockbuster movie from 20 years ago. Thus, it makes sense for the actor not to be part of Gladiator 2. Nevertheless, he confirmed that he has not been asked back.
Speaking with ScreenRant, Crowe said that he’s not included in any conversations about the sequel. So, he has no idea what the new movie will be about.
“I’m not sure what they have in mind,” Crowe said. “Can I just say, with a pinch of salt, they have genuinely been having the same conversations since the year 2000.”
Crowe added that he had conversations with producer Douglas Wick when they were filming the movie. Their idea was a Maximus resurrection similar to Jesus Christ.
“I said, ‘Doug, I don’t think we have the rights to that story.’ But that was a long, long time ago and I don’t think he appreciated my sense of humor at the time.”
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Connie Nielsen has heard from producers
In 2018, director Ridley Scott and Paramount announced the development of Gladiator 2. According to Deadline, the story will focus on Lucius, who was still a little boy in the first movie (played by Spencer Treat Clark).
Connie Nielsen played Lucilla, Lucius’ mother. The actress confirmed that she did hear from the project but does not know a potential filming date.
Nielsen said that work on Gladiator 2 might take some time with the director’s other commitments and the COVID-19 issues on the set. However, she expressed interest in reprising her role.
“It was one of the things that made me feel so grateful to be part of the whole film, really,” Neilsen said via Entertainment Weekly. “Ridley really was intent on making this character an equal to those men, if not even more than an equal.”
The script isn’t ready
Meanwhile, Wick confirmed that the script has not been written yet due to Scott’s busy schedule. The 82-year-old director is reportedly very particular about quality and wants the sequel to live up to the first move, if not surpass its accomplishments.
Winning five Oscar awards, including Best Picture and Best Actor (for Crowe), is such a tall order but Wick commits to Scott’s vision. The producer said that they don’t plan to make Gladiator 2 a shade of the original. However, sitting down to discuss and write the next film is challenging at this point.
Image used courtesy of Paramount Movies/YouTube