Strength, honor, and a furious dare for audiences not to completely objectify the leads fuels the armor-clad, battle-worn, everyone-calm-down trailer for Gladiator II.
The sequel to Ridley Scott's 2000 epic, Gladiator, sees the director back in the throne, with Paul Mescal and Pedro Pascal in the arena, ready to win the crowd and thus someone's freedom.
With a screenplay from David Scarpa, the film sees Mescal as Lucius, son of Lucilla, the late emperor Marcus Aurelius's daughter (Connie Nielsen played Lucilla in the original, and she's back for the sequel, albeit without her terrible and slain brother Commodus (Joaquin Phoenix). Lucius was a child in the original Gladiator, but he's grown up, and now enemies seep into his peaceful life far from the tumult of Rome.
Meanwhile, Pascal plays Roman general Marcus Acacius, who Vanity Fair says trained as a junior officer under Russell Crowe's Gladiator character, Maximus. Expect plenty of fighting between Pascal and Mescal, but spare a thought for Pascal, who told VF of "Brick Wall Paul": "He got so strong. I would rather be thrown from a building than have to fight him again."
But first, RHINOS.
Denzel Washington also stars as wealthy arms dealer Macrinus, Joseph Quinn as Rome's creepy and corrupt emperor Caracalla, with Fred Hechinger, Lior Raz, and Derek Jacobi also starring.
There was a dream that was Gladiator II. It shall be realised, in cinemas Nov. 14.
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