The marketing for Gladiator II revealed a certain amount of information ahead of time that made some of the “twists” and turns of the plot redundant. To a certain extent, Gladiator II is a predictable movie, as it is heavily derivative of the original Gladiator‘s story. Lucius (Paul Mescal) becomes the stand-in for Russell Crowe’s Maximus, seeking revenge for the death of his family against a powerful figure in ancient Rome through gladiatorial combat. There is then a definite moment when Gladiator II stops being a remake and the plot goes into uncharted territory.
However, the narrative for the last third of the movie is the point when the alleged plot twists are less important, having by then been introduced as facts of the setting. While some might think of Gladiator II‘s ending as a surprise, the movie in and of itself also hides some information about the characters until a certain point. If a viewer watched Gladiator II having seen no trailers or press, they might even be shocked by these revelations. However, most went in with some prior knowledge and may have been confused as to why the movie was treating these plot points like twists.
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Hanno Is Lucius
No One Confirms That Paul Mescal’s Character Is Lucilla’s Son Until The Midway Point
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Long before press releases and promotional images revealed several things about Gladiator II, it was confirmed that the new protagonist would be Lucilla’s (Connie Nielsen) son Lucius, to be played by up-and-coming actor Paul Mescal. Lucilla is Maximus’ love interest in Gladiator, while her son by her later husband (at least officially) appears as a child (played by Spencer Treat Clark). Establishing this information ahead of time did have the benefit of making it known what kind of sequel Gladiator II would be: a direct continuation, with the torch being passed to the next generation through a character audiences already know.
However, Gladiator II then acts as if this isn’t common knowledge for almost the entire first half of the movie. Lucius goes by Hanno while living in Numidia and for much of his time as a gladiator; before Lucilla comes to see him, nothing is ever explicitly said or shown on screen that confirms his identity. In a different context, Gladiator II might have been building up a mystery when flashbacks show that Hanno has been running from someone for most of his life, and he recites poetry only the upper class would be familiar with in other scenes.
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Gladiator II starts with an animated opening credits sequence that recaps the previous movie, before going straight into Hanno’s current life in Numidia. The transition does draw a kind of connection between him and past events, as though the writers did want the audience to experience the dramatic irony of knowing the truth. However, objectively, the movie unnecessarily obscures Lucius’ identity when most people watching the movie know anyway.
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Lucilla Is With Acacius
Lucilla Hides Off-Screen For A Sort Of Reveal of Her Relationship With The New General
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The press tour established some months ahead of Gladiator II‘s release date that Lucilla would be in a romantic relationship with Marcus Acacius (Pedro Pascal) in the sequel. Interestingly, media coverage did not strictly say that they are married, which is revealed to be the case early on in Gladiator II. However, the movie hides Lucilla and the relationship for some time as well. Connie Nielsen’s name appears in the opening credits, but Lucilla is not seen or referred to by name on screen until her first scene with Acacius.
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Pedro Pascal’s General Acacius makes multiple comments in Gladiator 2 that allude to the future of Roman history, such as the empire’s fall.
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Acacius references his wife when he speaks with the Emperors Geta (Joseph Quinn) and Caracalla (Fred Hechinger), but does not name her. The narrative sequence creates another mystery around her because the emperors mention that they have given her certain “privileges.” However, Acacius’ reunion with Lucilla and her turning to reveal her face is set up as a kind of plot twist, as the character who is at this point the villain in Lucius’ story is married to Lucius’ mother — albeit a twist which is dependent on the audience knowing who both Lucilla and Lucius are.
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Acacius Knew Maximus
Media Simply Stated Acacius’ Connection To Maximus, In Contrast To The Movie’s Emotional Moment
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The same press releases provided audiences with the new character detail that Acacius, a Roman general at the time of Gladiator II, trained under Maximus as a junior officer and essentially existed off-screen in Gladiator. This deepens Pedro Pascal’s character, as Maximus’ legacy becomes much more complicated when Lucius and Acacius embody different facets of it. This might have simply been a backstory plot point in the minds of the writers, but the movie actually gets a weighty, revelatory moment out of it when Lucius decides not to kill Acacius.
After surrendering in the Colosseum, Acacius uses his final moments to tell Lucius that he is dedicated to both of his parents, the first time anyone in the movie mentions that Acacius ever knew Maximus personally. It’s a confession that would likely surprise and affect Lucius in some way and could cause him to decide that he wants no further part in the cycle of revenge. Admittedly, Ridley Scott cut a significant amount of footage from Gladiator II, and Acacius and Lucilla could have discussed their shared connection to Maximus in a deleted scene.
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Maximus Is Lucius’ Father
The Biggest Gladiator Theory Was Shockingly Confirmed By A Trailer
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Perhaps the premature reveal that shocked most people (because it was revealed, not necessarily because it is a part of the story) is the confirmation that Maximus is Lucius’ biological father. Maximus having fathered Lucius through an affair with Lucilla, despite both their marriages, is a long-held cinematic theory, even though no one in the original Gladiator ever suggests it is a possibility. Only in Gladiator II is it revealed that there was gossip throughout Rome that Lucilla may have taken a lover during her first marriage, who was her child’s father.
When it was also clear far ahead of time that Gladiator II would focus on Lucius following in Maximus’ footsteps, deciding to make this theory canon helped streamline the plot in terms of its themes of legacy. However, given how important it is to the story and Gladiator fans, they might have kept it secret until the movie’s release. Even Lucius doesn’t appear particularly surprised when Lucilla matter-of-factly refers to Maximus as his father, the official moment of confirmation in the story. This line was included in a trailer that came out before the movie.
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Macrinus Is Trying To Dethrone The Emperors
In Retrospect, All The Marketing Was Hinting At Macrinus’ Villainy
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Macrinus may be the twist villain in Gladiator II, when Acacius is introduced as an antagonist through the way the opening scene unfolds, and the emperors are also undoubtedly villainous. However, marketing couldn’t resist teasing the scheming political brilliance of the character being played by a legend such as Denzel Washington, which made his overall plans fairly easy to infer. In an interview from before the movie, Ridley Scott said (via Deadline) of Macrinus: “He’s wealthier than most senators, so already has thoughts and designs of the possible idea of taking power from these two crazy princes.“
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In a movie where many political machinations are happening, and several characters plotting to overthrow the current regime, Macrinus may have come across as just one of many such people in the setting. However, all these teases in the marketing still add up to what is depicted in Gladiator II — at some point, people should have asked themselves how far he would go and how much he could do before becoming the villain. It’s arguably the Gladiator II twist that was the least spoiled, but still demonstrates this movie’s strange marketing strategy and narrative.
Source: Deadline
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7.5/10
Gladiator II
R
ActionDramaEpicHistoryAdventure
Gladiator 2 is the follow-up to Ridley Scott’s award-winning film Gladiator from 2000. Scott returns to direct the sequel, with Paul Mescal staring as Lucius, alongside Denzel Washington and Joseph Quinn as the villain Emperor Geta. Gladiator 2 had been stuck in development hell for years before a script written by David Scarpa finally moved forward.
Release Date
November 22, 2024
Runtime
148 minutes
Cast
Paul Mescal
, Pedro Pascal
, Denzel Washington
, Connie Nielsen
, Joseph Quinn
, Fred Hechinger
, Derek Jacobi
, May Calamawy
, Peter Mensah
, Matt Lucas
, Alexander Karim
, Tim McInnerny
, Lee Charles
, Chidi Ajufo
, Alfie Tempest
, Riana Duce
, Chi Lewis Parry
, Paul Candelent
, Hadrian Howard
, Alexander Simkin
, Mikhail Basmadjian
, Matthew Charlery-Smith
, Maxime Durand
, Lior Raz
Character(s)
Lucius Verus
, Marcus Acacius
, Macrinus
, Lucilla
, Emperor Caracalla
, Emperor Geta
, Gracchus
Director
Ridley Scott
Writers
David Scarpa
, Peter Craig
, David Franzoni
Prequel(s)
Gladiator
Studio(s)
Paramount Pictures
, Universal Pictures
, Scott Free Productions
, Red Wagon Entertainment
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