The 2000 film GLADIATOR was fairly straightforward. Russell Crowe's "Maximus" seeks and gains vengeance against those who murdered his family and enslaved him but loses his life in the process. There aren't many places you can take a sequel to a story like that.
This is Hollywood though and considering the film won five Academy awards, including "Best Picture" and was a sizable financial success as well ...there were always rumblings of a follow up.
Those rumblings have not only returned but they have given way to Ridley Scott, director of the original and numerous other classic films, stating thathe is actively working on bringing GLADIATOR 2 to life with the help of screenwriter Peter Craig (THE TOWN) according to a report from Deadline.
The story will apparently focus on Lucius, the young boy from the first film, as an adult. At this time there are no other plot details.
It's unfortunate to me that this is the direction that they are choosing to go in for the sequel. I feel this way because I have seen the unproduced script, commissioned by Russel Crowe, for a GLADIATOR sequel that was penned by musician/writer Nick Cave.
Cave's script was bizarre and full of big ideas. It opens with Maximus awaking in the afterlife. He then embarks on a journey that involves battles with gods, time travel, and ends with the character becoming the living embodiment of "war" throughout the ages.
Like I said bizarre stuff but really interesting and any direction they went in other than that one was going to be a let down to me. To learn more about Cave's script, I highly recommend this article (Click HERE) published earlier this year by the BBC.
So, what do you guys think? Does this feel like a bad idea to you or are you up for more "sword and sandal" mayhem from Ridley Scott? Let us know!
- Matthew Essary
(aka "Wheels")
