Paul Mescal’s bloody adventures in saving Rome have been revealed in the new trailer for Ridley Scott’s Gladiator 2.
The sequel stars Irish star Mescal as Lucius, the son of Lucilla, played by Danish star Connie Nielsen and nephew of Commodus, the original film’s antagonist played by Joaquin Phoenix.
Set years after 2000’s Gladiator, it sees Lucius living as a young adult in the northern African region of Numidia, where his mother sent him as a child.
Events bring Lucius back to Rome as a gladiator, making new enemies and reuniting with his mother.
The new trailer reveals that Lucius is the son of Maximus Decimus Meridius, the protagonist of the first Gladiator film played by Russell Crowe.
Lucilla tells Lucius the truth about his paternity as he prepares for battle, saying: “Take your father’s strength. His name was Maximus. And I see him in you.”
In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Mescal said he was shocked when he learned about his character’s parentage. he said that “it’s an affronting thing to see it written on the page, and [to have] that responsibility fall on your shoulders is interesting.”
The Gladiator 2 supporting cast features Pedro Pascal as Marcus Acacius, a Roman general who trained under the command of Maximus; Denzel Washington as Macrinus, a wealthy powerbroker in Rome who keeps a stable of gladiators for sport; and Joseph Quinn and Fred Hechinger as the twin emperors of Rome.
Scott recently said that the film will feature the “biggest action sequence” that the director has ever produced, saying it was bigger than anything seen in the Phoenix-starring Napoleon.
The acclaimed director has already delivered some of cinema’s most jaw-dropping set pieces, helming films like 1979’s Alien, 1982’s Blade Runner, Kingdom of Heaven and 2015’s The Martian.
Scott became a fan of Mescal’s after watching the actor’s breakthrough performance in Normal People.
The two men only spoke for about a half hour when Scott decided that Mescal was his Gladiator 2 lead.
The actor bulked up so much for the film that Pascal even said it was quite challenging having to face off against him in the arena.
Paramount Picture blurb reads:
From legendary director Ridley Scott, Gladiator II continues the epic saga of power, intrigue, and vengeance set in Ancient Rome. Years after witnessing the death of the revered hero Maximus at the hands of his uncle, Lucius (Paul Mescal) is forced to enter the Colosseum after his home is conquered by the tyrannical Emperors who now lead Rome with an iron fist. With rage in his heart and the future of the Empire at stake, Lucius must look to his past to find strength and honor to return the glory of Rome to its people.
