The countdown is on for the next Gladiator film.
And it just so happens that it stars our very own Paul Mescal!
Are you not entertained?!
The Irish actor plays the role of Lucius Verus, the now grown-up son of Lucilla and nephew of Commodus, who Connie Nielsen and Joaquin Phoenix played in the first film.
Connie will be reprising her role in the sequel and is among the few original cast members to appear.
The film is set two decades after the first film and Lucius has grown up far away from Rome, on the northern coast of Africa, to a region called Numidia that was (at that point) just outside the reach of the Roman Empire.
At the start of the film, Paul’s character has a wife and child. But fans of the original will know that family members don’t fare well in these movies.
After being sold into slavery, Lucius works his way up to fight in the stadiums in Rome.
In the new trailer we get some more insight into what we can expect from the film.
“You have something in you, rage. Never let it go,” Macrinus, a wealthy power broker and arms dealer played by Denzel Washington, tells Lucius before he heads out to fight as a gladiator.
“Rome has taken everything from me. But I will have my vengeance,” he responds in a later part of the trailer.
He explains that he wants the head of Roman General Marcus Acacius, played by Pedro Pascal, who earlier forced him into slavery.
“I don’t fight for power. I fight to free Rome from men like them,” he says.
And now we’re getting into spoiler territory…but it is in the trailer so you can’t blame us!
The new trailer also reveals that Lucius is the son of Maximus Decimus Meridius. Yes, Russell Crowe’s character from the original film.
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.”
Gladiator 2 hits cinemas on November 22nd
