Posted in: Movies, Universal | Tagged: denzel washington, Gladiator 2, Paramount Pictures, ridley scott

Gladiator 2: Denzel Washington Is Playing "A Rich Guy With A Grudge"

Sir Ridley Scott has teased some aspects of Denzel Washington's character in Gladiator 2, calling him "a rich man with a grudge."

The actor's strike is still ongoing, but directors can still give interviews, and now writers are as well. Now we're just waiting for studios to decide that actors are also worth paying livable wages to, and we can all finally move on. Until then, directors have to promote their big fall movies on their own, which is exactly what Ridley Scott is doing for Napoleon. However, that isn't the only film he has on the docket; the other is Gladiator 2, which has been in varying levels of development since 2001. One of the new faces joining the cast is Denzel Washington, and until now, we didn't know anything about the character he will be portraying. Scott recently did an interview with Total Film and explained a little bit about Washington's character and how he might fit into this film.

"As for Denzel's character… There were businesses of gladiators who could indeed earn their freedom if they stayed alive. That was the deal," Scott explains. "So we went right into that, in-depth. Where did he come from? How was he taken? He was branded with marks and registered with a brand on his chest as a slave. So that's how he comes into the story. … He's a rich guy who's still carrying a grudge."

Scott went on to praise Washington, whom he has worked with in the past, and said, "I respect Denzel Washington tremendously. I shouldn't call Denzel a golden oldie – he'd fucking kill me – but he's gold dust." I also would be worried about Denzel Washington fucking killing me if I called him a "golden oldie," but I feel like if there was anyone who could get away with it, it's probably Ridley Scott.

Gladiator 2 Is A Sequel, But Don't Expect Any Russell Crowe

A follow-up to Gladiator is one of those movies where you're really unsure if this is a good idea, but it has been in varying stages of development since 2001. However, things fell apart in 2006, and it wasn't until over a decade later, in 2017, that things started to pick up again. It was officially greenlit in November 2018, and last year, it was announced that the script was complete. In January, we got word that Aftersun and Normal People star Paul Mescal was in talks to star. Ridley Scott is back to direct the film with a script by David Scarpa, returning costume designer Janty Yates, and production designer Arthur Max. Scott is set to produce along with Scott Free President Michael Pruss, as well as Doug Wick and Lucy Fisher via Red Wagon Entertainment. Since then, Denzel Washington, Pedro Pascal, Derek Jacobi, Joseph Quinn, Connie Nielsen, Fred Hechinge, May Calamawy, Lior Raz, Peter Mensah, and Matt Lucas have all joined the cast.

While we have a release date of November 22, 2024, we don't know if Gladiator 2 will be the title [it probably won't], and production started but was halted due to studios refusing to pay writers and actors livable wages.

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