Development In June 2001, developments for a
Gladiator (2000) follow-up began for either a
prequel or
sequel, with
David Franzoni in early negotiations to once again serve as screenwriter.
Ridley Scott's logic to make a sequel was that, even though Maximus Decimus Meridius died at the end of the original film, what happened to
Lucius Verus was left ambiguous, considering the questions about his whereabouts perfect for a second film. In December 2002, the film's plot was announced to include prequel events regarding the parentage of Lucius, as well as sequel events depicting the resurrection of Maximus. The producers and
Russell Crowe, who portrayed Maximus, collaboratively and extensively researched ancient Roman beliefs regarding the
afterlife. Although Crowe and Scott had discussed how to bring the former back by having his character resurrect, Scott concluded that Crowe would have to return either as Maximus' double or play another character. In May 2006, Scott stated that
DreamWorks Pictures had wanted to make the sequel, but there were differing ideas for the story. Crowe had favoured a fantasy element in bringing Maximus back to life, while the studio were basing the film on Lucius as the son of Maximus and Lucilla. Scott also discussed the necessity of a more complex script with the corruption of Rome in the potential sequel. During this time,
Nick Cave was commissioned to write a new draft of the script. It was later revealed to be written under the working title of "
Christ Killer". Cave described the plot as a "deities vs. deity vs. humanity" story. The story involved Maximus in
purgatory, who is resurrected as an immortal warrior for the
Roman gods. Maximus is sent back to
Earth and tasked with ending
Christianity by killing
Jesus and his
disciples, as Christianity was draining the power of the ancient
Pagan gods. During his mission, Maximus is tricked into murdering his own son. Cursed to live forever, Maximus fights in the
Crusades,
World War II and the
Vietnam War; with the ending revealing that in the
present-day, the character now works at
the Pentagon. The script was rejected and scrapped after
Steven Spielberg, who had consulted on the original film, told Scott it wasn't going to work, especially as Cave had written something "too grand" due to his theatre work. Over the years, other attempts on a sequel script were made, but Scott felt that many writers "were afraid to take it on". CEO
Brian Robbins worked with Ridley Scott on
Gladiator II. A version of the script featured Maximus in a brief flashback
cameo appearance in the final scene. In November 2018, it was announced that Paramount was
greenlighting the development of a sequel. Scott was in early negotiations to once again serve as director, with a script written by
Peter Craig. Scott would also serve as producer alongside Douglas Wick, Lucy Fisher, Walter Parkes, and Laurie MacDonald, with the project being a joint-venture production between Paramount,
Scott Free Productions,
Red Wagon Entertainment, and
Parkes+ MacDonald Image Nation. In June 2019, the producers revealed that the script took place 25 to 30 years after the first film. The plot was reported to center around Lucius. In April 2021,
Chris Hemsworth approached Crowe with a proposal to become involved with the project, with the intention to co-produce the film. While working together on the
Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) film
Thor: Love and Thunder (2022), the two actors shared additional ideas for the film. By September 2021, Scott stated that the script was once again being worked on with his intention being to direct the sequel upon the completion of production on
Napoleon (2023). In November, it was revealed that
David Scarpa, who worked with Scott on
Napoleon, was rewriting the script. Scott stated in a 2023 interview that they had struggled for 10 months to write the script four years previously, until they revisited the idea of Lucius as the "survivor" of the original film. According to Scott, the premise for the sequel began with the emperors
Caracalla and
Geta. He said, "After
Commodus's death, there was a scramble for the chair, and out of that eventually came
a man who became the father of the two princes... One of them was just this side of being dysfunctional, a lunatic. The other one tried to control his brother. So that state of constant disagreement and fluctuating personalities was where we began." The film's final credits went to Scarpa for the screenplay from a story by Scarpa and Craig, while off-screen Additional Literary Material credit was given to Franzoni,
Krysty Wilson-Cairns, and
Jack Thorne. Originally greenlit with a production budget of , the cost of the film increased to a reported by the time filming wrapped, though Paramount insisted the net cost did not exceed . Additionally, Scott's desire to have a rhino battle in the original film, which went unrealized due to cost, was included in the sequel. November 14,
Deadline Hollywood reported the film's net budget to be . The production received €46.7 million in film incentive rebates from Malta, setting a record for the largest rebate issued for a film production in the European Union.
Pre-production In January 2023,
Paul Mescal was cast in the film as the adult Lucius (originally portrayed by
Spencer Treat Clark), while it was also reported that
Arthur Max and
Janty Yates, the production designer and costume designer of the original film, respectively, would also be returning to work on the sequel. Scott was unaware of Mescal's fame until he watched his performance in the
BBC Three/
Hulu miniseries
Normal People, which he came across in his need for a "
bedtime story". Shortly after, the story for
Gladiator II was completed, and Scott ultimately cast Mescal in the lead role after a brief
Zoom call. Mescal was chosen after
Daria Cercek and Michael Ireland had seen his performance in the
West End revival of
A Streetcar Named Desire, claiming that the "ladies in the audience [had been] very vocal" when he had taken his shirt off. Having seen the original film when he was 13 with his father, Mescal was invited for breakfast by
Lucy Fisher and
Douglas Wick, who informed him about the sequel's casting, proceeding to tell Scott about his physical capabilities due to playing
Gaelic football in his youth while Scott found a striking resemblance to
Richard Harris, who played
Marcus Aurelius in the original film. Scott opted to cast Mescal despite his newcomer status under the pretext he launched careers likewise for
Sigourney Weaver and
Brad Pitt when he cast them in his films
Alien (1979) and
Thelma & Louise (1991) respectively. To prepare for the role, Mescal didn't get in touch with Crowe to avoid audiences potentially thinking the film will define his career, trained physically, ate
sweet potato and
ground beef to put on 18
pounds of muscle and remembered Roman history he studied at school, in addition to practice fighting choreography, horse training and sword fighting. Regarding Scott and his brother
Tony as "great filmmakers" who never miss, Washington accepted the role out of interest to work with the inspirational Scott again after their previous collaboration in
American Gangster (2007). Scott did not conceive
Macrinus with Washington in mind, but felt inspired to cast him after seeing the
Jean-Léon Gérôme painting
Moorish Bath, which depicted a black bearded man with a jeweled
Dizzy Gillespie-like hat in orange and blue silk, inspiring the character's appearance, plus Washington's status as a
method actor. In May 2023,
Pedro Pascal,
May Calamawy,
Lior Raz,
Derek Jacobi,
Peter Mensah and
Matt Lucas joined the cast of the film, with
Fred Hechinger entering negotiations to play Caracalla after Keoghan had to drop out over scheduling conflicts with
Saltburn (2023). Jacobi reprises his role as Senator Gracchus.
Filming in Malta. Production was expected to begin in May 2023, with
Ouarzazate,
Morocco set as a filming location. Set construction began in the city in April. Filming began in June 2023 with additional filming locations planned for
Malta, which stood-in for ancient Rome, and the
United Kingdom over the following four months, with a few early sequences being shot in Morocco before flying to Malta to shoot the rest of the film. Mescal felt some nerves over shooting in the assembled
Colosseum and shooting scenes with Washington. Filming was suspended in July due to the
2023 Hollywood labor disputes. For a fight sequence, a
rhinoceros was created via
3D printing controlled by radio remote, but filming the scene took two or three days and affected Mescal's physicality due to the temperature. and
wrapped on January 17, 2024. Filming also took place on the
South Downs at
Devil's Dyke, Sussex in June 2024. ==Music==