Gladiator II

In the years following the release of the first film, there were numerous attempts to write a sequel. MusicianNick Cavewas invited to draft a version byRussell Croweand SirRidley Scott.His version focused on the more mythical elements of Ancient Rome, and would have seen Maximus arrive in the afterlife, only to be faced with other souls who are yet to ascend further. He is eventually tasked by Jupiter and other Roman deities to return to earth to find and kill Hephaestus, a former deity who has betrayed them. From there, he is resurrected as a Christian and finds himself journeying back to Rome, on a mission to stop Christianity from spreading, while crossing paths with the new Emperor, Lucius. The movie would have ended with Maximus being cursed to live for an eternity, featuring a montage of the soldier battling through the Crusades, World War II, and the Vietnam War, eventually revealing a modern-day Maximus working at the Pentagon in Washington. The studio decided not to go through with this version, but the script is available to read online.

In Rome the god of the sea was called "Neptune" not "Poseidon".

A precut M Rated version was released in Cinemas in Australia. At least 3 scenes was trimmed: Cut No. 1 - Lucius (Paul Mescal) beheads his opponent at the first Roman games. The beginning is trimmed to remove the swords connecting with the head. It cuts into the shot midway to show the stump and a bit of blood spray. Cut No. 2 - Macrinus (Denzel Washington) slashing at the neck of Emperor Geta (Joseph Quinn). The initial long shot of the neck cutting and blood spray is missing. The following close-up is zoomed to the left to remove the continued neck slashing and blood spray on the right. Cut No. 3 - Macrinus puts a spike into the ear of Emperor Caracalla (Fred Hechinger). The red blood flowing from his ear is now green/yellow.

Featured inThe 7PM Project: Episode dated 3 July 2024(2024)