The historical action epic is a spectacular genre in any era. Every culture, society, and time period has its own take on the concept. It’s never going to stop being fun to imagine the kinds of violence people got up to in the ancient world. Nor will it ever cease to amaze audiences when those imagined visions become multi-million-dollar blockbusters. These films have a mixed relationship with the concept of history. Gladiator and its upcoming sequel, Gladiator II, introduced a few real figures from Roman history.
People are very excited to see Gladiator II. The original film was an instant classic in Ridley Scott’s remarkable filmography. Scott isn’t big on sequels, usually handing follow-ups to other filmmakers. James Cameron handled Aliens; Denis Villeneuve handled Blade Runner: 2049; but Scott came back for Gladiator II. This is his chance to do the kind of massive, absurd stunts he dreamed of doing back in the day. It’ll be a spectacle worthy of the wait.
How did Gladiator handle Roman history?
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Director |
Ridley Scott |
|---|---|
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Writers |
David Franzoni, John Logan, and William Nicholson |
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Stars |
Russell Crowe, Joaquin Phoenix, Connie Nielsen, Oliver Reed |
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Release Date |
May 1, 2000 |
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Box Office |
$465.4 Million |
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Rotten Tomatoes Score |
80% positive based on 259 reviews |
Gladiator borrows considerable portions of history to fit within a fictional narrative. Ridley Scott wanted to make his Roman Empire more authentic than any that had ever appeared on screen. That mission yielded to many understandable concerns. There are a million little inconsistencies, anachronisms, and incorrect elements. Wikipedia catalogs countless inaccuracies, but most would go unnoticed by anyone who isn’t a Roman history scholar. Scott hired a few scholars on the subject to verify the accuracy of the project. One resigned after witnessing a few changes; another asked to have his name removed from the credits; but a third argued for the changes to protect the quality of the film. Scott found himself leaving out some historically accurate elements because he knew they’d seem unbelievable to a modern audience. He also had to set aside one or two absurd Roman practices because the budget wouldn’t allow him to fill a Colosseum with water to recreate a mini-naval conflict. The broad strokes of the story are based in fact, but Maximus is a combination of several real people, and most of the events take place under different circumstances. It’s closer than most, but still far from a documentary.
Who was Lucius Verus?
Paul Mescal stars as Lucius Verus, the main character of Gladiator II. He’ll be the main representative of the title role. This is, unfortunately, the least historically accurate character available in the trailers. Lucius is the son of Lucius Verus, long before people applied the word “junior” to identical names. He’s the grandson of Marcus Aurelius, who shared the Emperor position with his adoptive brother, Lucius Verus. It’s a complicated family tree since Lucius I married his adoptive brother’s daughter, who would be his niece, then had a child that would technically be his second cousin. In any case, Lucius II, the film’s main character, isn’t meaningfully based on the historical figure. He has the same name and family history, but the historical Lucius Verus died very young. This story presumably takes place in a reality in which Lucius disappeared instead of dying.
Who was Lucilla?
Lucilla is Lucius’s mother, Marcus Aurelius’s daughter, Commodus’s sister, and Maximus’s former lover. She’s the primary female lead in the first film, and she’ll be one of the few returning characters in the sequel. Like in the film, the real Lucilla was a respected and influential figure. Marcus Aurelius arranged her weddings, marrying her first to his adoptive brother Lucius. She had three children with Lucius, including the aforementioned Lucius, but two of them died young. After Lucius I died, Marcus married Lucilla off to Quintianus, a much older man. She bore him a son named Pompeianus. When Commodus, Joaquin Phoenix’s character in the original Gladiator, inherited the throne, Lucilla worked on the plot to assassinate him. Quintianus’ nephew, also named Quintianus, botched the assassination attempt by loudly announcing his presence before striking, allowing Commodus’ guards to seize him. Commodus exiled Lucilla and her family to an island before sending soldiers to execute them in secret.
Who were Geta and Caracalla?
Geta and Caracalla are brothers who share the position of Emperor of Rome. Joseph Quinn plays Geta, and Fred Hechinger plays Caracalla. They’re the two sons of Septimius Severus, who intended his power to be split between the two of them. When Severus was alive, he proclaimed both of his boys co-rulers alongside him. This led to a brief moment in which they shared their inheritance after Severus’s death. They considered splitting Rome in two to evenly hold mutual empires, but their mother convinced them otherwise. Caracalla, the elder sibling, had Geta killed in front of their mother. He would go on to lead a messy administration. His greatest accomplishment was an edict that granted full Roman citizenship to any free man in the empire. He gave huge financial bonuses to soldiers and developed new currencies. He was weirdly obsessed with Alexander the Great. Caracalla died at the hands of a soldier who was angry after being denied a promotion.
Gladiator II delivers a pair of notable real emperors, one returning historical figure, and a memorable name that never made it very far. These historical characters aren’t all exactly as they would appear in the books, but they remain interesting additions to the sequel. Gladiator II might find even more fascinating faces among their original characters, but fans will have to meet those new icons when the film hits theaters later this year.
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