Stranger Things breakout star Joseph Quinn opened up about his experience while filming the sequel to 2000’s classic Gladiator, saying that the legacy of the Russell Crowe-led historical epic made filming “a little scary.”
Quinn, who is set to play Caracalla in Gladiator 2, will be following in the footsteps of Joaquin Phoenix’s Commodus. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, the actor shared, “We all were very aware of the legacy of the first film. So many people get misty-eyed about it. So going anywhere near it again felt a little scary.”
Opening up about his first time seeing the massive Gladiator set, Quinn added, “It’s bonkers, it’s nuts … That’s the thing with working on a film like that, it changes your perspective on things. The fact that on a film of that scale, they built ancient Rome in Malta and to bear witness to that is truly awesome.”
What to expect in the Gladiator sequel?
There haven’t been any further details about the upcoming sequel to Gladiator. Despite the lack of details, though, the sequel stars have also been teasing the “magnificent spectacle” coming the audience’s way once Gladiator 2 arrives in theaters on November 22, 2024.
Earlier this year, the 2000 Gladiator actress Connie Nielsen — who is set to reprise her Lucilla role in the sequel — disclosed in an interview with ComicBook.com that Scott was able to “put together an incredible cast as always.”
Meanwhile, Pedro Pascal also spoke with Vanity Fair to share his experience filming the forthcoming sequel.
“I’ve been a part of big sets where the identity of the project, in a sense, is its size—and still, I have not been on a set as impressive as Gladiator’s,” said Pascal. “Ridley [Scott] leaves very little to the imagination in the most old-fashioned sense. All the players and pieces are there on the day, and suddenly the expected challenge of believing yourself as a powerful person in the era of the Roman Empire is evaporated.”
In addition to the mentioned stars, the cast for Gladiator 2 also includes Paul Mescal, Denzel Washington, Derek Jacobi, Fred Hechinger, Matt Lucas, and more.
