Denzel Washington In Final Talks For Role In ‘Gladiator’ Sequel
Denzel Washington and Ridley Scott are teaming up again to work on an upcoming sequel for Gladiator, Deadline reports.
Washington, 68, is nearing final negotiations with Paramount to co-star in the Roman-era film alongside Paul Mescal, with Ridley leading the charge as the director. However, the specific role that the Oscar award-winning actor will play in the sequel is currently being kept under wraps.
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According to the outlet, Washington, known to be picky about the roles he undertakes, was excited about “the bad-ass role Scott had written with him in mind.” After reading the script and hearing the director’s pitch, he was ready to commit to the forthcoming sequel.
Scott’s original film arrived in 2000 and starred Russell Crowe as general Maximus Decimus Meridius—an enslaved gladiator who battles through an arena to avenge his family after Commodus overtakes the throne.
Along with his directing duties, Ridley Scott will produce the movie with Micahel Pruss, Doug Wick, and Lucy Fisher. Walter Parkes and Laurie MacDonald will executive produce, while David Scarpa will write the script. Furthermore, the original film’s costume designer Janty Yates and production designer Arthur Max are both set to return.
2000’s Gladiator pulled in $460 million at the global box office and was nominated for 12 Academy Awards. The blockbuster feature would snag five of those accolades, including one for Best Picture.
In other sequel-related news, Gabrielle Union has revealed that Bring It On would be receiving a follow-up film.
“We’ve been developing a sequel forever,” Union, 50, detailed to Variety. “But for folks who don’t exactly understand how long development can take in Hollywood, that could be five minutes or 50 years.” The Truth Be Told actress also told Entertainment Tonight that the sequel, “centers on the [Clovers]. We are working on it.”
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