Mine honor is my life; both grow in one.
It all feels distinctly Ancient Romanesque.
(Aside from the tunes.
Pedro Pascal and Paul Mescal.Charlotte Ellis
While the statues were curated for the shoot, the quote is pure coincidence or, perhaps, fate.
and is symbolic of Lucius' (Mescal) journey in its sequel nearly 25 years later.
Why did it take so long?
Pedro Pascal and Paul Mescal.Charlotte Ellis
“Frankly, we were all busy.
He grew up there safely, under a new identity.
When Roman forces led by General Marcus Acacius (Pascal) conquer Numidia, they take Lucius hostage.
Paul Mescal.Charlotte Ellis
Whoever they cast to play Lucius would have big sandals to fill.
Reminding Scott of a young Harris, the director knew Mescal was his Lucius doubters be damned.
(“In my job, I’ve got constant doubting Thomases driving me f—ing crazy.
Paul Mescal plays Lucius in ‘Gladiator II’.Cuba Scott/Paramount
“I had an appetite for it.”
Cuba Scott/Paramount
All the hard work paid off.
“The fights aren’t like slick swordplay.
Paul Mescal fights in the Colosseum in ‘Gladiator II’.Aidan Monaghan/Paramount
you could feel towards the end what Lucius says it’s about survival.
It’s like your body’s going to accumulate all this punishment.
And it’s about holding onto that as the film progresses.”
Pedro Pascal.Charlotte Ellis
What is a spoiler, though, is Mescal’s favorite contest.
The most challenging, however, involves a rhinoceros, and he’s much more verbose about that experience.
The rhino itself wasn’t the issue it was created via 3-D printer and controlled by radio remote.
Pedro Pascal and Paul Mescal.Charlotte Ellis
But the weather in the Colosseum was not as easy to master.
The sandy floor of the battleground was scorching hot, particularly on the days they filmed this battle.
“It was brutal, the fight.
Pedro Pascal and Paul Mescal.Charlotte Ellis
I was borderline throwing up, irritable, just hardcore.
Between takes I was firing ice straight down my back.”
Want more movie news?
Another person who sees some action in the famous amphitheater is Pascal’s Acacius.
Like Mescal, Pascal went through intense gladiator training.
It was so fulfilling in terms of what the energy of the movie was going to be.”
Elder abuse, we call it.”
Back at the London shoot, there’s no hint of this alleged “abuse.”
It’s so good to see you."
Yay or nay?'
There was radio silence for a second.
His radio crackles back, and [Ridley] goes, ‘I’m afraid I did.'"
Mescal cracks up as he recounts the memory, which didn’t make it into the final cut.
“I think Ridley’s one of the funniest men I’ve ever come across.”
Invoking the iconicGladiatorline, he recalls asking his costar, “Are you not entertained?”
“I think a lot of people are asking themselves, ‘Well, what is the difference?
What is the difference between being governed and being controlled?’
And that is the same thing that we’re seeing once again inGladiator.
These people believe that the inherent spirit of Rome is better than the leaders currently sullying that throne.”
“I rehearsed a lot with Dundus, and I rehearsed a lot with Joe.
These are two great collaborators in very different ways,” Hechinger says with a laugh.
Pedro Pascal.Charlotte Ellis
Ridley is a limitless filmmaker.
Any other filmmaker would say, ‘Okay, that’s enough craziness.’
He also really loves animals.
Pedro Pascal.Charlotte Ellis
She’s their “political pawn,” Nielsen says.
“Between each other and inside themselves, they create the freedom that their souls need.
“He wants to be king.
Paul Mescal.Charlotte Ellis
He wants to be the most powerful.
He wants everyone under his foot.
He wants to rule the world, and he doesn’t care what it takes to get it.
Paul Mescal and Pedro Pascal.Charlotte Ellis
He’ll use anyone or anybody.”
“Everybody keeps saying that,” he says, clearly a bit baffled by the feedback.
“I’m havingtoogood a time.
Paul Mescal.Charlotte Ellis
Is that what you’re telling me?”
he asks with a chuckle.
“He really didn’t have to do any heavy lifting.
Pedro Pascal.Charlotte Ellis
The boys are down there fighting, being chased by rhinos.
I’m just sitting up in this tent, twirling my goblet.That’sfun.”
Still, the big reveal didn’t add too much pressure to the already weighty role.
Paul Mescal.Charlotte Ellis
A key difference between the father and son is their vision for Rome.
“Maximus, to me, is looking to restore honor in Rome throughout the first film.
And I think Lucius starts this film from the point of wanting to totally dismantle it.
While on the set of ‘Gladiator II,’ director Ridley Scott shows Paul Mescal a spot on the Colosseum wall where Maximus’ name has been scratched out.Aidan Monaghan/Paramount
And if he could burn it all down, he would,” Mescal explains.
“I think now would be a great time to talk to him,” he says post filming.
You could see that he was speaking the way he spoke to his own son back home.
Paul Mescal.Charlotte Ellis
But Nielsen likens it more to a different major franchise.
“I think it’s more likeStar Wars,” she says.
He said, ‘Imagine this: We’re recreating Ancient Rome with the guy who createdBlade Runner.’
To me, it comes back to the development of these archetypes that stay hopeful about the human race.
That sense of scale has stood out to much of the cast.
Washington claims it’s “the biggest film” he’s been on to date.
If anything, you had to tell the newbies this isnotnormal.”
What has become normal for Pascal is dealing with the expectations of rabid fanbases.
So I think that that’s the thing you really want to avoid."
How does he handle it?
“You don’t remove yourself from it,” Pascal says.
“You just jump on the ride, and the rest really isn’t up to you.
So it really is just getting on the ride and putting all the love you might into it.”
Just don’t tell him that.
“Made what?”
You know,made it.
“Oh, no!
Come on,” he says, realization dawning on his face.
“No, I would say that I’m ambitious so that there’s no endpoint.
There’s never making it.
I have so much more that I want to do.
Or, you know, the arena.
