A new trailer for Gladiator II sees Paul Mescal‘s Lucius Verus seek vengeance against Rome in a blood-soaked battle with his captor general Marcus Acacius.
The Normal People star, 28, stars as enslaved former heir Lucius in Ridley Scott’s long-awaited sequel.
With Russell Crowe’s legendary Maximus long-since dead and buried, it is vengeful Lucius who must fight for his liberty after being taken into slavery and ripped away from his wife and daughter by general Marcus (Pedro Pascal).
In a new trailer for the film, revenge-seeking Lucius is mentored as a Gladiator by Macrinus (Denzel Washington) – a former slave who plots to control Rome. The pair use one another to achieve their goals: Macrinus’s invasion of Rome and Lucius slaying the general.
‘Whose head can I give you to satisfy your fury?’ Macrinus asks Lucius, to which the Gladiator replies: ‘The general will do. Rome has taken everything from me but I will have my vengeance.’
A new trailer for Gladiator II sees Paul Mescal’s Lucius Verus seek vengeance against Rome in a blood-soaked battle with his captor general Marcus Acacius
The Normal People star, 28, stars as enslaved former heir Lucius in Ridley Scott’s long-awaited sequel
A former heir to the Roman empire, Lucius lives with his wife and child in a coastal town in Numidia. He hasn’t been in touch with his mother Lucilla (Connie Nielsen) in 15 years.
But he is imprisoned by Marcus , a feared general who honed his fighting skills under the tutelage of Maximus, and his marauding army of troops.
Played by a then 12-year old Spencer Treat Clark in Scott’s original film, Lucius is now an adult and intent on forcing his way out of the notorious fighting pits, at all costs.
Along the way he encounters and befriends Denzel Washington’s Macrinus, a power broker who keeps a stable of gladiators and sees battle-hungry Lucius as a promising investment.
The new trailer begins with Macrinus (Denzel Washington) – a former slave who plots to control Rome – telling Lucius how Gladiators are chosen.
‘They are usually prisoners of war,’ he says as he mentors Lucius – before the Gladiator takes to the colosseum to fight. ‘I own you now,’ Macrinus tells him.
The broker’s true intentions to invade Rome are revealed and Lucius sees an opportunity to seek revenge for being imprisoned by general Marcus.
As Lucius reveals his desires to see his captor dead, a montage of things he has lost flash across the screen – including his beloved wife.
With Russell Crowe’s legendary Maximus long-since dead and buried, it is vengeful Lucius who must fight for his liberty after being taken into slavery and ripped away from his wife and daughter by general Marcus (Pedro Pascal)
In a new trailer for the film, revenge-seeking Lucius is mentored as a Gladiator by Macrinus ( Denzel Washington ) – a former slave who plots to control Rome
The pair use one another to achieve their goals: Macrinus’s invasion of Rome and Lucius slaying the general
The pair use one another to achieve their goals: Macrinus’s invasion of Rome and Lucius slaying the general
Next viewers are introduced to Emperor Geta (Joseph Quinn) as he is informed that Lucius will be his Gladiator at a lavish banquet.
Macrinus reveals he has gained the trust of the Emperor, as he says it will ‘clear my path to the throne’ and tells Lucius: ‘You will be my instrument.’ But Lucius rebels against his cruel ‘mentor’ and insists he will be his instrument, ‘in this life or the next’.
Later in the trailer, Lucius regains contact with his mother after 15 years as she shares that she sees Maximus in her son – ahead of an epic fight against his enemy general Marcus.
In July, Paul admitted that ‘everything felt like slow motion’ when he secured his ‘life changing’ lead role.
Joining Pandora Christie on Heart Evening show recalled the moment he received the call.
He explained: ‘I was walking to the theatre. I was doing A Streetcar Named Desire in London; I was walking through Islington to get down to the theatre and my agent called me.
‘Like, it was kind of one of those things where it feels like everything goes into slow motion, where it is like, I’ve got my earphones in and I was getting this news that would change course of my life.’
A former heir to the Roman empire, Lucius lives with his wife and child in a coastal town in Numidia before being taken prisoner
Lucius was played by Spencer Treat Clark in the original 2000 blockbuster (left), now fully gown, he is played by Paul Mescal in the forthcoming sequel (right)
Joseph Quinn plays evil co-emperor Geta, a role that has been compared to Joaquin Phoenix’s portrayal of traitorous emperor Commodus in Gladiator
Tragedy appears to strike for Lucius, with the warrior cradling his wife in another scene from the new trailer
Paul continued: ‘But you’re in this weird bubble where nobody else has a clue that Gladiator II even exists at this point.
‘And then I think I like blacked out in my head. I was like, “Well, I can’t really remember of that day.” It was just a lot of information to absorb.
‘I phoned my mum and dad very, very, very quickly. Told them. But then I was doing the play in the evening, so you just kind of put it out of your head.’
Paul underwent a huge body transformation for the role, embarking on a gruelling training regime.
‘It was lots of lifting heavy things and running around the place. But I literally had anything that I could have ever wanted,’ he said.
‘Burgers and chips and everything!’
Gladiator II is released on November 15 in the United Kingdom and November 22 in the United States