With the success oflegacy sequels likeTop Gun: Maverick,many people are looking at which other classic series to make into legacy sequels. Legacy sequels are sequels that use the passage of time in real life between movies as part of the movie’s story. They are becoming a popular way to play on moviegoers' nostalgia and give older actors another moment in the sun. Legacy sequels add a layer of wholesomeness and authenticity to a sequel that brings audiences together.
One of the movies that comes up when discussing legacy sequels isGladiator,which is a beloved classic for many. When considering how to make aGladiatorsequel, going the legacy route forGladiatoris wrong. There are a few reasons why makingGladiator 2a legacy sequelwould be a mistake. Keep reading to discover which of these reasons are the most pressing and which illuminate why a legacy approach should be avoided.
Russell Crowe’s Character Is Dead
Perhaps the biggest roadblock to why a legacy sequel is a non-starter is thatRussell Crowe’scharacter dies at the end ofGladiator.While the end of the first movie ends on a triumphant note with the freeing of the other gladiators, Russell Crowe is fatally wounded before the final fight and has no chance of surviving.In an interview, Russel Crowe revealedthat he would not be making an appearance inGladiator 2
Without Russell Crowe’s portrayal of Maximus Decimus Meridius, a legacy sequel would lose much of its appeal. A big part of the draw of legacy sequels is seeing all your favorite characters again in a new adventure. Without Russell Crowe, that advantage of the approach is lost. There is hope Crowe could return as a flashback or spirit guide to the main character, but that approach is less appealing to gladiator fans. Maximus was a character who drove the story. If he is regulated to the backseat in the sequel, it will leave many fans unsatisfied. It would be better not to include him at all at that point, making only slight allusions to him through dialogue or scenery.
One movie that pulled off the legacy sequel while a leading cast member was dead wasStar Wars: The Last Jedi. It made more sense to bring back dead cast members as forced ghosts and visions because of the fantasy setting. Characters in Star Wars also are still capable of doing things in the story because of the setting, even if they don’t have physical bodies.Gladiatoris historical fiction, so it is restricted to staying more grounded than Sci-fi fantasy.
Related:Gladiator 2: Plot, Cast, and Everything Else We Know
There Isn’t a Continuation of the Story in Real-World History
The events of the originalGladiatorare vaguely based on historical facts, while Maximus' character is mostly fiction. Ridley Scott, the director, tried to take great care to portray a historically accurate Rome in his film. This led to there being an accurate historical timescale and real historical characters like Marcus Aurelius and his son Commodus. This presents a problem for a legacy sequel because the original film is set at the very end of Roman historybefore Imperial Rome fell in 476 AD. There aren’t any notable world events to draw from to inject historical accuracy into the film before the fall of Rome, making a legacy sequel entirely fictionalized or a missed opportunity.
A Prequel Makes More Sense
Rather than focusing on a sequel, a prequel to Gladiator would be much more appealing. We could see the childhood of Commodus and the rise of Marcus Aurelius' reign, as well as see how Russell Crowe became the man he was in the originalGladiator.A prequel would allow Russell Crowe and others to participate in earnest. They wouldn’t need to be included through the use of flashbacks or a framing device and could instead be part of the plot. Star Wars had success with this recently with itsObi-Wan Kenobiprequel series.
Related:Gladiator 2: What Fans Can Expect
It Would Be More Interesting to Jump Further Forward in Time
As mentioned early, there were not too many significant events to draw historical parallels to until the fall of Rome, which occurred a couple of hundred years later. If the show wants to jump forward in time, why not jump forward to a more interesting point in time to set a story? They could have a descendant of Maximus be the focus of the story, and have a return of the Germanic tribes from the first film.
Some of the Actors Have Retired or Passed Away
Another aspect ofGladiatorthat would make a legacy sequel difficult is that many of the actors would not be able to return. The actor who played Proximo, Oliver Reed, tragically passed away during the filming of the original film. Other actors from the original film, like Derek Jacobi and Tomas Arana, would also be challenging to get to join.
