The author Jacob Bacharach returns for a show about Ridley Scott’s latest, the big-budget sequel to his Oscar-winning Gladiator.

Set 16 years later, Paul Mescal plays Lucius, the secret son of Russell Crowe’s Maximus, who seeks revenge against Marcus Acacius (Pedro Pascal) the Roman general who conquered his home and enslaved him. He is sent into gladiator combat in the Colosseum by the scheming arms dealer Macrinus (Denzel Washington) a former slave who plans to use Lucius to seize power from Rome’s tyrannical twin emperors.

Jacob and I discuss The Ridler’s latest epic, which means to top the original in terms of sheer spectacle (including queer-coded villains, baboon and rhino gladiator battles and a crazy naval battle set in a flooded Colosseum filled with sharks), and yet can’t quite get out from under the shadow of the original, despite a fantastic supporting turn by the always dependable Denzel.

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Trailer #2 for Gladiator II (Ridley Scott, 2024)