Gladiator 2 Star Paul Mescal Has Wrapped Filming

Paul Mescal, the star of Ridley Scott’s upcoming sequel to Gladiator, has wrapped filming on the project. The actor spilled the beans to The Graham Norton Show during a recent filming, although he steered clear of saying anything else about the film itself, joking that he would be killed if he gave away any details. The movie, which has been in development for years and started production more than six months ago, will pick up a generation after the original movie. While Russell Crowe will not have a role in the sequel, his Maximus character will shape the plot, as the main characters will be people whose lives were touched by the events of the first film.

The film started production last year, but stopped when the WGA and SAG-AFTRA went on strike. Before it wound production down, set photos emerged featuring a giant, practical Coliseum that will appear onscreen rather than using a CGI backdrop for the setting.

“I finished yesterday,” Mescal told Graham Norton over the weekend. “I survived it….Somebody’s going to assassinate me right now if I say anything further.”

Joseph Quinn will star in the sequel opposite Mescal. Mescal, best known for his role in Normal People, was tapped to head up the sequel last February, with Scott set to return to direct from a script by David Scarpa. It has been about five years since serious reports about a sequel to Ridley Scott’s Gladiator started to circulate, with the script being finished last spring.

Koeghan will play Emperor Geta, which was was the name of an actual Roman emperor, but like the first film, the sequel is not based on a true story. Russell Crowe, who headlined the original, will not come back, since his character died at the end of the film. Mescal will be playing Lucius, the son of Lucilla (Connie Nielsen). Now a grown man, Lucius has grown up with admiration for Maximus (Crowe’s character), who saved him and his mother.

“I didn’t know what to expect when the story started up, and in hindsight, it was almost inevitable — of course we had to tell that story,” Nielsen told ComicBook.com recently. “It was incredible — Ridley has put together an incredible cast as always, and a magnificent spectacle that is rooted in real heart. As always with him, you have to use superlatives.”

Scott is set to direct and produce the film, along with Scott Free President Michael Pruss, and Doug Wick and Lucy Fisher from Red Wagon Entertainment. Also returning from the original film are Janty Yates (Costume Designer) and Arthur Max (Production Designer).

Mescal projects Gladiator 2 to hit theaters this Thanksgiving.

An earlier version of the film’s synopsis still included Barry Keoghan in the cast. Keoghan parted ways with the production just before principal photography. We apologize for the error.