Gladiator 2 Finally Heads to Streaming (Here’s Where to Watch)

After making a splash at the box office this past Thanksgiving, Ridley Scott’s long-awaited Gladiator sequel has finally made its way to the world of streaming. Gladiator II has been available to purchase and rent on-demand for quite a while, but Tuesday marks the film’s debut on a subscription streaming platform, meaning that the only cost to watch is your regular monthly subscription fee.

Unsurprisingly, the first streaming stop for Gladiator II is at Paramount+, which serves as the initial exclusive streaming home for all of Paramount’s theatrical releases. Gladiator II was added to the Paramount+ streaming lineup on Tuesday morning, where it joins the original Best Picture-winning Gladiator on the same service.

Gladiator II first hit theaters the week before Thanksgiving, opening alongside the smash hit musical Wicked. Both films found major success at the box office, acting as counter-programming to one another, similar to Barbie and Oppenheimer last summer.

While Wicked was the biggest winner of the two, the Gladiator sequel still did great business for an R-rated sword and sandal spectacle. The film has grossed over $458 million worldwide, which is just shy of the original Gladiator‘s total haul ($465 million). This is especially impressive given that the reception to Gladiator II was far below its predecessor. Gladiator II wasn’t a misfire with critics by any means, but the reviews didn’t remotely stand up to the original, which won five Oscars back in 2001.

Gladiator II picks up the story of the original film two decades later, following the journey of Lucius, the son of Lucilla, who was just a child in the first movie. This time around, Lucius is played by Paul Mescal, and he follows an eerily similar journey to Russell Crowe’s Maximus. After being taken captive by the Roman army, he’s forced into fighting as a gladiator in the Colosseum.

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Mescal is joined by an all-star supporting cast that is highlighted by Denzel Washington, who plays the dangerous and influential Macrinus. It’s Washington’s enormous performance as Macrinus that has earned the most praise for Gladiator II. The film also stars Pedro Pascal, Connie Nielsen, Joseph Quinn, and Fred Hechinger. Nielsen is the only star from the original Gladiator to reprise their role in Gladiator II.

Ridley Scott returned to direct Gladiator II, more than two decades after he earned a Best Director nomination for his work on the first film. David Scarpa wrote the screenplay for the sequel.