- Gladiator II is currently playing in theaters globally
- The movie has brought in a huge sum for director Sir Ridley Scott
- The sequel has been confirmed as his best overseas debut
It’s the sequel that fans waited almost a quarter of a century for.
And now Gladiator II has arrived in theaters across the world.
While the movie may have received mixed reviews from critics, followers of the franchise have flocked to their local cinema to catch all the action – and now the figures for its opening weekend are in.
The film has become director Sir Ridley Scott’s best overseas debut, after raking in a whopping $87 million from 63 markets, with a budget of $250 million-plus.
The sequel enjoyed the strongest launch in the UK with $11.4 million from 722 locations, followed by France with $10.3 million from 729 locations, Spain with $5.6 million from 411 locations, Australia with $5 million from 353 locations and Mexico with $4.7 million from 922 locations.
US audiences are yet to see the picture, as it will launch in North America and Canada on November 22.
Scott’s highest-grossing films include The Martian ($630 million globally), Gladiator ($465 million globally) and Prometheus ($403 million).
Gladiator II ‘$10 million under budget’
The success of Scott’s movie is thanks in no small part to his creative process.
Known as Ridleygrams, Scott sketches each of his films almost frame by frame.
According to the director, Gladiator II came in at almost “ten million dollars under budget” because of the unusual practice – as he revealed he has undergone the same method for a third Gladiator movie.
Gladiator II takes place over two decades after the events of Gladiator. Paul Mescal plays Lucius, the son of Lucilla (Connie Nielson) and Crowe’s Maximus, who lives with his wife in Numidia.
Roman soldiers – led by General Marcus Acacius (Pedro Pascal) – invade, killing his wife and forcing Lucius into slavery. Inspired by Maximus, Lucius resolves to fight as a gladiator under the teaching of Macrinus (Denzel Washington), a former slave who plots to overthrow the young emperors Caracalla and Geta (Fred Hechinger and Joseph Quinn).
