Warning: Spoilers ahead for Gladiator II!Maximus fromGladiatoris one of the most heroic movie characters of all time, butGladiator IIproves that he could also be viewed as a villain. Russell Crowe’s performance asMaximus inGladiatorearned him an Academy Award for Best Actor and made it so that a sequel could never be made without acknowledging his legacy. Even though the Roman Emperors following Commudus' reign wanted to erase Maximus from history, the gladiators inGladiator IIhonor the legendary figure.
Gladiator IIalso reveals thatLucius' father is actually Maximus. Therefore, there are a lot of similarities between Lucius and Maximus throughout the movie. However, Maximus also has many similarities with anothercharacter fromGladiator II. Like Maximus, Acacius is a Roman general who is stripped of his rank and forced to fight in the arena.The similarities between Maximus and Acacius help explain why Maximus could have been viewed as a villainif certain scenes from the firstGladiatorfilm were shown from a different perspective.
Gladiator 2 Makes Acacius Look Like A Villain By Showing The Numidia Battle From Lucius' Perspective
Gladiator 2 Flipped The First Gladiator Movie’s Opening Battle
Gladiator IIbegins by showing Lucius living a peaceful life with his wife in Numidia until a Roman fleet is seen approaching the city. The Romans, led by General Acacius, attack Numidia, and an intense battle breaks out. Most of theNumidia battle inGladiator 2is shown from Lucius' perspective, so the audience automatically roots against the Romans, who are portrayed as an evil army with no claim to Numidia. Therefore, as their leader,General Acacius is seen as one ofGladiator 2’s primary villains.Acacius is also who Lucius blames for the death of his wife.
Gladiator 2 Continues A Major Pedro Pascal Trend, And Repeats A Tragedy From 10 Years Ago
Pedro Pascal’s role as General Acacius in Gladiator 2 continues an acting trend dating back to 1999, with a special callback to a 2014 character.
Granted, the character ofAcacius becomes a lot more complicated when it is revealed that he doesn’t want to lead any more attacks. Acacius is actually one of the leaders of the rebellion against Emperors Geta and Caracalla. Therefore, even though Acacius leads the Roman army in the Numidia battle and is responsible for many deaths, he’s just following orders to ensure his own survival and actually has a different vision of Rome. His vision of Rome aligned withMarcus Aurelius' dream of Romeand is exactly what Lucius was trying to achieve inGladiator II.
Gladiator 2’s Framing Would’ve Made Maximus The Villain Of The First Movie
Gladiator Portrayed Maximus As A Hero
Just likeGladiator II, the firstGladiatormovie also opens with a large battle scene. At the beginning ofGladiator, the Romans, led by Maximus, fight the final battle to win the way against the Germanic tribes. UnlikeGladiator II, this battle is shown from Maximus' perspective, whilethe Romans are portrayed as the heroes in this battle. The opening ofGladiator IIproves that if the first movie showed the perspective of German warriors, Maximus would have been the clear villain, at least at the beginning of the film.
From the perspective of many German warriors who lost friends and loved ones to an army under Maximus' command, he definitely does not come across as a sympathetic figure.
While Maximus' arc is being compared to Lucius' inGladiator II,there are perhaps more interesting similarities between Maximus and Acacius. Just like Acacius inGladiator II, Maximus is definitely not evil. That said, from the perspective of many German warriors who lost friends and loved ones to an army under Maximus' command, he definitely does not come across as a sympathetic figure.
Gladiator II
Cast
Gladiator 2 is the follow-up to Ridley Scott’s award-winning film Gladiator from 2000. Scott returns to direct the sequel, with Paul Mescal staring as Lucius, alongside Denzel Washington and Joseph Quinn as the villain Emperor Geta. Gladiator 2 had been stuck in development hell for years before a script written by David Scarpa finally moved forward.
