Russell Crowe did not seem amused. He expressed his dissatisfaction with the 2024 film “Gladiator II.” Alongside Joaquin Phoenix, Crowe played Maximus in Ridley Scott’s popular 2000 film “Gladiator.” The Oscar winner objected to the sequel’s revelation that his late character had an illegitimate son (Paul Mescal) with Lucilla, Connie Nielsen’s character
The sequel, which centres on Mescal’s Lucius, did not feature Crowe.
In an interview with the Australian radio station Triple J, Crowe said, “The recent sequel that we don’t have to name out loud is a really good example of, even the people in that engine room not actually understanding what made that first one special. It wasn’t the pomp. It wasn’t the circumstance. It wasn’t the action. It was the moral core.”
“And the thing is, there was a daily fight on that set.” Regarding the first movie, he explained, “It was a daily fight to keep that moral core of the character. The amount of times that they suggested sex scenes and stuff like that for Maximus — it’s like, you’re taking away his power. “So, you’re saying, at the same time he had this relationship with his wife, he was f–king this other girl? What are you talking about? It’s crazy.”
In the initial film, Maximus was a devoted family man seeking vengeance for the brutal murder of his wife (Giannina Facio) and child. Crowe didn’t see why his character would have an extramarital affair. When “Gladiator II” premiered in November 2024, Crowe received feedback from dissatisfied critics.
The actor also stated that he received negative feedback from Gladiator aficionados after the sequel was released in theatres last November. “The women in Europe, when that movie started coming out, I would be at a restaurant, and they’d come talk to me [and complain],” Crowe said with a chuckle. “It’s like, ‘Hey, it wasn’t me! “I did not do it.”