Aftersun star Paul Mescal circling Ridley Scott’s Gladiator sequel

Paul Mescal, known for Normal People and Aftersun, is in talks to star in Ridley Scott's Gladiator sequel.

Chennai | January 7, 2023 03:17 PM IST

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Paul Mescal in Normal People trailer

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Filmmaker Ridley Scott is making progress on the sequel to his multiple Academy Award-winning film Gladiator (2000), and the latest buzz is that Paul Mescal, who is known for the series Normal People and the critically-acclaimed drama Aftersun, is in talks to act in the much-anticipated sequel.

Gladiator propelled Russell Crowe to superstardom. The film, inspired by Daniel P. Mannix’s 1958 book Those About to Die, is a historical fiction about the revenge of a former Hispano-Roman General Maximus Decimus Meridius, whose family gets murdered by the sly emperor Commodus (Joaquin Phoenix). It is said that the second part will be about Commodus’s sister Lucilla (Connie Nielsen)’s son Lucius, and Paul Mescal is expected to play the role.

ALSO READ | Aftersun movie review: One of the best films of 2022; Charlotte Wells’ debut is a devastating masterpiece

Scott returned to the swords and sandals genre last year with The Last Duel, but the film ended up as a box office disaster. Gladiator 2 will be produced by Scott along with Scott Free President Michael Pruss and Red Wagon Entertainment’s Doug Wick and Lucy Fisher.

Meanwhile, Mescal, who got an Emmy Nomination for his role as Connell Waldron in the miniseries Normal People, is getting Oscar buzz for his performance in Aftersun as a troubled father. He will also be seen in Andrew Haigh’s Strangers, which stars Andrew Scott and Claire Foy.

Scott’s next film is another historical epic, Napoleon, starring Joaquin Phoenix.

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