‘Gladiator 2’ CinemaCon Footage Wowed the Audience With Fire and Blood

The Big Picture

Paramount’s CinemaCon presentation wowed with clips from
Smile 2
and
A Quiet Place: Day One
, but
Gladiator 2
stole the show.
The
Gladiator 2
teaser promises more bloodshed and chaos, showcasing a new generation ready for battle in ancient Rome.
Director Ridley Scott and stars like Denzel Washington and Paul Mescal tease an extraordinary sequel at CinemaCon.

CinemaCon was absolutely entertained this morning during Paramount’s presentation on the final day of the film-centered convention. While clips from projects including Smile 2 and A Quiet Place: Day One were cause for excitement, it was the studio’s big finale that earned a positive uproar from the crowd. The hotly anticipated Gladiator 2 marched into the theater with a five-minute teaser showcasing what audiences have to look forward to when the film arrives on November 22.

Giving us the biggest opening that we’ve seen, a troop of gladiators literally strolled into the Colosseum at Caesars Palace on Thursday morning to kick off Paramount’s presentation and pull attendees out of their sleepy haze. A video message from the film-turned-franchise director Ridley Scott, and its leading stars Denzel Washington, Paul Mescal, Connie Nielsen, and Joseph Quinn, teased the production that Scott referred to as, “Possibly even more extraordinary than the first.” As those of us in attendance saw from the teaser, the legendary city will come alive once again, something that Quinn noted in the featurette while reminiscing about his breathtaking first day on set, commenting, “I remember being completely floored that they built ancient Rome.”

‘Gladiator 2’ Teaser Promises More Bloodshed, Chaos, and Spectacular Battle Scenes

Presenting the audience with an unfinished clip of the film, which finished production back in January, the teaser starts calm enough, with a voiceover of Mescal’s Lucius Verus saying, “I remember that day, I never forgot it. That a slave could take revenge against an emperor. That a slave could get justice in the arena.” Now, Lucius is the man controlling the attention of the gazing eyes of the Colosseum as we watch the character, first introduced in the original film, take on everything from razor-toothed monkeys to a man on a rhino — continuously thwarting his attackers in masterful ways. The teaser also gave us a glimpse at a very handsome Pascal, the return of Nielsen’s Lucilla, Washington’s vengeful former slave, and an incredibly eerie-appearing Quinn who will masterfully portray the madness of a co-emperor — giving Joaquin Phoenix a run for his money.

Fire and rebellion were also part of the primary theme in the clip, as Mescal and Washington’s characters both want the same thing – a change in rulers. As one could expect from the director who previously brought us epic battle scenes in titles such as Napoleon, Blade Runner, Alien, and the original Gladiator, there will be incredibly executed duels to the death not just between opponents in the Colosseum but also between rivaling armies.

All in all, the first look certainly didn’t disappoint, and we can’t wait for more. Stay tuned for more information to come as CinemaCon continues into its final day. Learn more about Gladiator 2 here in our handy guide. You can stream Gladiator now on Paramount+.