The budget for director Ridley Scott’s upcoming historical epic Gladiator 2 ended up going wildly over budget! According to THR, the initial budget for the production was $165 million, but according to THR, sources are saying that by the time production wrapped on the film, the budget had ballooned to around $310 million!
Paramount Pictures insists the net cost of the 49-day shoot was under $250 million, but according to some sources, that’s not the case. Those insiders are saying that “It’s a runaway” and “It’s not being managed.”
One of the reasons behind the skyrocketing budget was the Hollywood strikes where the studio was forking out $600,000 a week during the shutdown. In total, they say that was about $10 million. But, there’s still so much more money to be accounted for!
The report also points out that there were accidents on set and complaints about animal abuse. PETA sent an open letter to Scott in the summer that was filled with “whistleblower” reports about horses and monkeys being abused on the set, “reports that sources close to the production deny, noting that the Humane Society was on-site during filming.”
Regardless, $310 million is a freakin’ massive budget and there will be about $150 million pumped into the film’s marketing. While there is some excitement about Gladiator 2, there’s a chance that the movie won’t even break even at the box office with this kind of budget.
The sequel centers on Lucius, the son of Lucilla, and nephew of Commodus, the son of Roman leader Marcus Aurelius who murdered his father and seized the throne. Commodus met his downfall in the gladiator ring against Maximus, who despite being mortally wounded, took down the emperor before passing on to reunite with his family. Maximus had saved Lucius and his mother, leaving a lasting impact on the young boy.
Scott revealed some additional story details, specifically for Lucius, who is played by Paul Mescal in the movie, saying: “[Lucius] has been out in the wilderness for.. let’s see, we last saw him when he was 12. It’s about 12, 15 years later, he’s been out in the wilderness having lost touch with his mother. His mother lost touch with him. She doesn’t know where he is. She thinks he might be dead.”
The movie also stars Denzel Washington, Connie Nielsen back as Lucilla, and Stranger Things star Joseph Quinn as Emperor Caracalla. Fred Hechinger will also play Emperor Geta.
