“Gladiator II” cast on preparing for long-awaited sequel, film’s legacy

It’s been almost 25 years since the movie “Gladiator” took the world by storm.

“I saw it in the cinema when it came out,” said actor Pedro Pascal, who plays the Roman general Marcus Acacius in “Gladiators II.” “I saw it twice.”

IN “Gladiator II,” the long-awaited sequel, out on Friday, Rome is ruled by two imperial brothers. Caracala is played by Joseph Quinn, who was only 6 years old when the original “Gladiator” came out.

“I think there was a legacy from the first movie that demanded reverence and respect,” Quinn told “CBS Mornings.”

To prepare for the film and better understand his environment, Quinn spent two weeks wandering around Rome.

“I think it’s just something so humbling about Rome and inspiring, and the fact that this civilization that was so ahead of its time collapsed, it’s kind of eerie,” he said.

For the actors who had fighting roles in the film, they said that training was grueling as it was not all done by stunt actors.

Caracalla’s co-emperor in the film is his brother Geta, played by Fred Hechinger, who said he always wanted to work for director Ridley Scott, who also directed the original film.

“I remember finding out that the same person made all these different movies that I love. ‘Thelma & Louise’ and ‘Alien’ were made by the same person, and it kind of expanded my sense of , what a director can be.” Hechinger said.

Unlike others, Scott will shoot certain sequences from start to finish without cutting. On some movie sets, actors have to react to things off camera that aren’t really happening, but not with Scott.

“The action was there and it’s all off-camera. Normally, under any circumstances, you’d look at a tennis ball or two pieces of tape as a cross for your eye line and imagine what’s happening, but no, Ridley wants to place it in front you and make it play,” Pascal said. “It’s like nothing I’ve ever experienced before. And it’s probably nothing I’ll ever experience again.”

“Gladiator II” opens in theaters on November 22.