Game of Thrones star Pedro Pascal is ready to join the untitled sequel of Gladiator for Paramount Pictures. The actor collected immense praise for his performance in the recent post-apocalyptic drama series The Last of Us. He is in final negotiations to join the big project.
Pascal’s role in the film is still unknown. He was striking as a smuggler with a haunted past in The Last of Us. That has become one of the most popular shows on HBO.
Gladiator got inspiration from Daniel P Mannix’s 1958 novel Those About To Die. Set in 180 AD. The film has Russell Crowe essaying the role of Maximus, a Roman general. He sets out to exact revenge on the power-hungry, unscrupulous emperor who killed his family and sent him to slavery. The film catapulted Crowe to stardom and gave him an Oscar in the Best Actor Category. The film won the Best Picture Oscar award.
Pedro Pascal in Final Negotiations to Star in Gladiator 2
He’s in final negotiations to join the cast of Ridley Scott’s untitled Gladiator sequel. However, a source close to the production confirms to IGN. Deadline first broke the news today.
The details of his character, as well as those about the plot of the sequel, are now under wraps. If a deal goes through, he would join previously announced cast members Paul Mescal, and Denzel Washington. Also, Barry Keoghan, as well as returning star Connie Nelson.
The follow-up is currently ready to release on Nov. 22, 2024. It will see Ridley return to direct from a script by David Scarpa. The 2000 original Gladiator was a massive hit, grossing $460 million worldwide and scoring 12 Oscar nominations, winning Best Picture.
Pascal has kept busy throughout his career. Also, the past few years especially have been huge for him. He’s been starring as Din Djarin in Disney’s Star Wars series The Mandalorian. It just recently wrapped its third season. It scored a big hit just a few months ago in HBO’s The Last of Us, where he played Joel Miller. Production for Season 2 of the adaptation, we can expect to kick off later this year.
On the film side, Pascal recently starred alongside Nicolas Cage in The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent. Also appeared in Wonder Woman 1984 and Netflix’s The Bubble.
So who is part of the cast of Gladiator 2?
The first actor to be associated with the project was Academy Award-nominated actor Paul Mescal of Normal People and Aftersun fame. His role is also one of the few so far to be pretty certain. He’ll be playing a grown-up Lucius. The son of Connie Nielsen’s Lucilla, who is just a child in the first Gladiator movie.
Connie Nielsen herself is also on Gladiator 2’s IMDb page. Even though her role isn’t specified yet, we can only assume she’ll step right back into Lucilla’s royal sandals. Djimon Hounsou might also be reprising his original role as Juba. Even though IMDb has him listed only as “rumoured” for now.
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