We weren’t really sure if this one was actually happening, but then a week ago I broke the news that Ridley Scott was scouting locations for “Gladiator 2.” Now we have more details …

“Gladiator 2” will start production in May of 2023. That’s a little more than 5 months from now, which is also when Scott’s “Napoleon” is rumored to be released in theaters. The Gladiator sequel will be directed by Scott and shot via the lens of DP Dariusz Wolski.

The sequel will follow Lucius (son of Lucilla and the nephew of Joaquin Phoenix's villainous Commodus). If you remember, Maximus saved Lucius from his uncle in the 2000 film. Connie Nielsen, who played Lucilla, is part of the sequel’s cast. So is Djimon Hounsou who is set to return as the once-enslaved Juba.

In 2019, Producers Walter F. Parkes and Laurie MacDonald had confirmed that the sequel would be set 25 years after the original. Writer Peter Craig (The Crown, Hunger Games: Mockingjay- Part 1 & 2) is set to write the screenplay.