Gladiator II could give Lucius the chance to make an unrealized Maximus storyline come to fruition after 24 years. The story of Gladiator II hinges on Lucius, the son of Lucilla from the first movie. Lucius’ story in Gladiator II‘s sequel timeline takes place around 12–15 years after the first movie and picks up with the character living a peaceful life with a wife and child on the northwest coast of Africa. However, he is dragged back into the turmoil of Rome’s expanding empire and begins a crusade of vengeance against Marcus Acacius, a Roman general.

Lucius and Acacius are portrayed by Paul Mescal and Pedro Pascal respectively in Gladiator II‘s ensemble cast, with the former essentially taking over from Russell Crowe as the protagonist of Gladiator. Crowe played Maximus Decimus Meridius in Gladiator, the Roman general who was forced to fight in the Colosseum. Maximus’ story went through several twists and turns in Gladiator, with one potential endgame being unrealized in the film. Through Paul Mescal’s Lucius, this unrealized story could finally come to pass 24 years later.

Gladiator 2 Could End With Lucius Becoming The New Emperor

Lucius Has Familial Connections To A Past Roman Emperor

This unrealized story point surrounds the ending of Gladiator II, specifically where Lucius’ character arc could take him. As has been revealed by the trailer for Gladiator II and comments from Ridley Scott and Mescal, Lucius is living away from the eyes of the Roman Empire. Scott even stated that his mother, Connie Nielsen’s Lucilla, thinks Lucius is dead. Despite living a life of peace outside of Roman politics, he finds his way into the gladiatorial arena due to the actions of Pascal’s Acacius.

With Gladiator II‘s story positioning Lucius back under the spotlight of Roman Emperors, the film could end with him taking his rightful place as ruler. Gladiator II‘s pair of Roman Emperors are taken from real history, but Scott has never been one to be afraid to change history in his movies, as evidenced by Gladiator‘s ending which suggested the potentiality of Rome becoming a republic. As such, history could be changed once more, with Lucius taking responsibility as the leader of Rome given his connection to a character from the first movie.

In the Gladiator films, Lucius is the grandson of former Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius, played by the late Richard Harris. This gives Lucius a blood claim to become the Roman Emperor, potentially giving him more support in the senate. If this is the direction in which Lucius’ character arc goes, the character could become the Roman Emperor by the end of Gladiator II realizing a storyline that did not happen in the first movie.

The Original Gladiator Was Never Going To End With Maximus As Emperor

Maximus’ Story Moved Him Away From Becoming Rome’s Emperor

In Gladiator, Maximus Decimus Meridius also had a claim to become the Roman Emperor. Maximus was shown to be a good friend and trusted ally of Lucius’ grandfather, Marcus Aurelius. Aurelius wished to see Rome become a republic and asked Maximus to become Emperor after him in order to see these wishes fulfilled. However, Aurelius was killed by Joaquin Phoenix’s Commodus, which inadvertently forced Maximus into a life of slavery as a gladiator. Although Aurelius’ longing for Maximus to become Emperor gave the latter a strong claim, he was unlikely to ever be elected, unlike certain Gladiator II characters.

Unlike Commodus or even Lucius, Maximus had no blood connection to Marcus Aurelius. In the Roman Empire, heritage and lineage were incredibly important factors in who became Emperor, meaning Commodus always would have had a stronger claim to succeed Aurelius, regardless of his conniving schemes. While Gladiator raised the possibility of Maximus becoming Emperor and teased this storyline throughout, it was never realized as his character arc took him down a different path of revenge and justice.

Gladiator 2 Can’t End The Same Way As The First Movie

Lucius Realizing Maximus’ Emperor Teases Would Give The Two Films A Degree Of Differentiation

Not only does the possibility of Lucius becoming Emperor in Gladiator II fit his character arc and make more sense than Maximus doing so in Gladiator, but it would also benefit the film from a wider storytelling perspective. Based on what has been revealed about Gladiator II, it is clear that the film is already similar to Gladiator. Both Maximus and Lucius are characters who lived lives of relative peace before being wronged by someone high-up in the Roman Empire and being forced into a life of battles, wars, and gladiatorial combat.

Similarly, Lucius is seeking revenge against Marcus Acacius just as Maximus was against Commodus. Evidently, the story set-ups of both Gladiator and Gladiator II have a lot of similarities. That said, making Lucius’ character arc end with him becoming the Roman Emperor would give Gladiator II a very different climax from Gladiator. This would give Gladiator II more credence for existing as it is exploring something different from the first movie. While Gladiator II looks fantastic, the story needs to stand on its own without simply copying its predecessor, something a different ending for Lucius would achieve.