Gladiator IIFirst Reviews Praise Paul Mescal's 'Magnetic' Performance in Sequel Full of 'Eye-Popping Spectacle'

Mar. 15, 2025

Paul Mescal and Peter Mensah in Gladiator II.Photo:Aidan Monaghan/Paramount Pictures

Aidan Monaghan/Paramount Pictures

The first reviews forGladiator IIhave arrived.

AfterRidley Scott’s long-awaited sequel to his 2000Academy Award-winning filmGladiatorscreened for critics in recent days, the epic film debuted on review aggregators likeMetacriticwith a score of 67 — indicating generally favorable reviews — and 84% positive reviews onRotten Tomatoes.

The Hollywood Reporter’s David Rooney wrote that the movie’s starPaul Mescal"is magnetic as always" as he portrays Lucius, whileDenzel Washington"brings such blinding charisma, steely authority and sly humor" to his role as the scheming politician Macrinus.

“Gladiator IImight not have a protagonist with the scorching glower of [Russell] Crowe’s Maximus, but it has plenty of the eye-popping spectacle and operatic violence audiences will want,” Rooney wrote.

Vulturefilm critic Alison Willmore criticized the movie heavily in her review, writing thatGladiator IIis “so underwhelming that you might leave thinking, ‘Huh, maybe masculinity really is in crisis.’ "

Paul Mescal and Pedro Pascal in Gladiator II.Aidan Monaghan/Paramount Pictures

Willmore wrote that Mescal, 28, is “terrible at giving the rousing speeches that were so iconic inGladiator,” while describing the sequel’s script as noticeably “clunkier” than that of the original movie. “Sure, not all of us spend a lot of time thinking about the Roman Empire, but those who do deserve better than this,” she wrote.

IndieWirecritic Vikram Murthi similarly criticized the movie and wrote that it feels “drained of any of the old-fashioned magic that elevated the original” despite feeling larger in scope and scale.

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Paul Mescal in Gladiator II.Paramount Pictures

Paramount Pictures

Gladiator II poster.Paramount Pictures

“I didn’t visualize Mescal following Russell Crowe into this particular ring, but his muscular and compelling turn as Lucius is the real deal, as fierce in all the swordplay as he is human in his portrayal,” he wrote, while also praising Connie Nielsen’s reprisal of her role as Lucilla. “There were times [Mescal] even reminded me ofSpartacus-era Kirk Douglas.”

Siddhant Adklakha wrote in his review for Inverse thatGladiator IIis “a darker, more vicious film for a darker, more vicious time” in relation to the recentU.S. presidential election.

The critic described Mescal’s work in the movie as “fiery,” while praising Washington, 69, whom Adklakha wrote “lights the screen ablaze with his Shakespearean delivery and campy, two-faced façade, switching between devious scowls and devilish grins with ease depending on who’s watching.”

“It’s a deliciously self-assured performance from an actor at the height of his abilities who crafts a character so delightfully scheming that it’s hard to look away,” he added.

Gladiator IIis in theaters Nov. 22.

source: people.com