When any legacy sequel releases, there are always going to be comparisons to the original, and Gladiator 2 was no exception to that. The first comparisons came in the form of Rotten Tomatoes scores, where Gladiator 2’s 71% from critics and 82% from audiences fell short of the original’s 80% from critics and 87% from audiences. Once it had been mostly agreed that there is no performance in Gladiator 2 with as much force as Russell Crowe’s Oscar-winning performance in Gladiator, the final comparisons were left for the box office. Ridley Scott’s has performed admirably at the box office despite a whopping $250 million budget, and after nearly two full months in theaters, Gladiator 2 has officially passed the original Gladiator at the global box office, with its $454 million total surpassing the original’s $451 million.
Gladiator 2’s global box office split is skewed much more towards its international earnings, where the film has put together $282 million in foreign markets. Still, the Paul Mescal-led sword & sandal epic also earned $171 million domestically, which is enough to make it one of the top 15 highest-grossing movies of 2024 in the U.S., recently passing Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes but still more than $20 million short of Mufasa: The Lion King. Gladiator 2 is also one of the top 25 highest-earning historical fiction movies ever at the domestic box office, sitting in the #21 spot at the time of writing just $1 million behind Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales. Denzel Washington’s Gladiator 2 is even the 14th-highest-grossing movie of 2024 at the worldwide box office.
Will There Be Another ‘Gladiator’ Movie?
Ridley Scott has confirmed that he’s working on another Gladiator movie, but the sequel’s failure to become a major profit at the box office has likely caused Paramount executives to pump the brakes on potentially moving the film closer to the production stage. Gladiator 2 cost roughly $250 million to make, and a film generally needs to earn double that to break even, and even more to become a profit, and Gladiator 2 has yet to double its production budget. Even with a global box office total north of $450 million, the film is still likely going to be a net loss for Paramount, which may affect if we get another Gladiator movie.
Gladiator 2 is still playing in most theaters worldwide. Stay tuned to Collider for future box office updates on the film, and you can also rent or purchase Gladiator 2 at home on Prime Video.
Lucius Verus, the son of Maximus’s beloved Lucilla, returns to Rome after years in the wilderness. Captured by Roman forces led by General Marcus Acacius, he is thrust into the gladiatorial arena. As he battles for survival, he encounters Macrinus, a former slave-turned-merchant, and faces the corrupt twin emperors Caracalla and Geta.
- Cast
-
Paul Mescal
, Pedro Pascal
, Denzel Washington
, Connie Nielsen
, Joseph Quinn
, Fred Hechinger
, Derek Jacobi
, Lior Raz
, Peter Mensah
, Matt Lucas
, Alexander Karim
, Tim McInnerny
, Lee Charles
, Chidi Ajufo
, Alfie Tempest
, Riana Duce
, Chi Lewis Parry - Runtime
-
148 minutes
