Warning! This article contains spoilers for Gladiator 2.

Gladiator's emotional ending.

Throughout the film, Lucius - one of the many Gladiator 2's positive reviews. By the time of Gladiator 2's ending, Lucius’ destiny is altered, an Empire is changed forever, and a long-lasting legacy lives on.

Whose Hand Is That In Gladiator 2's Final Scene?

Maximus' Legacy Looms Over Gladiator 2's Ending

In the final scene of Gladiator 2, Lucius returns to an empty Colosseum just as Djimon Hounsou's Juba did in Gladiator. Lucius kneels in the sand as the purple sky above him signifies the dawn of a new Rome, asking his father, Maximus, to speak to him. As Lucius does so, the film shows a familiar scene from Gladiator of a hand grazing the stalks of grain fields.

Maximus' dreams in Gladiator's ending saw him journey to Elysium, the blissful Roman afterlife, to reunite with his deceased wife and son. These scenes were shown again in Gladiator 2's ending to signal that Maximus' legacy lives on through Lucius. Maximus' character is summed up in both films by an iconic Gladiator line: "What we do in life echoes in eternity." Maximus fought for what was right, allowing him to leave peacefully in eternity via Elysium. Lucius is now intending to do the same, with the flashes of his father's hand typifying this in Gladiator 2's ending.

Lucius Becomes The Prince Of Rome, Fulfilling His Destiny

Lucius' intention to continue Maximus' beliefs and fight for what is right is summed up in the conclusion of his character arc. Unlike Maximus, who died a gladiator, Lucius transcends Roman slavery and embraces his rightful place as the true ruler of the Roman Empire. Gladiator's historical accuracy is often thrown into question, but the idea of Roman Emperors being chosen by a multitude of methods - from cutthroat manipulations to lineage or being picked by the senate - is often consistent with history.

In Gladiator 2's ending, Lucius stakes his claim to Rome via the connection he holds to Gladiator's elderly cast member, Marcus Aurelius. Lucius is the grandson of the former Emperor and, despite hiding his lineage for much of his life, reveals this fact in Gladiator 2's ending. The climax of the film sees Lucius and Denzel Washington's Macrinus standing between two armies: the Roman legions and the Praetorian guard. The Roman Army was already loyal to Lucius thanks to Pedro Pascal's General Acacius and the reveal of the former's heritage, but the Praetorian guard was serving Macrinus.

Denzel Washington's performance as Macrinus is being widely praised, with many hoping it earns him another nomination at the Academy Awards for Best ing Actor.

Lucius stands in front of the two armies after defeating Macrinus and proclaims himself as the prince of Rome. This allows the wavering Praetorian guard to follow Lucius as Rome's new ruler. After spending decades hiding from his destiny, Lucius finally becomes what he was always meant to be and tries to usher in his grandfather's dream of Rome.

How Lucius Succeeds In Restoring The Dream Of Rome

Marcus Aurelius & Maximus Live On Through Lucius

The dream of Rome is mentioned at length throughout both Gladiator and Gladiator 2. This dream began with Marcus Aurelius, and was the ideal that Rome would eventually stop being ruled by Emperors with conflicting ideologies, beliefs, and temperaments, and instead be ruled by the people. This dream links to the real-world systems of dictatorship and republics, with Marcus Aurelius wishing for Rome to be the latter, something Lucius somewhat succeeds in achieving in Gladiator 2's ending.

This power could see Lucius instill a republic, finally completing the dream that began with Marcus Aurelius...

In embracing his place as the prince of Rome, Lucius now holds the power to make Marcus Aurelius' dream - and by extension, that of Maximus - a reality. Lucius has power over the Roman people, the Roman Army, and the Praetorian guard due to the deaths of Gladiator 2's twin Roman Emperors and the scheming Macrinus. This power could see Lucius instill a republic, finally completing the dream that began with Marcus Aurelius, was fought for by Maximus, and shaped the entire story of Gladiator 2.

What Lucilla's Death & Arrow Mean

Another character who believed in the dream of Rome was Lucilla, the mother of Lucius and the daughter of Marcus Aurelius. In Gladiator 2's final act, though, Lucilla is tragically killed. In an attempt to secure his power by turning the Roman people against the remaining twin Emperor, Caracalla, Macrinus organizes Lucilla's execution in the Colosseum. Lucilla's death means that the Roman people lose all faith in Caracalla and Geta, despite both being killed due to the machinations of Macrinus.

Moreover, Lucilla's death - specifically the cause of this event - has greater symbolic meaning. Throughout Gladiator 2, Lucius is shown keeping hold of an arrow shaft, torn from the projectile that killed his wife in the film's opening. This arrow was a symbol of Lucius' revenge quest, fueling him in his desire to kill Acacius. However, Lucilla is killed by an arrow shot by Macrinus, signifying that he - or, more aptly, men like him - should have been the object of Lucius' quest all along.

Acacius is revealed as someone who does not like war despite waging it, only doing so to protect Lucilla from the madness of Caracalla and Geta. The final act reveals this, all while showing Macrinus as Gladiator 2's true villain. The arrow sticking from Lucilla reminds Lucius that Acacius was never someone who he should have held contempt for, but that it is Macrinus who needs to die to secure Rome's democratic future, linking back to the arrow Gladiator 2's protagonist retrieved from his wife's dead body.

How Gladiator 2's Ending Is Similar To Gladiator 1's

Both Films Use Similar Plot Points

Since the trailers for Ridley Scott's 2024 sequel were released, Gladiator 2 has been dubbed a stealth remake of its predecessor. Although the former includes enough new elements to stand on its own as a sequel, there is no denying that it uses many similar elements from the original Gladiator, especially those that proved effective in 2000. The ending of Gladiator 2 proves this by being closely connected to the final moments of Gladiator. For instance, as Lucius talks about the dream of Rome, the iconic song "Now We Are Free" begins playing.

This song can be heard as Lucius kneels in the Colosseum, just as it can be in the first movie when Juba does the same. Gladiator 2's final shot is also the aforementioned scene of Maximus brushing the grain stalks as he reunites with his family, which is one of the last shots in the original movie. Overall, these similarities are used to convey the thematic similarities between Gladiator and Gladiator 2, reinforcing the idea that both films are about legacy, honor, sacrifice, and fighting for what is right.

Does Gladiator 2 Set Up A Third Movie?

The last major question stemming from Gladiator 2's ending is whether it sets up a third movie in the franchise. While many did not believe Gladiator 2 was even necessary, the film's strong international opening weekend and good reviews prove that a return to Ridley Scott's version of Rome is welcome. With that in mind, a trilogy could be crafted out of some seeds planted in Gladiator 2, as well as comments from Scott himself to French film magazine Premiere.

Scott's idea stems from his love of The Godfather, with Gladiator 2's ending echoing the iconic film series by Francis Ford Coppola; Lucius is now in a position he did not originally want. Lucius has taken the legacy of his father and grandfather and found himself as the prince of Rome, and while he is committed to doing what is right, it is not a position he wanted for himself initially. This allows Gladiator 2's ending to tease a sequel, with the third film potentially exploring Lucius’ quest to realize the dream of Rome and troubles fulfilling this legacy.