I'm Not Really Big On Director's Cuts, But I Wish Gladiator II Had One

It’s been a few months since the release of Gladiator II, and I have to say, I’m still thinking about how much I want a director’s cut. Ridley Scott’s long-awaited sequel recently became available to watch at home and to stream for those with a Paramount+ subscription, and while I liked the movie (as detailed in my Gladiator II review), I really wish my at-home rewatch could be through an extended version of the film.

Look, Gladiator II’s theatrical cut is two hours and 28 minutes long. That is honestly more than long enough for me when it comes to a blockbuster movie, but when I saw it in theaters in November, I couldn’t help but feel like there were some story aspects that were removed in order to make it under two and a half hours. While Scott has claimed this is the movie he wanted to make and his cut already, I’m curious about seeing a much longer version that doesn’t feel as rushed and disheveled as it does to me.

I’m Not Usually Into Director’s Cuts

I know there’s a whole market out there regarding epic movies like this and director’s cuts being released to provide a longer runtime, but I just want to say, I’m usually not the person first in line for that. I think it’s certainly interesting when a filmmaker is allowed to share more of their vision when the first version was nudged by a studio to be shorter, but ultimately I think if what you’re making is turning out to be three+ hours, maybe you should rethink it as a miniseries.

Sometimes I’m wrong. For example, I absolutely loved my experience seeing all three and a half hours of Martin Scorsese’s Killers Of The Flower Moon in theaters. And I love the fact that Best Picture nominee The Brutalist brought back the intermission. Ultimately though, director’s cuts are not my thing, but I want one for Gladiator II.

But Immediately After Watching Gladiator II, I Wanted To See A Longer Version

When I went to see Gladiator II in theaters back in November, I was very much anticipating it after Scott’s original Gladiator was one of the best 2000s movies. While it definitely delivered on a lot of fronts, particularly with Denzel Washington’s devious villain, I also felt like there were a lot of story elements that just weren’t given enough attention and time, oddly enough. I don’t know why the movie felt rushed to me considering its runtime, but I figure it has to do with what was filmed just being a lot longer than the final cut could provide.

I would have liked more scenes that fleshed out Macrinus’ backstory and helped me understand his character better. I also think a popular complaint was the lack of Connie Nielsen’s Lucilla, whether that be between her and Pedro Pascal’s Acacius or Lucius. She felt like somewhat of an afterthought to the movie, when I think she should have been one of the main leads. It also felt like some of the scenes in the Colosseum just breezed by when I wanted them to offer more tension and nail-biting action.

There’s Been A Lot Of Chatter About What Was Removed For The Theatrical Cut

Though I have my own hopes for a Gladiator II director’s cut, there’s also been quite a lot of talk about scenes that were shot for the movie that were cut. For example, an entire character was removed from the movie! May Calamawy, who I loved in Ramy and Moon Knight, was originally going to play an “important” character in Gladiator II, but was reduced to having a background role. While actors being cut out of movies certainly happens sometimes in big movies like this, she didn’t deserve to be completely omitted.

There’s also been talk of wild deleted scenes in Gladiator II, like the twin kings asking to be adopted by Lucilla, and Washington claimed there was a scene where Macrinus kissed another man that was cut from the movie. There’s also apparently footage of Mescal kissing Pascal in a cut scene. Kissing aside, all this talk seems to hint there was more story to the flick, and I want to see what a director’s cut of this movie would look like.

Scott has also spoken on the topic. He shared with The Hollywood Reporter in November that there’s a three hour and 40 minute cut that he’s contemplating putting out in the world. I very much want to see that! I think having an extra hour could possibly change my mind on the movie and offer me the pace I wish it had given me on the first go around.

At The End Of The Day, I Think I Just Wish I Liked Gladiator II Better

Now, while I’m totally rooting for a Gladiator II director’s cut, I also just wish the original movie was just better, if I’m being honest. Plenty of filmmakers have made masterpieces with the runtime of a typical movie under three hours, and my hopes for a longer movie more so comes from my disappointment in what I've seen than me loving it so much I just need a longer version.

I totally get that movies are basically impossible to make as good as some of Scott’s others, like Alien and Blade Runner. But I definitely think with perhaps more work on the script, the movie could have been incredible with the runtime it was given.

Considering it's a sequel, sure, it’s easy to compare it to the original, but I get peeved when filmmakers make movies long just because they don’t have the self control to cut the scenes that need to be cut. In the instance of Gladiator II, it feels like Scott had a lot of fun ideas to go around, but he never fully committed to making them all fit together in a cooperative way. Would an extra hour help that? I don’t know, but I’m sure I’d be entertained by seeing what it would look like.