The new GLADIATOR II featurette focuses on combat and physical training

Here’s a new featurette for Ridley Scott’S Gladiator IIand offers a behind-the-scenes look at what happened during the combat and physical training the actors went through to prepare to shoot this film.

This is a very physically demanding film, so the actors had to go through hell of preparation to be ready for what they were about to undertake. The video also offers some snippets of new footage from the film.

The story takes place years after Maximus gave his life, overthrowing the leadership of the decadent and corrupt Commodus. The sequel focuses on Lucius, son of Lucilla and grandson of Commodus, son of the Roman leader Marcus Aurelius who killed his father and seized the throne.

Commodus met his downfall in the gladiatorial arena against Maximus, who despite being mortally wounded, defeated the emperor before dying to be reunited with his family. Maximus had saved Lucius and his mother, leaving a lasting impact on the boy.

It is explained that “decades have passed and Lucius has come of age away from his mother. When he was still a child, Lucilla sent him to the northern coast of Africa, to a region called Numidia which was (at that point) just out of reach of the Roman Empire.

“Gladiator II begins with Lucius of Mescal living a peaceful life with his wife and son until conquerors from his homeland begin to invade. Scott says: “The film begins with the incursion of the Roman fleet, which arrives from the sea and decimates Numidia. It’s pretty gnarly.

Eventually Lucius finds himself a prisoner and is taken to Rome, where he must fight in the Colosseum. Scott explains how it ends: “The problem is, when he arrives in Rome as a prisoner and has a first round in the arena, he sees his mother, to his shock.”

The film is also the protagonist Paolo Mescal as Lucius preparing for battle in the Colosseum. Connie Nielsen like Lucilla, Denzel Washington like Macrinus, Fred Hechinger as Emperor Caracalla, Joseph Quinn as emperor Geta, e Pedro Pasquale in the role of Marco Acacio.

The synopsis reads: “Gladiator II continues the epic saga of power, intrigue and revenge set in ancient Rome. Years after witnessing the death of the revered hero Maximus at the hands of his uncle, Lucius (Paul Mescal) is forced to enter the Colosseum after his home is conquered by the tyrannical emperors who now rule Rome with an iron fist.

“With anger in his heart and the future of the Empire at stake, Lucius must look to his past to find the strength and honor needed to restore the glory of Rome to its people.”

The film will arrive in theaters on November 22.