“Gladiator II” is set in Ancient Rome and North Africa, but where was the Ridley Scott epic actually filmed?
Like the first film, portions were shot in Morocco and Malta, while director Ridley Scott also filmed key scenes in his native England.
Here’s where Rome, the Colosseum and the African kingdom of Numidia were created, some on locations used by Scott in previous films.
The arena where Lucius (Paul Mescal) fights Marcus Acacius (Pedro Pascal) was rebuilt in Fort Ricasoli in Kalkara, Malta, the same location that was used in the first “Gladiator.” The fort, which was built in the 17th century by the Order of St John, was also used in “Troy” and “Napoleon.”
Production designer Arthur Max told Conde Nast Traveler that the crew had significantly less time to build the sets than they did on “Gladiator.”
He added that the limestone walls on the site “[gave] us a head start for free,” and that they used more of the location than on the first film, going so far as to discover — under the supervision of the archeological department, ancient “staircases and entries” under the “rubble and ruin.”
The battle between the Numidian and Roman army, where Lucius’ wife is killed and he and King Jugurtha (Peter Mensah) are taken prisoner, was filmed in the desert city of Ouarzazate, Morocco using the Jerusalem set from “Kingdom of Heaven.” “We extended the walls, put roofs on the towers, put geometric motifs onto the all the doors and added ceramic tiles that had Numidian characteristics. And then we blew it all up,” said Max.
The now long-gone North African kingdom was roughly where Algeria is today. At the movie’s Los Angeles premiere, Mensah told TheWrap that, 20 years earlier, he was in the same spot to film “Hidalgo.”
According to Travel + Leisure magazine, the city, which is known as the gateway to the Sahara Desert, has also been used in “Lawrence of Arabia,” “The Mummy” and “Game of Thrones.”
Max told Conde Nast Traveler, “Malta was riddled with old forts from the Napoleonic era on up to World War II, and all of them built in this similar limestone… We used Fort Delimara for the interior tunnels of the Colosseum and Fort Manoel as [the location] where the gladiator training takes place.”
Fans on social media spotted extras dressed as Roman soldiers in the UK valley, which is located on the South Downs in Sussex. This setting appears to be the final showdown as the Roman army marches to face opposing factions.
The post Where Was ‘Gladiator II’ Filmed? appeared first on TheWrap.
