Hollywood star Russell Crowe has labelled the Gladiator sequel – which is set to star Paul Mescal - as “spectacular”.
The actor starred in the blockbuster, which earned him his first Oscar for Best Actor in 2000.
The sequel is now in production in Morocco, and it will star Mescal as Lucius, the son of Lucilla.
READ MORE: Gladiator star Russell Crowe admits he feels 'edge of jealousy' towards Paul Mescal ahead of sequel
Asked about Ridley Scott’s upcoming sequel, Crowe simply said he was in no position to comment, not least because his character died in the original.
“I was in Malta recently,” he said, “because we did a concert there, and I looked across to Fort Ricasoli, and the Colosseum’s been built there again, just like it was in 1999. I tell you, man, it was like a time warp — for a couple of seconds there, I was like, What year is this? Where are we?,” he said laughing.
“I don’t know what I was expecting, but I wasn’t expecting that they would rebuild the Colosseum in the exact same place.”
But he maintained that he was completely out of the loop when it came to the sequel.
“I don’t know anything about the cast, I don’t know anything about the plot. Well, I wouldn’t, would I? ‘Cause I’m dead! But I just know that whoever’s involved in that movie, if Ridley has decided to do a second part of that story 24 years later, he will have really strong reasons to do so. And it’s very typical of him, really, to rethink everything that he’s done and know how to make it better. So, I would say that, now, I couldn’t think of that movie being anything less than absolutely spectacular.”
In March, Crowe admitted he was a little bit jealous of Mescal’s role in the movie.
He told the Ryan Tubridy Show: “I hear that young fella Paul is a good dude and I wish him the best of luck with it.
"I think where they're picking the story up from, a young Lucius, stepping into the role of emperor, I think that's a very smart idea within the world of the film that we created.
"No doubt I'll end up having hundreds of friends of mine working on it. I already know designers and leather workers making the armour (for the movie).
"I don't want to dwell on it too much because it does take me back to a period of time when obviously I was significantly younger.
"And you know, the rose-coloured glasses of that experience now (are) perfectly crystallised."
Crowe said he looked back on the memories of the first Gladiator movie and knows he "loved every minute of it" despite the reported drama on set at the time.
However, he added: "That wasn't actually the case at the time.
"But I do like being on a period movie set. I don't know why. Stepping into those sort of costumes and those sorts of situations and stuff – it has great appeal to me.
"So, what I'm getting at is that there's a slight edge of jealousy, to have that experience that I had once."
