Paul Mescal gets bloodied in an exclusive Gladiator 2 image, while Ridley Scott explains why returning to Rome in the sequel was a dealbreaker

The action returns to the Colosseum in Ridley Scott's Gladiator 2 as Lucius Verus (Paul Mescal) takes his place in the brutal arena, but the director tells Total Film that returning to the setting was a key factor in deciding whether to remake his Oscar-winning epic.

“You go through all the questions,” Scott tells Total Film in our new issue, out Thursday September 12, which features the Penguin on the cover. “Can I go back to Rome? Can I go back to the Colosseum? Because that's what we did with Russell. [Crowe]. And the answer is: you better be in the Colosseum because it's called Gladiator. I don't know how you do that without going to the Colosseum again, otherwise there's no point in doing it.”