Gladiator II Is Off To A Great Start At The Global Box Office

It's been a quiet few weekends at the box office, relatively speaking, as Hollywood is waiting for the pre-Thanksgiving window to drop a potential Barbenheimer sized bomb on the industry with the release of "Wicked" and "Gladiator II." Both films are expected to do big business and both could be in the awards season mix here in the coming weeks/months, which only serves to give them a longer life in theaters. Fortunately for Paramount and director Ridley Scott, his blockbuster sequel is already off to a great start overseas.

Even though Amazon's holiday movie "Red One" opened atop the charts domestically, it was "Gladiator II" coming in at number one internationally. The sequel took in $87 million around the world over the weekend, with the film rolling out in 67 different markets. That represents the biggest R-rated opening ever for a Paramount release worldwide. It's also, amazingly enough, the biggest international debut for one of Scott's films outside of North America. In short, this is all very good news. That said, "Gladiator II" still has a long way to go before it can be considered a sound investment.

While early reports suggesting that Scott's latest had seen its budget balloon to more than $300 million were overblown, the sequel was still very costly, with reports indicating the final price tag was anywhere between $210 and $250 million. That is remarkably expensive for a non-superhero film and, even on that front, nothing is guaranteed these days. Very few blockbusters can bring in crowds large enough to justify a budget that massive.

"Gladiator II" likely needs to make between $600 and $700 million across the globe to turn a profit in theaters, depending on what the final budget actually is. If nothing else, though, this is a damn good start.

The "Gladiator" sequel follows Lucius from the original film (who's portrayed as a grown-up by Paul Mescal) as he's forced to enter the Colosseum after his home is conquered by the Emperors of Rome. Years earlier, in the first "Gladiator," Lucius witnessed the death of Maximus (Russell Crowe) at the hands of his uncle. Full of rage and with the future of Rome at stake, Lucius must now fight for the future of his own people. The cast also includes Denzel Washington ("The Equalizer"), Pedro Pascal ("The Mandalorian"), Connie Nielsen ("Gladiator"), Joseph Quinn ("Stranger Things"), and Fred Hechinger ("Thelma").

Currently, estimates suggest that "Gladiator II" is going to open in the $60 million range domestically, which would be a solid start. However, "Wicked" is looking to win the weekend with an opening of $100 million or more, assuming current estimates hold. That isn't necessarily a problem, though, what with both films gunning for different audiences. If "Barbie" and "Oppenheimer" taught us anything, it's that counterprogramming can work, even on the largest scales, and what we're seeing in the early going is that the audience demand is there for more "Gladiator." That's a good thing.

Also working in the film's favor is early reception. Though perhaps not as roundly praised as the original, the "Gladiaor" sequel has been earning very solid reviews from critics. /Film's Chris Evangelista gave "Gladiator II" a 7 out of 10 review, praising Washington's performance in particular. We'll see if general U.S. audiences agree soon enough.

"Gladiator II" hits U.S. theaters on November 22, 2024.