Gladiator 2 Dominates VOD Charts As $435M Box Office Run Winds Down

Gladiator II
is now a top performer on VOD as its theatrical run winds down. Directed by Ridley Scott and serving as a sequel to 2000’s Gladiator starring Russell Crowe, the action epic follows Lucius (Paul Mescal) as he becomes a hero of the Colosseum. Gladiator 2 reviews have been somewhat lukewarm from critics and the film’s worldwide box office total now sits at $435 million after getting off to a decent start in November. The film became available to watch on VOD starting December 24.

IndieWire now reveals that Gladiator 2 is the most popular movie on iTunes for Monday, December 23, and on Fandango at Home for the week of December 23 – 29. Scott’s sequel beats other titles like The Order (2024), Venom: The Last Dance (2024), and Heretic (2024). Check out the two VOD charts below:

What Gladiator 2’s VOD Success Means For The Movie

The Film’s Box Office Performance Explained

Made on an estimated budget of about $250 million, Gladiator 2 may have been looking at a break-even point of $500 million or more. At this stage in the film’s lifecycle, it’s unlikely to reach this number, and could fairly be dubbed a disappointment. Though Scott has been optimistic about making Gladiator 3, saying at a press conference in November (via Mama’s Geeky) that “there’s certainly going to be” a third installment, the financial performance of the sequel thus far doesn’t suggest that this will be the case.

Gladiator 2‘s VOD performance is a promising sign, but Scott’s movie dominating the charts also isn’t surprising given it only just launched on home viewing platforms. The key for the sequel will be continued VOD performance in the weeks to come, especially as people go back to work following the holidays.

Our Take On Gladiator 2’s VOD Success

Ridley Scott’s Sequel Can’t Match The Highs Of The Original

Gladiator 2 isn’t a bad movie by any means, but it certainly isn’t as good as the original, and its reception thus far reflects this. The original grossed $465 million back in 2000, which, adjusted for inflation, would be roughly $850 million today. Clearly, the sequel won’t be grossing anywhere close to this when its theatrical run ends, and it always seemed like a long shot that it would.

Though Mescal does an admirable job as Lucius, it seems unlikely that a third movie will get the green light to continue the story after the Gladiator 2 ending. Even though Gladiator 2 may be a top-performing movie on digital platforms, Scott’s sequel still has a ways to go to become even a modest success.

Source: IndieWire

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Gladiator 2 is the follow-up to Ridley Scott’s award-winning film Gladiator from 2000. Scott returns to direct the sequel, with Paul Mescal staring as Lucius, alongside Denzel Washington and Joseph Quinn as the villain Emperor Geta. Gladiator 2 had been stuck in development hell for years before a script written by David Scarpa finally moved forward.

Release Date

November 22, 2024

Runtime

148 minutes

Main Genre

Adventure

Cast

Paul Mescal
, Pedro Pascal
, Denzel Washington
, Connie Nielsen
, Joseph Quinn
, Fred Hechinger
, Derek Jacobi
, May Calamawy
, Peter Mensah
, Matt Lucas
, Alexander Karim
, Tim McInnerny
, Lee Charles
, Chidi Ajufo
, Alfie Tempest
, Riana Duce
, Chi Lewis Parry
, Paul Candelent
, Hadrian Howard
, Alexander Simkin
, Mikhail Basmadjian
, Matthew Charlery-Smith
, Maxime Durand
, Lior Raz

Character(s)

Lucius Verus
, Marcus Acacius
, Macrinus
, Lucilla
, Emperor Caracalla
, Emperor Geta
, Gracchus

Writers

David Scarpa
, Peter Craig
, David Franzoni

Studio(s)

Paramount Pictures
, Universal Pictures
, Scott Free Productions
, Red Wagon Entertainment

Distributor(s)

Paramount Pictures

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