Denzel Washington has praised his Gladiator II co-star Paul Mescal for pulling off “a hard act to follow” in the sequel.

The Normal People actor follows in the footsteps of Russell Crowe as the titular gladiator in Ridley Scott’s sequel. Mescal plays the nephew of former Emperor Commodus, Lucius, who witnessed Crowe’s character Maximus fight in the arena in the 2000 original.

In an interview with Variety, Washington acknowledged his young co-star had big shoes to fill, saying, “It’s a hard act to follow, and Paul pulled it off. He’s his own gladiator.”

The Equalizer noted that Mescal and Pedro Pascal, who plays the villain General Marcus Acacius, had the most physically taxing roles during filming, whereas he didn’t have to do very much.

“I didn’t have to do anything but this (sips water with pinky up). That was my job. Just twirl the glass, twirl the goblet, and hold whatever I had in my other hand. And make sure I don’t step on my gown,” he shared.

The Oscar-winning actor plays Macrinus, a power player in Rome who teams up with Lucius in an effort to overthrow the current rulers, Emperor Geta and Emperor Caracalla, portrayed by Joseph Quinn and Fred Hechinger, respectively.

Washington also added that an “epic” new trailer will be released on 23 September.

Gladiator II, which also stars returning cast members Connie Nielsen and Derek Jacobi, will be released in cinemas on 22 November.

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