Gladiator fans, are you ready to be entertained?

Almost a quarter of a century after its cinematic release in 2000, the multi-Oscar-winning historical epic from Sir Ridley Scott is finally the recipient of a surprise sequel.

Simply entitled Gladiator II, the long-delayed follow-up has premiered a lengthy yet exhilarating trailer that promises plenty of action and spectacle despite a change of leading man…

Directed again by Scott and written by David Scarpa (All the Money in the World, Napoleon), the (eerily-familiar) plot follows Lucius Verus, the former heir to the Roman Empire, as he finds himself forced into slavery by a ruthless Roman general. During his capture, he is then forced to prove his worth by fighting as a gladiator while opposing the rule of the young emperors Geta and Caracalla.

BAFTA winner Paul Mescal (Normal People, Aftersun) succeeds Spencer Treat Clark in the role of Lucius and is joined in the sequel by Pedro Pascal (Game of Thrones, The Last of Us) as Marcus Acacius, Joseph Quinn (Dickensian, Stranger Things) as Emperor Geta, Fred Hechinger (News of the World, The White Lotus) as Emperor Caracalla, Tim McInnerny (Blackadder, National Treasure) and two-time Oscar winner Denzel Washington (Glory, Training Day, Fences) as Macrinus.

Additionally, Connie Nielsen and Sir Derek Jacobi reprise their respective roles as Lucius’s mother Lucilla and Senator Gracchus after appearing in the original 2000 flick. Unsurprisingly, there is no return for former leading man Russell Crowe after his beloved character Maximus Decimus Meridus was killed in that film’s climax.

The sequel is the latest in a long line of follow-ups to Best Picture Oscar winners including The Bells of St. Mary’s (after Going My Way), French Connection II (after The French Connection), and The Evening Star (after Terms of Endearment).

Gladiator II will take us back into the arena when it is released in the UK on 15 November.