Renowned filmmaker Ridley Scott recently shed light on Denzel Washington’s character, Macrinus, in Gladiator 2, by methodically comparing him to Donald Trump. Macrinus, who draws inspiration from a real historical personality, is depicted as a power-hungry merchant with a tragic past in the sequel. In a recent discussion, Scott broke the character down by detailing his background before bringing the president-elect into the mix.
Ridley Scott says Denzel Washington’s Macrinus ‘is very close to Trump’ in Gladiator 2
The four-time Academy Award nominee opened the conversation by explaining Macrinus’ rich backstory. After clarifying his motivations in Gladiator 2, Ridley Scott called Denzel Washington’s character a gangster, eventually likening him to Donald Trump.
The acclaimed director shared his take on Macrinus in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter. Breaking down his history, Scott stated, “[Macrinus] was a prisoner of war, probably at a North African state, and actually was taken to Rome probably as a gladiator. Survived. Got free. Got into the business of maybe making wine and bread. He evolved into a very rich merchant selling s*** to the Roman armies: food, oil, wine, cloth, weapons, everything. He maybe had a million men spread around Europe.”
Following his extensive analysis of Macrinus’ backstory, Ridley Scott justified the arms dealer’s ambitious nature. He then compared Denzel Washington’s character in Gladiator 2 to Donald Trump, saying, “He’s also a gangster — very close to Trump. A clever gangster. He creates chaos, and from chaos, he can evolve.”
In a previous interview with the outlet, Washington himself defined Macrinus as an extremely selfish character who could “use his mother” and “use his own children.” The veteran actor then hit the point home by stating that Macrinus “is in bed with the devil.”
The international releases of Gladiator 2 have proven to be extremely beneficial for Paramount so far, raking over $221 million. The sequel has also garnered majorly favorable reviews, which explains the movie’s ever-growing success.
