Even though Hollywood is still in the midst of the Screen Actors Guild (SAG-AFTRA) strike, an encouraging update was given on the status of Gladiator 2.
Ridley Scott is returning to finally make a sequel to his 2000 historical fiction film, Gladiator.
The movie will focus on Paul Mescal's Lucius Verus II, a character who played a prominent role in the first film.
Filming was previously ongoing in Malta prior to the beginning of the SAG-AFTRA strike, but like many other projects, it was forced to shut down.
Gladiator 2's Exciting Filming Update
Variety recently reported that Gladiator 2 made it past the halfway point of filming before the SAG-AFTRA strike caused the production to be halted indefinitely.
The last update that was given on the status of the sequel was back in July when it was stated that it was about halfway done.
This exciting news means that the actors and crew were able to film a substantial amount of scenes between that July report and when the actors' strike began, and the new report obviously suggests that Ridley Scott and the rest of the cast and crew won't have as much to film when they return to the set after the strike ends.
Gladiator 2 has a current release date of November 22, 2024.
Since the writers' and actors' strikes caused so many titles to shut down production, many of their respective release dates were also forced to be delayed.
If everything goes according to plan and the SAG-AFTRA strike does end soon, then filming for Gladiator 2 will be able to resume by the beginning of 2024.
Assuming that it will, the film will likely still be able to hit that November 22 release date, meaning that it won't have to be delayed at all.
Filming initially began back in June with the expectation that it would last for around four months. Considering that the cast and crew were able to shoot more than half of the movie in just around a month's time, it may not even take three more months to finish the project once they get back on set.
It is important to also note that Gladiator 2 will not have to go through post-production as heavily as a lot of other upcoming films such as Deadpool 3.
With a movie like Deadpool 3, so much CGI and VFX has to be put into it that it makes the post-production phase a lot longer, whereas Gladiator 2 is more practical filming.
Therefore, it is likely that Gladiator 2 will actually be able to hit theaters on its planned release date, but at the same time, just as likely that a movie such as Deadpool 3 will have to be delayed.
When Will the Actors' Strike End?
Since Gladiator 2 was shut down in the middle of filming, the end of the Writers Guild of America (WGA) strike didn't really have much of an effect on the production as a whole.
While it is obviously extremely encouraging that the writers' strike did end, a movie like Gladiator 2 will benefit mainly from the end of the actors' strike rather than the end of the writers' strike.
The latest reports detailed that SAG-AFTRA will be meeting with the AMPTP as soon as possible.
However, it will be a negotiation process, so fans shouldn't expect a deal to be made right away.
Just as the writers did, the actors guild will have to make sure that it secures a fair deal for all of its members, which could take weeks of talks between the two sides.
However, since the AMPTP was finally willing to give the writers a good deal, it is likely that they will be more inclined to go ahead and try to cut a deal with the actors as soon as possible so projects can get back in development.
Industry insiders have speculated that the actors' labor stoppage will be resolved by the end of October.
If that happens, then productions will be back up and running by December (or by the beginning of 2024, at the latest).
Gladiator 2 is expected to be released on November 22, 2024.
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