After capturing fans’ hearts through Game of Thrones and The Last of Us, Pedro Pascal is back in the trailer for Gladiator II – but his appearance has sparked some concerns. The Chilean-American actor featured in the trailer as he takes on the role of Marcus Acacius, a Roman general who trained under the command of Maximus Decimus Meridius – Russell Crowe’s character in the first Gladiator.
Pascal stars alongside Paul Mescal, who plays a grown-up Lucius, the son of Lucilla and the nephew of Commodus, the antagonist played in the original movie by Joaquin Phoenix. The trailer largely focuses on Lucius as we see flashbacks to him as a child before he returns to Rome from northern Africa to fight as a gladiator.
Lucius isn’t the only one readying himself for a fight, though, and at one point in the trailer, we see Pascal’s character running into battle without a helmet, despite everyone around him wearing protective headgear. Obviously, this makes for a cool and intense shot, but if you’ve been a fan of Pascal’s for a while, you’ll know why this might be an issue.
Back in his Game of Thrones days, Pascal played the character of Oberyn Martell – and let’s just say he did not have a very happy ending.
Martell’s head was not in good condition as Pascal’s storyline came to an end, so many fans were quick to share their concerns after seeing him yet again without any protection in the trailer for Gladiator II. “Pedro still not wearing a helmet, didn’t learn from his GOT days,” one viewer joked. Another commented: “Watching Pedro Pascal go into another arena battle once again with no helmet.” “Whenever I see Pedro Pascal in a war setup without his helmet. I go into GOT PTSD. That viper vs mountain episode was scaryyy [sic],” wrote a third.
We won’t know how Pascal’s character fares after the battle in Gladiator II until the movie actually releases in November, but hopefully, his decision to forego the helmet won’t come back to haunt him. Pascal hinted at his character’s fight against Lucius in an interview with Variety, where he admitted he’d given Mescal the nickname of ‘Brick Wall Paul’. “He got so strong. I would rather be thrown from a building than have to fight him again,” Pascal said. “To go up against somebody that fit and that talented and that much younger…It’s brutal, man.”
Gladiator II is set to release in theaters on November 22.