In the final days of Marcus Aurelius' reign, the aging emperor arouses his son Commodus' anger when he makes known his wish that Maximus be his successor. Power-hungry Commodus kills his father and orders the death of Maximus. But the latter flees and hides his identity by becoming slave and a gladiator. Eventually, Maximus journeys back to Rome to confront his archrival.
Production DreamWorks SKG (as Dreamworks Pictures); Universal Pictures; Scott Free Productions [gb];
Cast Names Russell Crowe; Joaquin Phoenix; Connie Nielsen; Oliver Reed; Richard Harris; Derek Jacobi; Djimon Hounsou; David Schofield; John Shrapnel; Tomas Arana; Ralf Moeller; Spencer Treat Clark; David Hemmings; Tommy Flanagan; Sven-Ole Thorsen; Omid Djalili; Nicholas McGaughey; Chris Kell; Tony Curran; Mark Lewis; John Quinn; Alun Raglan; David Bailie; Chick Allen; David Nicholls; Al Ashton; Billy Dowd; Ray Calleja; Giannina Facio; Giorgio Cantarini; Allan Corduner; Michael Mellinger; Said Amel; Adam Levy; Gilly Gilchrist; Ruth Frendo; Nic Main; Antonio Meitin; Norman Campbell Rees; Christian Simpson;