Gladiator 2 cost over $300 million to produce

The production budget for the sequel to the epic film Gladiator is about to be blown wide open if rumours are to be believed. The budget was set at around $165 million but is rumoured to be a jaw-dropping $310 million at the end of shooting, despite Paramount's insistence that the 49-day shoot would be under $250 million.

One of the key reasons for this massive increase in the budget was the Hollywood strike, which reportedly cost the studio $600,000 a week when it was shut down, bringing the total to $10 million. But $10 million is a drop in the ocean to these production giants, so it's obviously not the whole story. The filming has been marred by several accidents and also several animal cruelty complaints from PETA.

Ridley Scott, the director of the film, received an open letter from PETA that was filled with allegations of horses and monkeys being harmed during filming, which the production denies. In any case, the massive budget of $310 million will raise the question of whether the film will make enough money to cover the shooting costs.

Gladiator 2 is filled with big stars such as Denzel Washington, as well as Connie Nielsen back as Lucilla, and in the role of Lucius that the film will revolve around we see Paul Mescal. Scott says:

"Lucius has been out in the wilderness for.. let's see, we last saw him when he was 12. It's about 12, 15 years later, he's been out in the wilderness having lost touch with his mother. His mother lost touch with him. She doesn't know where he is. She thinks he might be dead."

Thanks, The Hollywood Reporter.