Dave Benett / Alan Chapman/Dave Benett/WireIma
Denzel Washington, Ridley Scott and Paul Mescal at the US premiere of “Gladiator II” in Hollywood on November 18, 2024.
CINEMA – Two versions that do not coincide. Denzel Washington recently revealed that a gay kiss scene was removed in Gladiator II by ” fear “. However, director Ridley Scott strongly denied his actor’s comments during the American premiere of the film at Hollywood Monday November 18, although it has already been released in theaters in France since November 13.
“No, that’s bullshit,” said Ridley Scott to Variety about this scene. “They never did. They acted in the moment, it didn’t happen.”evacuated the British director.
For his part, Denzel Washington considers that this story made “much ado about nothing”. Later in the evening, however, he confirmed a ” kiss “ on the lips of another actor. “I kissed his hands, I gave him a kiss and I killed him,” affirmed the interpreter of Macrinus.
An artistic decision
On October 31, in an interview given to the media specializing in LGBTQIA+ causes Gayetythe Oscar-winning actor had clearly mentioned a kiss. “I kissed a man in the film, but they took it away, they cut it”he revealed before assuming that the scene had not been guarded by ” fear “. “I kissed a guy on the lips and I guess they weren’t ready for that yet. I killed him about five minutes later. That’s “Gladiator”. It’s the kiss of death, he explained again.
Connie Nielson, also starring in Gladiator II in the role of Lucilla, had already returned to this “affair” during the Governors Awards which took place in Los Angeles on Sunday November 17. The actress, who also had one of her scenes cut, believes the decision was out of artistic interest. “It’s not homophobia. There just wasn’t room for it.”she said to Variety.
A statement from the film’s producer, also present at the ceremony, Michael Pruss, was along the same lines: “There are so many things that were shot that didn’t make it into the film. It was really a non-event”.
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