Denzel Washington’s Robes Are the Real Stars of ‘Gladiator II’

This story is from Gladiator Week, GQ’s dive into all things Gladiator in pop culture to celebrate the release of Gladiator II. Read the rest of the stories here.

This article also contains spoilers for Gladiator II.

In Gladiator II, Denzel Washington plays Macrinus, a deliciously evil arms dealer who acquires Paul Mescal’s Lucius for his stable of gladiators. Though the film is set in 200 A.D. Rome, Washington speaks like Denzel Washington, with the New York accent of a man born in 1954…