Harry Gregson-Williams on Creating Music for ‘Gladiator II’ That Stands on Its Own

Composer Harry Gregson-Williams had successfully partnered with director Ridley Scott on six films before he got the call to create the score for “Gladiator II,” but the prospect of a seventh collaboration filled him with uncharacteristic dread. “I experienced a lot of anxiety before that conversation,” Gregson-Williams told IndieWire. “The first ‘Gladiator’ score by Hans Zimmer is so loved that I was thinking, in what direction can I possibly go here?”

Luckily, Scott wasn’t interested in a repeat of Zimmer’s iconic score but in new themes that would pay tribute to it at a few key moments. “I was freed up very early on to write my own score as long as we found two or three spots to honor the original,” Gregson-Williams said, “so that was very liberating.” Gregson-Williams ended up composing 100 minutes of original score for “Gladiator II” that captures the essence of the first movie without being enslaved to it — it stands alongside Zimmer’s classic work as something equally inventive, moving, and epic in scope.

Gregson-Williams’ first step toward creating the massive score was assembling what he calls a “sonic template” in his studio. “The beginning of my process is usually to gather sounds that I feel are going to be useful to me,” he said. To that end, the composer traveled the world collecting recordings that would find their way into the score, starting with instrument maker Abraham Cupeiro in Northern Spain.

Gregson-Williams recorded Cupeiro in his remote farmhouse playing a metal wind instrument called the carnyx and other ancient woodwinds that he felt would enhance his score. “These instruments added layers of color that I wouldn’t necessarily get with the orchestra,” Gregson-Williams said. He knew he would be using an orchestra for its gravitas, but wanted to use additional instruments and voices to give the score more flavor and bring the sound of Ancient Rome to life.

“I was revisiting what I had done on the score for ‘Kingdom of Heaven,'” Gregson-Williams said. “I used a lot of vocalists on that score, and Ridley really liked that.” For “Gladiator II,” Gregson-Williams recorded soloists all over Europe, though he ran into a challenge when it came to the theme he created for Arishat, a character who dies in the opening scene but whose ghost lingers over the rest of the film.

“I had to search high and low for a voice that could reflect the memory of her, because her death is what drives Lucius [Paul Mescal] forward, and we’re reminded of that three or four times during the film,” Gregson-Williams said. “So I wanted a wispy Mediterranean, North African vocal to work with. I actually found the perfect voice on a recording and tried to chase down the singer, but no one could find her, so I sampled a snippet of what she had sung and licensed that piece so I could use it over the theme.”

‘Gladiator II’ Aidan Monaghan/Paramount Pictures

One of Gregson-Williams’ most important tasks was creating a fresh sound for a new hero, Lucius. “Lucius goes on quite a trip,” Gregson-Williams said. “When we first meet him, he’s living a simple life, and by the final battle in the Colosseum, he shows remarkable heroics.” Gregson-Williams designed Lucius’ theme to evolve alongside the character, beginning with a simple and straightforward melody and building incrementally to the complex music of the finale.

“I needed his theme to reflect his voyage, both geographically and emotionally, as he becomes a leader,” Gregson-Williams said. Not only did the composer feel he had to reflect that leadership, but he also had to incorporate all the other facets of Lucius’ journey like love, rage, and a need for vengeance. To that end he created a versatile melody that could expand and contract depending on the needs of the script, reaching its fullest expression in the climactic battle.

That battle was also one of the key moments where Gregson-Williams decided to echo Zimmer’s score from the original film, as Lucius truly steps into his father’s shoes. “I wanted my Lucius theme to be original, yet familiar enough in the world of ‘Gladiator’ that I could morph into Hans Zimmer’s theme in the final scene of the movie,” Gregson-Williams said.

The moment at which Gregson-Williams’ score and Zimmer’s merge is a high point for “Gladiator” fans, and it was a high point in the studio for the composer as well. Gregson-Williams recorded the main score at Abbey Road Studios, and when the time came to conduct the orchestra for Lucius’ big moment, Hans Zimmer watched and listened in on Zoom. “He was there to hear how I was abusing or misusing his tune,” Gregson-Williams joked. “It was great fun.”