Who was Marcus Aurelius? Gladiator character explained

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Let’s face it – lots of the names sounded similar the first time Gladiator came out. You might remember Marcus Aurelius, but who was he… and will we see him again?

Back in the glory days of 2000 – which might as well be in the Roman times it feels that long ago – Russell Crowe became general-turned-gladiator Maximus in the fight of his life.

The ending of Gladiator saw him die at the hands of Commodus (Joaquin Phoenix), being honored as a “soldier of Rome.” We also saw his son, Lucius, shipped out of the city, setting up events for Gladiator 2 20 years in the future.

One of the men at the start of Maxmius’ journey was Marcus Aurelius, with plenty of the plot points in both movies coming back to his beliefs. Here’s everything you need to know about the Gladiator character.

Marcus Aurelius in Gladiator

Marcus Aurelius was a Roman Emperor from 161 to 180 AD. He is crucial to establishing the importance of Maximus in the first Gladiator movie – and is quickly assassinated by his son, Commodus.

When Gladiator begins, Maximus is a high-ranking general in the Roman army. In fact, he’s so well-liked that Aurelius keeps him to hand during battle, favoring him above everyone else. This includes his own son Commodus, who is naturally fuming.

The pair are away fighting Germanic tribes near Vindobona when Maximus decides that after the fighting is over, all he really wants to do is go home. This is when we learn Aurelius thinks Commodus is unfit to rule, and he wants Maximus to succeed him instead.

Marcus Aurelius shares a key belief with Maximus here that sticks with us for the rest of the film – he believes that one day, all gladiators and slaves to the Empire need to be freed. Maximus carries this forward in everything he does, shaping his journey as he rises up the ranks.

Commodus catches wind of Aurelius’ plans and decides to take matters into his own hands… by killing his dad. He then announces himself as Rome’s new Emperor, exiling Maximus through the Praetorian Guard in the process. Maximus escapes to find his entire family has been killed, being found by slave traders, which is where his journey to the Colosseum begins.

Of course, Commodus isn’t Aurelius’ only child. Lucilla (Connie Nielsen) is his daughter, who also subscribes to her father’s set of beliefs.

Members of the Senate, such as Gracchus (Derek Jacobi), also stay loyal to these principles, and therefore Maximus.

What was Aurelius most famous for?

In real life, Aurelius was best known for The Meditations, which was basically a collection of musings and general thoughts on existence. He also famously adhered to the 7 Stoic Lessons.

During his reign as Emperor, Aurelius wrote a series of 12 books under the banner of Meditations. These mainly functioned as records for his own self-improvement and source of guidance, but they’ve become key texts for understanding Roman Stoic philosophy.

The texts look at maintaining focus and distraction, as well as the ethical principles around being a “good man.” As the now-republished book explains, Aurelius “advocates finding one’s place in the universe and sees that everything came from nature, and so everything shall return to it in due time.”

He was also a key figure in adhering to the 7 Stoic Lessons. Translated, they look something like this:

Control what you can control
Think first, act second
Acknowledge the inevitable and unpredictable
Find the silver lining
Be mindfully active
Value time
Don’t fear death

You might also have heard of his most famous quote, “It is not death that a man should fear, but he should fear never beginning to live.”

Of course, none of this comes up in Gladiator – but if you feel you’ve missed out, you can buy the translated version of Meditations from any bookstore.

Will he be in Gladiator 2?

As you can probably guess, Marcus Aurelius isn’t in Gladiator 2 because he’s dead. However, he’s referenced a lot during the movie.

As Gladiator sets up the importance of Aurelius’ teachings, Gladiator 2 continues to enact them. Lucius (Paul Mescal) goes through a similar general-to-gladiator process, staring down the imperial order while trying to free the Romans from slavery and war.

Lucius knows his family history all too well – we see Lucilla give him Maxmius’ ring in the sequel’s main trailer. Aurelius’ teachings will have been passed down, with Lucilla his only direct descendant still alive.

Of course, Lucilla has her own internal struggles, too. She’s had to watch the changes over Rome’s rule for the last 20 years, resulting in Emperors Geta (Joseph Quinn) and Caracalla (Fred Hechinger) running fresh tyranny across the empire.

It’s likely the importance of her dad’s vision of Rome will play a big part in what we’re about to see. On top of this, Senator Gracchus is back, and we know exactly where his allegiance lies.

Gladiator 2 comes to cinemas on November 15 in the UK and November 22 in the US. Catch up with when Gladiator 2 takes place, Gladiator 2’s first reactions, and the best movies of the year so far.

You can also check out more new movies streaming this month.

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