A historical epic and a candy-colored fantasyland go head-to-head at the box office. Sound familiar? Last year’s Barbenheimer is this year’s Glicked — but the Gladiator II vs. Wicked blockbuster showdown is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to this season’s upcoming movie slate.
“Wickdiator doesn’t really roll off the tongue, does it? I think my preference would probably be Glicked if it has a similar effect to what it did for Barbie and Oppenheimer,” Gladiator II star Paul Mescal joked to Entertainment Tonight in August about his film’s big Thanksgiving matchup against Jon M. Chu-directed adventure flick. “It would be amazing ’cause I think the films couldn’t be more polar opposites, and it worked in that context previously. So, fingers crossed people come out and see both films on opening weekend.”
Different they are, and between Mescal’s action-packed sequel and the Ariana Grande–Cynthia Erivo led musical (complete with a gravity-defying soundtrack), it feels impossible to choose one over the other. That leaves movie lovers with one choice: a double feature day at the theater.
As for the world in which each movie will take you, Ridley Scott’s Gladiator II begins several decades after the events of the 2000 film, which starred Russell Crowe at the helm. It follows Mescal’s Lucius — the son of Emperor Commodus (Joaquin Phoenix) — as he competes as a gladiator after ending up in slavery following an invasion led by Roman general Marcus Acacius (Pedro Pascal). Plenty of other hunky heartthrobs will also make appearances, from Joseph Quinn and Denzel Washington to Barry Keoghan.
“I think the main thing that I’m excited about is the homage that it pays to the first one but also the kind of new direction that the film takes,” Mescal told ET. “I think it’s well balanced in that regard in terms of the physical action of the film and the balance of the kind of political aspects of the film as well.”
Over in Oz, Grande can’t wait for fans to enter the colorful, musical world she and her costars have spent years living in “every single day.”
“It was ours for so long. It was just every single day for such a long time,” she explained on a June episode of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. “And to share it with people, and to feel the love that we’ve received in response has been really overwhelming.”
Keep scrolling for all the best films coming this fall:
