{"id":2374165,"date":"2024-11-28T10:46:02","date_gmt":"2024-11-28T15:46:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/hollywood-legend-says-clever-gangster-trump-was-inspiration-for-denzel-washingtons-gladiator-ii-character\/"},"modified":"2024-11-28T10:47:53","modified_gmt":"2024-11-28T15:47:53","slug":"hollywood-legend-says-clever-gangster-trump-was-inspiration-for-denzel-washingtons-gladiator-ii-character","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/hollywood-legend-says-clever-gangster-trump-was-inspiration-for-denzel-washingtons-gladiator-ii-character\/","title":{"rendered":"Hollywood Legend Says &#8216;Clever Gangster&#8217; Trump Was Inspiration for Denzel Washington&#8217;s &#8216;Gladiator II&#8217; Character"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">28<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fhollywood-legend-says-clever-gangster-trump-was-inspiration-for-denzel-washingtons-gladiator-ii-character%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2374165&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The article discusses the\u2063 public&#8217;s varied reactions to President-elect\u200d Donald Trump&#8217;s decisive \u2062victory in the 2024 election, ranging from anger to celebration. It highlights\u2064 the\u200d inspiration behind a character\u2064 in Ridley Scott&#8217;s upcoming film &#8220;Gladiator\u2063 II,&#8221; portrayed \u2063by Denzel Washington, which \u200bis said to be influenced by \u200bTrump&#8217;s persona. Scott describes the\u2063 character, Macrinus, as \u2064a former prisoner who becomes a wealthy merchant with political ambitions, likening him to a &#8220;gangster&#8221; akin to Trump. The negative portrayal includes themes of manipulation and moral bankruptcy.\u2064 Despite the interest in the film, &#8220;Gladiator II&#8221; has faced criticism for historical inaccuracies \u200bfrom scholars, including misrepresentations of Roman \u2064culture and \u200canachronisms, \u2062indicating\u200d a broader challenge for\u200d the film&#8217;s reception.\u200c The\u200b film is\u2062 currently in theaters.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<section> \t\t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC4)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>Love him or hate him, people can&rsquo;t seem to stop talking &mdash; and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/armed-teacher-snaps-into-action-when-he-hears-screaming-in-the-middle-of-the-night-saves-teen-girl-from-predator\/\" title=\"Armed Teacher Snaps Into Action When He Hears Screaming in the Middle of the Night, Saves Teen Girl from Predator\">thinking &#038;mdash<\/a>; about President-elect Donald Trump.<\/p>\n<p>He elicited a wide range of reactions when he decisively won the 2024 election on Nov. 5.<\/p>\n<p>From <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/watch-trumps-win-ladies-view-screaming-3-days-later\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">unbridled rage<\/a> to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/sending-message-cnn-panel-reacts-trump-showing-off-political-gladiators-ufc-309\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">unadulterated celebration<\/a>, Trump&rsquo;s big win ran the gambit of emotions.<\/p>\n<p>Apparently, that includes &ldquo;inspiring,&rdquo; at least according to Hollywood auteur Ridley Scott.<\/p>\n<p>The 86-year-old British director &mdash; known for major blockbusters like &ldquo;Alien,&rdquo; &ldquo;Blade Runner&rdquo; and &ldquo;Gladiator&rdquo; (and even less well-received movies like &ldquo;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/apples-napoleon-bombs-audiences-movie-goers-pour-bad-reviews\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Napoleon<\/a>&ldquo;) &mdash; revealed the inspiration behind one of his key characters in the forthcoming sequel to &ldquo;Gladiator.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p> <script type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\tif ( getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"stnvideo\").remove() \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> <\/p>\n<p>Speaking to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hollywoodreporter.com\/movies\/movie-news\/ridley-scott-denzel-washington-gladiator-2-trump-1236067964\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Hollywood Reporter<\/a>, Scott opened up about how the 45th and 47th President of the United States helped characterize Macrinus, portrayed by Denzel Washington in &ldquo;Gladiator II.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;[Macrinus] was a prisoner of war &mdash; probably at a North African state &mdash; and actually was taken to Rome probably as a gladiator,&rdquo; Scott explained. &ldquo;Survived. Got free. Got into the business of maybe making wine and bread.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;He evolved into a very rich merchant selling s*** to the Roman armies &mdash; food, oil, wine, cloth, weapons, everything. He maybe had a million men spread around Europe. So he was a billionaire at the time, so why wouldn&rsquo;t he [have ambitions toward the throne]? &lsquo;Why not me?&rsquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;He&rsquo;s also a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/kamala-harris-loses-it-when-bret-baier-fact-checks-her-by-playing-a-video-clip-of-trump\/\" title=\"Kamala Harris Loses It When Bret Baier Fact Checks Her by Playing a Video Clip of Trump\">gangster &#038;mdash<\/a>; very close to Trump. A clever gangster. He creates chaos and from chaos he can evolve.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>To be clear, both Scott and Washington are interpreting Trump&rsquo;s &ldquo;gangster&rdquo;-ness as a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/twice-failed-candidate-beto-orourke-considering-run-for-texas-governor\/\" title=\"Twice-Failed Candidate Beto O\u2019Rourke Considering Run For Texas Governor\">net negative<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;He&rsquo;s trying to use everybody,&rdquo; Washington said of Macrinus. &ldquo;He&rsquo;d use his mother. He&rsquo;d use his own children; he&rsquo;s already used up his soul, so he didn&rsquo;t have any left. He&rsquo;s in bed with the devil.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Gladiator II,&rdquo; the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/chris-noth-edited-from-and-just-like-that-finale-amid-sexual-abuse-allegations\/\" title=\"Chris Noth Edited From \u2018And Just Like That\u2019 Finale Amid Sexual Abuse Allegations\">highly-anticipated sequel<\/a> to 2000&rsquo;s &ldquo;Gladiator,&rdquo; has been facing an <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\">uphill public relations battle<\/a> for some time now, and it&rsquo;s got nothing to do with Trump.<\/p>\n<p>Rather, a number of historians have taken issue with the sequel film, including one who called the whole thing &ldquo;total Hollywood bulls***,&rdquo; according to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hollywoodreporter.com\/news\/general-news\/gladiator-ii-fact-fiction-ai-1236047785\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Reporter<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Dr. Shadi Bartsch ripped into the early trailers for &ldquo;Gladiator II,&rdquo; taking issue with a number of Hollywood contrivances seen in them.<\/p>\n<p>Bartsch took issue with the portrayal of sharks in the film (Romans would never have seen them), as well as the fact that the movie used the wrong sorts of rhinoceros in its filming.<\/p>\n<p>The Reporter also pointed out that one &ldquo;of the most eyebrow-raising anachronisms involves the scene in which a Roman noble is shown sipping tea in a cafe while reading the morning newspaper &hellip; 1,200 years before the invention of the printing press.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;They did have daily news &mdash; Acta Diuma &mdash; but it was carved and placed at certain locations,&rdquo; Bartsch explained. &ldquo;You had to go to it. You couldn&rsquo;t hold it at a cafe. Also, they didn&rsquo;t have cafes!&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Gladiator II&rdquo; is currently in theaters.<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* Name<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* <\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<label>* Message<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t<textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\"> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t<script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey==typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts={ \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs=[ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i=0; i <inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! ( opts[inputs[i]]=document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"' + inputs[i] + '\"]' ).value ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .required-message' ).style.display='block'; \t\t\t\t\t\treturn; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction input[type=\"submit\"]' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).src=firefly_loading_gif_url; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='inline-block';  \t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( 'ma subbing' );  \t\t\t\t\tif( firefly_post_id ) opts['post_id']=firefly_post_id;  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Send the data using post with element id name and name2*\/ \t\t\t\t\tvar posting=jQuery.post( firefly_ajax_url, opts );  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Alerts the results *\/ \t\t\t\t\tposting.done( function( response ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif( response.success ) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( response.data ); \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-confirm' ).style.display='block';  \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdataLayer.push( { 'event': 'submit-correction' } ); \t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> \t     \t\t\t\t\t\t     \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p style=\"border: 1px solid #f5f5f5; padding: 16px;\">Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/advertise-us\/?wj_source=article\">Advertise Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><script>console.log(\"ad slot (BA1)\")<\/script> \t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<style> \t\t\t \t\t\t.insticator-unit.type-commenting{margin: 0 10px 25px 10px}@media screen and (max-width:1060px){#div-insticator-ad-cmt-1, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-2, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-3, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-4{margin: 0 auto 25px auto !important;}}#div-insticator-ad-cmt-1, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-2, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-3, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-4{height: 280px !important; width: 336px !important} \t\t<\/style>\n<div class=\"insticator-unit type-commenting\">\n<div class=\"insticator-ads\"> \t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t<script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\t\t\tif ( ! getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tInsticator.ad.loadAd(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-1\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tInsticator.ad.loadAd(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-2\"); \t\t\t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-1\").remove() \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-2\").remove() \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t<\/script> \t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"insticator-ads additional\"> \t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t<script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\t\t\tif ( ! getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tInsticator.ad.loadAd(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-3\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tInsticator.ad.loadAd(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-4\"); \t\t\t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-3\").remove() \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-4\").remove() \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t<\/script> \t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Whether people admire or despise him, President-elect Donald Trump remains a hot topic of discussion. His decisive victory in the 2024 election on November 5 sparked a spectrum of emotions, from intense anger to pure joy. Notably, filmmaker Ridley Scott described Trump as &#8220;inspiring&#8221; while discussing his upcoming film &#8220;Gladiator II.&#8221; The acclaimed director shared that the character Macrinus, played by Denzel Washington, was influenced by Trump&#8217;s persona. Scott characterized Macrinus as a clever gangster who thrives on chaos and has ambitions for power. Washington echoed this sentiment, portraying Macrinus as manipulative and morally compromised. Meanwhile, &#8220;Gladiator II&#8221; faces criticism from historians for its historical inaccuracies unrelated to Trump\u2019s influence<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2374166,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/Gladiator.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[45818,45819,4361],"class_list":["post-2374165","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-denzel-washington","tag-gladiator-ii","tag-hollywood"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/Gladiator.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2374165","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2374165"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2374165\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2374169,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2374165\/revisions\/2374169"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2374166"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2374165"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2374165"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2374165"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}