Ridley Scott says he’s already “playing with an idea” for a third ‘Gladiator’ film

Gladiator II, the sequel to Ridley Scott‘s 2000 Oscar winner, doesn’t hit theaters until Nov. 22, but the filmmaker says he’s already looking ahead to a third installment. 

As reported, Paul Mescal, Pedro Pascal and Denzel Washington star in the upcoming sequel, which centers on Mescal’s Lucius, who returns to Rome against his will, but with vengeance on his mind.

While promoting the picture to the French-language publication Premiere, Scott revealed, “I’m already playing with the idea of Gladiator III,” before adding, “No, seriously! I lit the fuse.”

Scott, who will be turning 87 just after the second film debuts, reveals another famous sequel inspired him to push the story further. “The ending of Gladiator II is reminiscent of The Godfather, with Michael Corleone ending up with a job he didn’t want, and wondering, ‘And now, Father, what do I do?’ So, the next [one] will be about a man who doesn’t want to be where he is.”

It’s likely in this case he’s referring to Mescal’s character as the stand-in for Al Pacino‘s Michael. However, Mescal isn’t putting the chariot before the horse: he said Scott only recently clued him in to a third film.

“I’m waiting to see what will happen, but I’m interested, of course,” the actor said. “But we must not hurry anything,” stressing it’s all up to whether a third film would serve the story.