5 Gladiators Who Deserve Their Own Movie
The first known gladiator competition in ancient Rome occurred in 264 BCE at the funeral of Brutus Pera, where three sets of combatants fought to the death. Before long, gladiator fights became extremely popular among the Roman public and were treated as entertaining spectacles despite the brutal violence displayed.
As the sport gained popularity, the number of gladiators grew, peaking in the year 107 CE when the Roman Emperor Trajan welcomed around 5,000 pairs of gladiators to perform during a 123-day series of celebrations throughout the city of Rome. Many of these battles took place at the Colosseum, which was built between 70 and 72 CE, and served as the site for the grandest gladiatorial contests. But there were also various smaller arenas and amphitheaters throughout the Roman Empire that played host to these competitions.
The gladiators of ancient Rome came from all kinds of backgrounds; some participated for the thrill of the sport and to earn the adoration of their fellow Romans, though most were enslaved people or prisoners fighting for their freedom. But regardless of social standing, successful fighters were often considered heroes throughout Roman society. While most of these gladiators have been forgotten to the annals of history, a few warriors are still known by name and discussed today. In honor of the 2024 release of Ridley Scott’s Gladiator II, the sequel to his Oscar-winning 2000 film Gladiator, here are five famous real-life Roman fighters who deserve their own movies.
Spartacus
Spartacus is the one gladiator on this list who already has his own movie, the eponymous 1960 film starring Kirk Douglas. That’s in part because Spartucus’ fame came not from his success in the arena, but from leading a major revolt of enslaved people against the Roman Republic from 73 to 71 BCE.
The details of Spartacus’ early life are murky. Some historians suspect he served as a soldier before abandoning the Roman army, and was later caught, sold into slavery, and sent to a Capuan gladiatorial training school. Spartacus never fought gladiatorial fights in the Colosseum, which wasn’t built until nearly 150 years after his death. Instead, he fought most of his battles with fellow trainees — that is, until he and around 70 fellow students escaped gladiatorial school and fled to take refuge on nearby Mount Vesuvius.
As leader of this new rebel alliance, Spartacus led raids against his former oppressors, pillaging various locations throughout the Roman countryside. His exploits attracted the attention of other escaped enslaved people, who went to Mount Vesuvius to join the rebellion, and in time, the group eclipsed 90,000 members. The guerrilla attacks continued, and the conflict became known as the Third Servile War, or Gladiatorial War. Spartacus and his men traveled across the Roman Empire amassing victory after victory, fighting against the oppressive rule that had forced them into slavery. These revolts came to an end in 71 BCE at a battle roughly 35 miles southeast of Naples, Italy, the likely location of Spartacus’ death.
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Crixus
Crixus was a contemporary of Spartacus and was among the enslaved gladiator trainees who fled Capua for refuge on Mount Vesuvius. After their unlikely escape, Crixus, Spartacus, and a gladiator named Oenomaus were chosen as leaders of the rebellion. As a trusted ally of Spartacus, Crixus played an important role in the Third Servile War.
In his book The Spartacus War, author Barry Strauss wrote that Crixus was far more popular than Spartacus, who “had only a small number of supporters.” Crixus was a cunning tactician who earned the trust of his fellow rebels, and, Strauss wrote, “had behind him the majority of his fellow Celts as well as the majority of the Germans.” Due to strategic disagreements, Crixus and his followers splintered off from the group led by Spartacus, which the Greek philosopher Plutarch claimed was because of Crixus’ “arrogance and presumption.” Shortly after this schism, Crixus fell in battle in the year 72 BCE, one year before Spartacus.
Marcus Attilius
Unlike many enslaved people who were forced into becoming gladiators, Marcus Attilius was born free and willingly chose to fight. Attilius’ gladiatorial career is believed to have taken place around 70 to 79 CE, and his first fight was against a storied veteran named Hilarus at an amphitheater in Pompeii. This was unusual, given that gladiators of equal skill sets were often pitted against each other. But Attilius shocked the masses by handedly defeating Hilarus, and that feat was followed by the defeat of yet another veteran in his next match.
Attilius’ wins were so notable, they inspired contemporary artists to draw graffiti-like sketches of his triumphs. Today, these sketches can be found within the Nuceria Gate necropolis at Pompeii, as they were well preserved by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 CE. The drawings feature the triumphant Attilius with a “V” — meaning “victory” — next to his likeness, while his two veteran opponents are depicted as the losers.
Flamma
Flamma was a gladiator of Syrian origin who thrived as a professional combatant during the reign of Roman Emperor Hadrian (117 to 138 CE). There are no reliable records of Flamma’s early life, or how he ended up in gladiatorial school. But what we do know is that Flamma was highly revered among spectators of the sport, and he relished in the adoration.
According to Rachael Hanel’s book Gladiators, Flamma “exhibited the most well-known case of this love of attention.” Despite being awarded the rudis — a ceremonial baton that was granted to enslaved gladiators to grant them their freedom — on four separate occasions, Flamma refused to accept it and opted to return to the arena. He inspired a cult following among fans, before being struck down in gladiatorial battle at the age of 30. According to his gravestone in Sicily — where many of his gladiator fights took place — Flamma fought 34 times, winning 21 contests and tying nine.
Commodus
Commodus is best known for being the emperor of Rome from 177 to 192 CE, and you may remember the villainous fictionalized version of him portrayed by actor Joaquin Phoenix in the 2000 film Gladiator. But unlike other emperors, Commodus was known to take up arms and enter the gladiator arena himself, largely to stoke his own ego. In fact, he was considered to be among the most volatile, selfish, and unsuccessful emperors in Roman history, and he even attempted to rename Rome “Colonia Commodiana” after himself. Commodus also believed that he was the god Hercules, which likely added to his delusions about his skills as a gladiator.
According to the fourth-century CE text Historia Augusta — a series of biographies about Roman emperors — Commodus was “born a gladiator, not really a prince.” It’s said he fought in hundreds of gladiatorial bouts, though these contests were often heavily skewed in his favor. No opponent wanted to harm the emperor of Rome, giving Commodus an unfair advantage. He was known for being ruthlessly violent in his quest for glory. According to legend, he once killed 100 bears from up in his imperial balcony, and he was also known to shoot a bow and arrow at lions from a safe distance.
Many of Commodus’ contemporaries viewed his gladiatorial obsession as unbecoming of an emperor, given that many gladiators were from lower social classes. These tensions finally came to a head in 192 CE, when Commodus was assassinated by a wrestling partner.
