Ridley Scottremains one of the most iconic film directors in film history, but his $462 million historical epic marked an end to one aspect of his career. Scott started his career in1977 with the movieThe Duelists,but he quickly established his name by directing two iconic films back-to-back:AlienandBlade Runner.
Those two movies became the backbone of his career for years, withAlienbecoming a successful franchiseandBlade Runnerbeing respected as a sci-fi masterpiece before receiving a sequel decades later. In 2000, Scott achieved huge award successwith his historical epicGladiator,andhe directed the sequel 24 years later,a film that ended an era for Scott.
Gladiator 2 Was Likely The End Of Ridley Scott Making Sequels
There Are No More Sequels On The Radar
In 2000, Ridley Scott’sGladiatorwas released, marking the biggest film of his career, a massive blockbuster that also achieved awards success. It grossed $465.5 million and earned 12 Oscar nominations, with five wins, including Best Picture and Best Actor (Russell Crowe). While it took 24 years,Scott directed the sequel,Gladiator II.
This wasn’t Scott’s first sequel, and he has done a few over the later years of his career. Over the first 20 years of Scott’s career, he never directed a sequel and even passed on theAlienfranchise to other directors. His first “sequel” wasn’t even to his own franchise, as he madeHannibalin 2001. However, in 2012, he returned to theAlienfranchise.
He directedPrometheus(2012) andAlien: Covenant(2017).He then directedGladiator IIin 2024,and it appears this will be the last sequel Scott makes in his career.
Ridley Scott Moving On From His Franchises Is A Good Thing
Ridley Scott is 87 & Has Only A Few Films Left To Make
Ridley Scott hasmentioned the possibility of aGladiator III,but it seems unlikely that he will direct it. Furthermore,more is coming in theAlienfranchise,but it is also without Scott, and he is already finished with theBlade Runnerfranchise, passing it on to Denis Villeneuve. A TV show might be in the works, but Scott is not involved.
This is a good thing. Ridley Scott is 87, and he has only a limited number of films left in his career. Fans should want to see Scott doing original material to end his career. He has an upcoming Bee Gees biopic calledYou Should Be Dancingcoming and will also direct an adaptation of the Peter Heller novelThe Dog Stars.
While a movie that ends theGladiatorstory in the wayThe Godfather Part IIIfinally ended Michael Corleone’s story is intriguing, it is more exciting to see an original film byRidley Scottthan another sequel.
