|While the original ''Gladiator'' in 2000 portrayed masculinity positively, this 2025 sequel treats it as a bad joke. Lucius is introduced in this movie being scolded by his wife for being slightly too aggressive while plowing the fields. Said wife is treated as a more superior soldier compared to her husband, and Lucius is blamed for letting her fight at all. General Acacius is also shown being ashamed of winning a battle in the Colosseum, which shows the movie mocking strength and victory as "problematic". | |While the original ''Gladiator'' in 2000 portrayed masculinity positively, this 2025 sequel treats it as a bad joke. Lucius is introduced in this movie being scolded by his wife for being slightly too aggressive while plowing the fields. Said wife is treated as a more superior soldier compared to her husband, and Lucius is blamed for letting her fight at all. General Acacius is also shown being ashamed of winning a battle in the Colosseum, which shows the movie mocking strength and victory as "problematic". |