Denzel Washington says he ‘actually kissed a man’ in Gladiator 2 but ‘they took it out’

Denzel Washington has shared that a same-sex kiss he filmed for the upcoming Gladiator II was ultimately cut from the movie.

In an interview with Gayety, Washington, who plays Macrinus, mentioned kissing another male character “full on the lips,” but the scene didn’t make it to the final cut.

He said, “I actually kissed a man in the film but they took it out, they cut it, I think they got chicken. I kissed a guy full on the lips and I guess they weren’t ready for that yet.”

The kiss was tied to a subplot that subtly hinted at Macrinus’s bisexuality.

Director Ridley Scott described the character as having a “twinkle” of queerness while still being portrayed as a “gangster.”

This isn’t the only moment of male-on-male affection that got the axe from Gladiator II.

Earlier this year, Paul Mescal and Ridley Scott talked about another cut scene where Mescal planted a kiss on Pedro Pascal’s forehead.

In an interview with Cinemablend, Mescal said, “I didn’t tell Ridley I was gonna do it. And then I was nervous after we did it because I thought he was going to fucking hate it.”

He also added, “So I nervously go over the radio being like, ‘Ridley? Did you like the kiss on the forehead? Yay or nay?’ And there was this kind of, like, [static]. ‘I’m afraid I did.’”

“So I don’t know where it got lost in the edit. So we’re just leaving all the kisses on the cutting-room floor, then?”

This discussion comes as Gladiator II gears up for its release on November 22, 2024. 

The film continues the story from the 2000 original, following Lucius (played by Paul Mescal), who finds himself caught up in the brutal world of gladiators as he fights to claim his place in Rome.