In all of Hollywood, few ‘what if’s’ are as interesting as Mel Gibson not being able to play Maximus in ‘Gladiator‘. The film won 5 Oscars, including Best Picture, and turned Russell Crowe into a household name, all in the span of a few months after the film was released.
However, Gibson was actually down to play Maximus until scheduling conflicts forced him to leave the role.
Why Mel Gibson Couldn’t Do ‘Gladiator’?
Mel Gibson had a remarkable time in the 90s following the success of ‘Braveheart.’ During a panel at MegaCon Orlando in February last year, he shared the story and how he still thinks about it. He told the fans that at some point, he still wishes he had taken the role.
Related: Is Mel Gibson’s ‘Braveheart’ Based On A True Story? Is It Historically Accurate?
“You go back and you think, ‘Well, I wish I’d done that,‘” he told the crowd. “Ridley [Scott] came to me with Gladiator and I didn’t do that either. But I was doing The Patriot, so I couldn’t do The Gladiator, so Russell got it, and he did a great job. It’s kind of interesting, the things you missed.“
Scheduling Conflict Between ‘Gladiator’ and ‘The Patriot’
It was all about timing. ‘The Patriot‘, directed by Roland Emmerich, was already in development in 2000, which coincided with the time ‘Gladiator‘ was preparing to begin production.
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Because of the massive travel and labor involved, it was not something that could be managed. Gibson had already done a large-scale historical project with ‘Braveheart‘, and he could not do two back-to-back projects of that scale.
Mel Gibson’s Honest Reflection on the Missed Role
Scott established a clear plan for ‘Gladiator‘ early on. The film promised sweeping battle scenes and enormous political intrigue, that would evoke a completely different style of storytelling. Gibson would have been a good fit because of his on-screen charisma and prior box office hits. However, he opted to do ‘The Patriot‘, a major project in its own right.
Crowe then took on the role, and in addition to making it his own and winning an Oscar, helped cement the film’s status as a classic.
Interestingly, Gibson is not bitter about how things turned out. He recalls Crowe’s performance and realises it was simply a case of timing and luck not being on his side. Fans often argue it would have been a completely different beast with Gibson in the role. But Crowe’s performance remains definitive, even if somewhere in another version of events, Gibson might have done it differently.
You might also want to read: Ridley Scott Reveals Russell Crowe Wanted His Character Maximus “To Come Back From The Dead” For ‘Gladiator II’
