Ridley Scott disputes Denzel's claim of cut kiss in sequel
Director Ridley Scott has firmly denied Denzel Washington's claims that a gay kiss scene involving the actor was cut from the film "Gladiator II".
In an interview promoting the much-anticipated sequel to Gladiator, Denzel Washington stated that he kissed a man in one scene, but the scene was removed from the film. "I kissed a man in the movie, but they cut it out. I think they chickened out," he told Gayety.
After stirring up controversy with his comments, Washington softened his earlier statement by clarifying that there was no kiss in the cut scene, only a peck. "Much ado about nothing," the actor told "Variety" magazine. "They're making more out of it than it was. I kissed his hands, gave him a peck, and then killed him."
The director of "Gladiator 2" presented a different version of events
In a recent interview, the director of "Gladiator 2" addressed the issue. Ridley Scott denies that such a kiss ever took place. A "Variety" journalist brought it up with Scott: "Denzel said he kissed a man on the lips, but it didn't make it into the film's final cut." The director firmly denied it: "No, that's nonsense."
Another situation involving an improvised kiss occurred on the "Gladiator II" set. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Paul Mescal revealed that during a fight scene rehearsal with Pedro Pascal, he suggested a kiss on the forehead. "I did it in one of the takes and asked Ridley over the radio: 'A forehead kiss, did you like it? Yes or no?' Mescal recounted. The director replied: 'I'm afraid I did.'"
You can watch "Gladiator 2" in cinemas starting from 15th November. After the first weekend of screening, the film drew about 280,000 viewers in Poland. It seems it was only surpassed by "Letters to Santa: Farewells and Returns".
