The Best Real-Life Military Leaders in the ‘Gladiator’ Movies, Ranked

Ridley Scott’s two “Gladiator” movies aren’t exactly real history, but they are based on real history.

In 2000’s “Gladiator,” Maximus Decimus Meridius (Russell Crowe) wasn’t a real person, but rather an amalgamation of characters. It’s a shame there was no actual Gen. Maximus, because it seemed like he was the only person in these movies capable of actually leading men in combat. “Gladiator 2,” which hits theaters on Nov. 22, 2024, also prominently features a fictional military leader in the form of Marcus Acacius (Pedro Pascal), a former protege of Maximus who ends up reduced to fighting as a gladiator.

These portrayals are enough to make us wonder if any of the real historical figures depicted in these movies was an actual combat leader -- and then, of course, rank them. Here’s a rundown of the real-life military commanders in the “Gladiator” franchise and how they rate compared to one another:

1. Marcus Aurelius

This should be a surprise to no one -- at least not to anyone with a passing knowledge of Roman history. Marcus Aurelius (played by Richard Harris) wasn’t just any Roman emperor, but arguably one of the best leaders Rome ever had. The end of his reign marked the end of a golden age for the empire, one famously known as the Pax Romana (“Roman peace”). Rome was at the height of its power, unmatched in military and economic might.

Don’t let the name fool you: The time period was anything but peaceful -- especially under Marcus Aurelius. Almost immediately upon becoming emperor (a role he initially shared), the empire was threatened by Parthians in the east and Germanic tribes in the north. After co-emperor Lucius crushed the Parthians in Mesopotamia, Marcus Aurelius directed the Roman counterattack on the Germanic tribes in what is today the Czech Republic. It would take the legions 14 years to subdue more than 18 tribes and secure Rome’s borders. The mental effort required to kill so many of Rome’s enemies not only led the emperor to contribute heavily to the philosophy of stoicism (through his work, “Meditations”), it also killed him.

2. Marcus Opellius Macrinus

I don’t want to ruin the end of “Gladiator 2” for anyone, but Macrinus (played by Denzel Washington) becomes emperor in 217 AD. Before ascending to the highest office in the empire, however, he had to work his way up. He served as the prefect of the imperial Praetorian Guard (which you might remember were excellent sword fodder for Maximus). While on a campaign against the Parthians, Macrinus recruited one of his troops to murder Caracalla, the sitting emperor. A few days later, Macrinus declared himself emperor.

Because he was so skilled a military leader, he had the support of the Roman army, which meant the Senate supported his claim. Macrinus fought the Parthians to a draw, made peace with Armenians and ended the wars with Dacia. His downfall came when Caracalla’s heir captured the attention of a legion and led a revolt. That army would hunt Macrinus down at Antioch, defeat his forces and then (eventually) capture and kill him.

3. Quintus Aemilius Laetus

Another prefect of the Praetorian Guard, Quintus Aemilius Laetus never rises to the level of emperor, but he does spark a change in leadership. You might remember him as the turncoat who tried to throw Maximus under the bus at the beginning of the original “Gladiator” (and you might remember the actor who portrayed Quintus, Tomas Arana, as the son of a bitch who shot Borodin in “The Hunt for Red October”).

Quintus really was appointed as prefect of the Praetorian Guard by Commodus, just like in the movie. But Commodus wasn’t killed by a gladiator who used to be a general. When Quintus learned that he was on a list of people the emperor was going to have executed, he recruited a professional wrestler named Narcissus to strangle Commodus in his bathroom. The prefect’s scheming led to the “Year of the Five Emperors,” a series of civil wars and his own death at the hands of Didius Julianus (the second of the five emperors). Quintus spent just two years as prefect of the guard.

4. Commodus

Commodus became emperor at around the age of 18, upon his father’s death, just like in “Gladiator” (in which he was portrayed by Joaquin Phoenix). Also like the movie, Commodus went a little batshit crazy, but what the movie didn’t show were the series of coups and assassination attempts that slowly drove the young emperor to an increasingly unstable and dictatorial rule. The empire itself was actually at peace for much of Commodus’ rule.

He eventually began competing as a gladiator, which, according to the historian Herodian, most Romans thought was beneath the office of emperor. After all, the emperor could go out and kill actual barbarians if he wanted to. Presumably, no one told Commodus this, because he was accustomed to killing entire families of Roman civilians who displeased him. He went undefeated throughout his reign because every opponent eventually submitted. (Except for Narcissus, that is.)

5. Caracalla

Caracalla (played by Fred Hechinger in “Gladiator 2”), was the son of Emperor Septimius Severus, who elevated him to co-emperor when Caracalla was just nine years old. His father had just declared victory against those pesky Parthians and would go on to beat up on Gallic tribes, and wage war successfully in Africa and Britain before dying of illness near modern-day York. Caracalla did none of that, and when his father died, his brother Geta rose to co-emperor status. Geta would last less than a year after his father’s death before being murdered by the soldiers loyal to Caracalla.

In 213 AD, little more than a year after Geta was murdered, Caracalla left Rome as the sole emperor and headed north. The age-old problems of Germanic tribes and Parthians had popped back up. The emperor began openly likening himself to Alexander the Great, even going so far as to start dressing like him. That wouldn’t be so bad, except he invaded the Parthians by putting his Legions in a Greek phalanx formation, a formation that the Legions made obsolete. But it wasn’t the Parthians who killed him. Macrinus used a disgruntled legionnaire who was passed over for promotion to murder Caracalla, then took the throne for himself.

6. Geta

As mentioned earlier, Geta was the son of Emperor Septimius Severus and brother to Caracalla. He was raised to the level of co-emperor in 209 AD, which meant Rome was led by three emperors until Severus died in 211 AD. After Severus’ death, the two brothers’ house was literally divided into two camps, and the division got so bad, they almost divided the entire Roman Empire between them. Instead, Caracalla had his brother murdered in front of his mother.

Geta was never much of a military commander like his father or brother. He was better suited to the administrative duties of the empire instead of plotting and scheming, which probably explains why he never saw his own murder coming.

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