A gay kiss was cut from Gladiator 2, and fans want it back - INTO
Release The Denzel Cut

A gay kiss was cut from Gladiator 2, and fans want it back

Jude Cramer

Any historian can tell you that ancient Rome was all kinds of fruity, but that side of Roman society didn’t make the cut of Ridley Scott’s upcoming movie Gladiator 2. The film is filled to the brim with the gays’ favorite heartthrobs, including Paul Mescal, Pedro Pascal, and Denzel Washington, but there’s nary a gay kiss to be seen — but according to a new interview, one was left on the cutting room floor.

Speaking to Gayety, Washington — who plays Macrinus, a former slave with plans to take over Rome — revealed that his own character had a queer moment that didn’t make the cut.

“I actually kissed a man in the film, but they took it out. They cut it. I think they got chicken,” Washington said. “I kissed a guy full on the lips, and I guess they weren’t ready for that yet. I killed him about five minutes later, but! It’s Gladiator. It’s the kiss of death.”

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Naturally, fans are devastated at this revelation. Washington was game, the folks on set were game, but a post-production decision kept the kiss from seeing the light of day!? The injustice of it all! Folks across the internet quickly called for studio executives to release “the Denzel cut,” or at least to keep the kiss’ existence to themselves if they weren’t going to let us see it.

Gladiator II is still bound to have plenty for the gays to enjoy when it hits theaters on November 22. Oiled up men in skirts fighting to the death? Sounds like a good time. Check out the trailer below.

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