Gladiator Maximus and Lucilla backstory?

Submitted by Confident_Lock_2032 t3_11c9tmd in movies

I have a question, did lucilla choose Lucius Verus over Maximus in the past or was she forced to do so?Maximus was telling her you have the talent to survive and Lucilla mentioned she hurt Maximus a lot more than he did to her. If this is Lucilla's choice and not family pressure, it means that Lucilla's feelings for Maximus are not strong. Maximus is talking about Lucilla's lie. Did Lucilla hide that she was engaged or did she trick Maximus . If Lucilla chose Verus consciously, it means she doesn't love Maximus.

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Mnemosense t1_ja2fw8w wrote

I don't think there's any way to hide an engagement, that kind of thing is public knowledge.

It was probably a simple case of them being lovers when they were young, and then she was chosen to marry a dude for political reasons.

Neither Max nor Lucilla had a say in the matter. In fact their relationship was likely secret (Max is far below Lucilla on the ladder of power), and the Emperor found out about it via spies, but because he's so chill he didn't have Max tortured to death for sleeping with his betters.

The line about survival is just Max being bitter and ironic I think. He'd also be aware that as a woman her choices would be limited, powerful though she is.

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lostpatrol t1_ja2je9b wrote

Maximus was probably a provincial nobility in Spain. He was far too young to be a general of the whole northern army if he worked himself up from a soldier. He also moved casually enough among the senators, civilians and leaders that he would have been upper class for a long time, if not since birth.

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Mnemosense t1_ja2kn5i wrote

Not marriage material for the Emperor's daughter though, he would have had a chance if he were a governor or something. "Keep your enemies close" and all that.

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martinmartinez123 t1_ja2jrz0 wrote

It's possible he didn't have the status to marry the daughter of the Emperor because he wasn't Roman by birth or ethnicity.

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NoHandBananaNo t1_ja5fv0x wrote

Were the Romans prejudiced in that way tho? They seem like they were fairly cosmopolitan.

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Confident_Lock_2032 OP t1_ja41pa5 wrote

I agree that it had absolutely nothing to do with Maximus not being noble.It may have been political, but it had nothing to do with nobility.

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Confident_Lock_2032 OP t1_ja2l74o wrote

It is actually very common for soldiers to marry empire girls. In real history, Lucilla marries a Syrian general.

There are 2 possibilities in the movie, either Lucilla's choice or Lucilla's family.

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DarkEngineX t1_ja2o4ze wrote

I always interpreted it like Maximus is the ultimate straight arrow. Lucilla is still a politician born into politics. They aren't compatible people although they might have had an interest in each other growing up. I interpreted it like Lucilla did what she could to survive. She's not evil like Commodus but she's not a hero like Maximus.

You can get glimpses of their clash of thinking throughout the film when they butt heads with each other. Maximus is all about doing what he believes is just and right, and Lucilla just wants to protect her child.

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Confident_Lock_2032 OP t1_ja2r1np wrote

>I always interpreted it like Maximus is the ultimate straight arrow. Lucilla is still a politician born into politics. They aren't compatible people although they might have had an interest in each other growing up. I interpreted it like Lucilla did what she could to survive. She's not evil like Commodus but she's not a hero like Maximus.

So did this affect luccila's choice of who she would marry? Is maximus' allusion to this?

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NoHandBananaNo t1_ja5g0iq wrote

I agree with this take.

They are attracted to each other but their values are not compatible.

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